Cowboy boots epitomize America’s approach to style. From the flat rubber-soled option yanked on in the predawn hours of a long shift to the couture-adjacent styles headed to a televised red carpet, the origins of cowboy boots “are incredibly practical,” says Deirdre Clemente, the associate director of UNLV’s public history program.

Did recent beauty and style trends that evoke “old money,” the pastoral past and the “clean girl” aesthetic predict Donald Trump’s reelection? Quite possibly, at least if you ask the internet’s fashion girlies.

Blue suit, white shirt, red tie... Since his youth, Donald Trump, who is a candidate in the American presidential election and whose results will potentially be broadcast this Tuesday, November 5, has always dressed in his traditional attire. An outfit that has almost become his trademark. "He seems to have worn the same red tie since the 1970s. It seems to have gotten longer," Deirdre Clemente, a history professor at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas, told Sky News. "It's his way of projecting power, confidence and stability," she said.

An outfit for every occasion: this is becoming the motto that sees the two candidates for the White House also focus on their look to win over new voters. In the run-up to the vote, Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have adapted their clothing to the image they want to convey as leaders. Both generally opt for classic clothing: the vice president in a sober suit with heels, the tycoon in his classic dark Brioni suits with red tie. Every time they depart from these "uniforms", as the Wall Street Journal also points out, they are sending strategic messages to voters, in an attempt to reach even the last American who is still undecide

The style choices of politicians have long been scrutinised by voters and the media. Women have historically been subject to more inspection for their looks than men. But all politicians are communicating through their style, according to two experts.

With election day in the US approaching, candidates are courting voters with everything they’ve got: targeted ads, texts, taunts and stump speeches. As a fashion historian, I think an overlooked aspect of electioneering is clothing, which is a silent, powerful way for candidates to tell the American public who they are. It’s an act as old as power itself.

On August 29, Gap posted strong earnings that pleased investors, doubling net income from a year prior and blowing past revenue expectations to $3.7 billion in the second quarter. It’s a triumphant comeback for the company that has been struggling in recent years. With the exit of leaders like Sonia Syngal and a 7% drop in sales, new CEO Richard Dickson, who took over last year, has been working to turn things around at Gap. The numbers show that the plan is working.

With Election Day approaching, candidates are courting voters with everything they’ve got: targeted ads, texts, taunts and stump speeches. As a fashion historian, I think an overlooked aspect of electioneering is clothing, which is a silent, powerful way for candidates to tell the American public who they are.