MAGA movement

Last updated

MAGA movement
Leader Donald Trump
FoundedJune 16, 2015;10 years ago (June 16, 2015)
Ideology
Political position Right-wing to far-right
National affiliation Republican Party
Slogan Make America Great Again

The Make America Great Again movement (MAGA movement) is an American political movement that began with Donald Trump's announcement initiating a campaign in the 2016 United States presidential election. The movement is closely aligned with Trumpism, a set of ideologies and beliefs surrounding Trump.

Contents

History

2015–2016: Establishment and Trump's initial victory

In June 2015, the businessman Donald Trump announced that he was running for president in the 2016 United States presidential election. His campaign employed the term "make America great again", a political slogan previously associated with Ronald Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign and mentioned by president Bill Clinton several times. [7] Trump used the phrase in his announcement speech to criticize other presidential candidates as "controlled fully by the lobbyists". [8] The phrase was also used on Trump's campaign website [9] and by Texas senator Ted Cruz in praising Trump for announcing his presidential campaign. [10] In an interview with The Washington Post , Trump stated that he thought of the phrase after the 2012 presidential election and filed for a trademark five days later; the trademark came into effect a month after Trump announced his campaign. [11] Merchandise containing the phrase "Make America Great Again" was sold at Trump Tower. [12] The phrase was also used on baseball caps worn by Trump as early as July, in a visit to Laredo, Texas. [13] It was additionally the name of two political action committees supporting Trump's campaign. [14]

2017–2021: Trump's first presidency

As the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States exacerbated in March 2020, conflicting beliefs on the severity of the disease and how the federal government should respond divided the MAGA movement, though supporters of Trump remained steadfast in seeking to contain COVID-19 to ensure Trump's victory in the 2020 presidential election. [15] The threat of COVID-19 was made apparent to followers of the MAGA movement after warnings from Trump's health officials; nonetheless, several Trump supporters articulated that Trump's response could be extreme. [16] Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, received criticism from a minority of far-right Trump supporters for his apparent political beliefs. [17] As protests began across the United States in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, followers of the MAGA movement vociferously opposed the political slogan "defund the police". [18] Several members approached demonstrations with counterprotests, a development that resulted in the killings of Aaron Danielson and Michael Reinoehl, a Trump supporter and his alleged killer, respectively, and the Kenosha unrest shooting, in which Kyle Rittenhouse shot three men, killing two. [19]

As the results of the 2020 presidential election were broadcast, Trump publicly criticized Fox News for being the first news network to declare that Joe Biden had won the election in Arizona. His comments resulted in some members of the MAGA movement shifting towards news networks such as One America News Network and Newsmax, which embraced false claims of electoral fraud more vigorously than Fox News, and towards social networks such as Parler. Newsmax received criticism itself from QAnon supporters, who denounced the network's use of a photograph of a man wearing a hoodie to illustrate white nationalism, and Parler faced false allegations that it was owned by the investor and philanthropist George Soros, the subject of conspiracy theories from Trump's supporters. [20]

2022–2024: Post-presidency

2025–present: Trump's second presidency

Activities

Foreign involvement and recognition

Ahead of the 2019 Canadian federal election, accounts on Twitter identifying themselves as members of the MAGA movement mounted a failed campaign to defeat the Liberal Party and its leader, Justin Trudeau. [21] In Mexico, protests against the country's president, Claudia Sheinbaum, following the assassination of Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo in November 2025 received support from members of the MAGA movement. [22]

After the 2024 Romanian presidential election was held and promptly annulled amid allegations of Russian interference, the resulting election the following year received attention from the MAGA movement. The controversy over Călin Georgescu's disqualification was brought to several MAGA figures by Adrian Thiess, a Romanian political fixer. [23]

The MAGA movement has attracted an international audience, particularly from traditionalist conservatives in the United Kingdom. British prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss began appearing at several events hosted for the MAGA movement after their premierships. [24] Ahead of local elections in May 2025, Nigel Farage began hosting political events similar to MAGA rallies. [25]

Amid concerns that the Alternative for Germany would be banned for political extremism after the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution classified the party as right-wing extremist, several party officials began meeting with MAGA figures to protect itself. [26]

Ideology

Ian Goldin, a professor of globalization at the University of Oxford, stated that the MAGA movement was bolstered by economic inequality and anxiety, conditions that persisted through Trump's second term. [27]

According to Laura K. Field in Furious Minds (2025), intellectuals in the MAGA movement comprise several primary ideological associations centered around differing ideals, but connected through a collective disdain for liberalism.. Field's groupings include individuals associated with the Claremont Institute, postliberals, and Christian nationalists; Field additionally notes the existence of a loose collective on the peripheries of the MAGA movement that engages in a hypermasculine and Chauvinistic aesthetic and rhetoric with absurdist names, such as Raw Egg Nationalist and Bronze Age Pervert. [28]

Conflicts

According to Politico , the MAGA movement has been defined by internal conflicts as early as December 2016, when members of the movement conflicted over ideologies at inauguration parties. [20]

Composition

As of November 2025, over a third of Republicans do not consider themselves to be MAGA Republicans, according to a Politico poll. [29]

Notable individuals

Political theorists associated with the MAGA movement include Patrick Deneen, a University of Notre Dame professor who authored Why Liberalism Failed (2018). [30]

The MAGA movement was influenced by the political activist Charlie Kirk, who was assassinated in September 2025. [31]

Marketing and communication

Branding and symbolism

The MAGA hat is a symbol for the MAGA movement. Jesus Preachers Womens March IMG 1878 (32359571132).jpg
The MAGA hat is a symbol for the MAGA movement.

