In The Shadow of a Giant: How GOP Candidates Strategically Positioned Themselves Around Trump in the 2024 Primary.
When it comes to presidential primaries, much of the focus tends to be on what candidates say — but what about where they go, and when? Political campaigns have always been a choreographed dance, with candidates carefully plotting where and when to make appearances. But what happens when one contestant dominates the dance floor? The 2024 Republican primary featured former President Donald Trump as the overwhelming frontrunner, creating a unique dynamic where other candidates had to make strategic decisions: should they follow in Trump’s footsteps, or deliberately chart their own path? This article presents a data-driven analysis of how Republican presidential hopefuls positioned themselves relative to Trump throughout the primary campaign. Using a novel “shadow zone” approach, we examined 1,741 campaign events to reveal previously unseen patterns in campaign strategy and t answer a subtle but important question: Did GOP candidates follow Trump’s campaign trail to tap into his media buz...