I enjoy designing for election campaigns because it allows me to use my design skills to support a good cause. It's deeper than giving candidates a campaign look that goes beyond a forgettable red/white/blue logo inspired by the American flag. It's about giving these candidates a custom identity that emphasizes the unique qualities they want to portray to their constituents. I make sure to give them a brand identity, print materials, & social media collateral that makes them stand out in a sea of candidates.
I've worked for campaigns that have suffered brutal defeats, especially following the 2024 election. However, I won't let these defeats be the end of my political design career. Over these next few years, I want to continue using design to inspire hope & action, and there is definitely a big fight ahead of us.
I aim to push my political work to support progressive causes and the candidates & incumbents who support them.
For the past three election cycles, I've had the privilege of working with Alexis García-Arrazola through two Seaside City Council election campaigns and a short-lived run at the California State Assembly. Each campaign cycle saw a different brand identity that evolved with feedback from constituents while keeping its core values intact.
As a young Latino, Alexis represents a demographic that has long been underserved in Seaside, which is 46% Hispanic as of the 2020 Census. During college, Alexis served as an intern for U.S. Representative Grace F. Napolitano (CA-32) in Washington, D.C. and previously worked as a news personality for Spanish-language news stations in Monterey County.
The video in the header is created, produced, & edited by Josh Matadamas
|| CLIENT
Alexis García-Arrazola for Seaside City Council
Alexis García-Arrazola for Seaside City Council
|| SCOPE OF WORK
Campaign branding
Environmental graphics
Bilingual print materials
Bilingual social media graphics
Campaign branding
Environmental graphics
Bilingual print materials
Bilingual social media graphics
|| PROGRAMS USED
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe InDesign
Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe InDesign
Adobe Photoshop
|| 2020 BRANDING
For his initial campaign brand identity, Alexis wanted to use a sleek, modern logo to present himself as a candidate for change in the 21st century. Alexis wanted to highlight a thunderbolt to represent his position working for a local utility company & to entice potential voters into learning more about his campaign.With a slight margin of victory over two other opponents, Alexis won the second seat in the Seaside City Council in the Election of 2020.
|| BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD
Four years later, I was brought back to Councilmember García-Arrazola's re-election team! A top priority going into the 2024 campaign was a fresh brand identity that better connected Alexis with the City of Seaside.
The roots of this redesign came from the logo for Alexis' short-lived 2022 California State Assembly campaign brand identity, which had a more approachable color scheme & a bear that represents the State of California. The 2024 look returned the 2022 brand identity back to Seaside, replacing the bear with the seahorse found all over Seaside's city identity.
During campaign canvassing, the volunteers noticed that many Seaside constituents actually preferred the new 2024 campaign identity, as it felt more approachable & friendly than the 2020 campaign identity.
|| FINAL DELIVERABLES
In his first term, Alexis had worked to improve the city's infrastructure, foster collaborative relationships with small businesses, & create more equitable, affordable housing opportunities for Seaside residents. His bilingual 2024 campaign materials highlighted these first-term achievements & communicated his goals for another term.
Alexis was easily re-elected to the second seat in the Seaside City Council following the Election of 2024.