Rallies

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "MAGA movement". Britannica . Retrieved April 2, 2025.
  2. ↑ Ward, Ian (July 31, 2025). "The Online Right's Favorite Nativist Slogan Is Gaining Traction in the Real World". Politico.
  3. ↑ "MAGA's deep divide over spending". Politico. December 20, 2024.
  4. ↑ "The New Christian Right". Washington Monthly. October 29, 2024.
  5. ↑ "The Technocracy of Elon Musk: A New Era of Governance or the Folly of a Teenager?". Voice of New York. February 11, 2025.
  6. ↑ "MAGA civil war: How a white nationalist blew up the American right". France24. November 14, 2025.
  7. ↑ Itkowitz, Colby (June 17, 2015). "Help Donald Trump pick an original campaign slogan". The Washington Post . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  8. ↑ Burns, Alexander (June 16, 2015). "Choice Words From Donald Trump, Presidential Candidate". The New York Times . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  9. ↑ Gass, Nick (June 16, 2015). "Donald Trump's greatest 2016 tweets". Politico . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  10. ↑ Karni, Annie; Lerner, Adam (June 16, 2015). "Trump says he's running for president, really". Politico . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  11. ↑ Tumulty, Karen (January 17, 2017). "How Donald Trump came up with 'Make America Great Again'". The Washington Post . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  12. ↑ Chaban, Matt (July 13, 2015). "An Altar to Donald Trump Swallows Up Public Space in Manhattan". The New York Times . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  13. ↑ Tschorn, Adam (July 24, 2015). "Donald Trump's madcap hat has two parody Twitter accounts -- and trademark protection". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  14. ↑ Mak, Aaron (July 31, 2015). "Trump lovers set up PACs". Politico . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  15. ↑ Nguyen, Tina (March 16, 2020). "Trump finds his MAGA movement fracturing over coronavirus". Politico . Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  16. ↑ Nguyen, Tina (March 22, 2020). "A new MAGA movement debate: Is Trump overdoing it?". Politico . Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  17. ↑ Nguyen, Tina (March 24, 2020). "Anthony Fauci becomes a fringe MAGA target". Politico . Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  18. ↑ Nguyen, Tina (June 10, 2020). "Trump's MAGA base finds its own rallying cry: Defend the police". Politico . Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  19. ↑ Nguyen, Tina (September 4, 2020). "The MAGA movement hits the streets — and Trump latches on". Politico . Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  20. 1 2 Nguyen, Tina (November 14, 2020). "Trump's media favorites battle for the Trump trophy". Politico . Retrieved January 17, 2025.
  21. ↑ Stanley-Becker, Isaac (October 22, 2019). "The online MAGA movement tried to take down Canada's Justin Trudeau. It fell short". The Washington Post . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  22. ↑ Dale Leal, Nicholas (November 19, 2025). "El mundo MAGA usa las protestas contra Sheinbaum para alentar la intervención militar en México" [MAGA movement uses protests against Sheinbaum to encourage military intervention in Mexico]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved January 17, 2026.
  23. ↑ Casey, Nicholas (June 10, 2025). "Why the MAGA Right Became Obsessed With the Romanian Election". The New York Times Magazine . Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  24. ↑ McElvoy, Anna (November 20, 2025). "'I Never Heard of Her': Liz Truss Hits the MAGA Speaking Trail". Politico Magazine . Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  25. ↑ Castle, Stephen; Landler, Mark (April 30, 2025). "Why Nigel Farage is Bringing MAGA-Style Rallies to Britain". The New York Times . Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  26. ↑ Pitel, Laura (January 15, 2026). "German far right courts Donald Trump and Maga in hunt for powerful friends". Financial Times . Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  27. ↑ Cohen, Patricia (April 28, 2025). "Why Trump's Economic Disruption Will Be Hard to Reverse". The New York Times . Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  28. ↑ Szalai, Jennifer (December 17, 2025). "The Intellectuals Fueling the MAGA Movement". The New York Times . Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  29. ↑ Wren, Adam (November 28, 2025). "How Trump's base could break". Politico . Retrieved January 18, 2026.
  30. ↑ Stark, Holger (January 10, 2026). "Diesmal ohne Blumen im Haar" [This time without flowers in their hair]. Die Zeit (in German). Retrieved January 20, 2026.
  31. ↑ Voght, Kara (December 22, 2025). "At AmericaFest, the post-Kirk MAGA movement met at a crossroads". The Washington Post . Retrieved January 26, 2026.
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