Generally, people can be counted on to vote for who they identify with over what may be in their best interest.
This seems especially true in the US. It’s odd that Americans often vote like this, for example, union members voting for Ronald Reagan.
The re-election of Barack Obama sent a message to political handlers that big shifts have arrived.
The US really is a melting pot now. It was a melting pot before, but there was a dominant group in the mix, white folks. Now, trotting out a white male father figure isn’t going to capture enough hearts of the voters to win. Not that there’s something wrong with a white male father figure, but he needs to pitch a bigger tent now because there’re just more non-white, non-male, non-father figures voting these days in the US.
Look at how our sports are viewed and what’s happening. You can claim baseball is the national pastime; but more people actually enjoy football and basketball. Not that there’s anything wrong with baseball. There’re just not as many baseball fans anymore.
The message being presented needs to appeal to a broader group. The old pitch from a traditional figure was made and received, but there aren’t as many people identifying with it anymore.