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Introduction

In contemporary American politics, one of the few things that both sides of the political spectrum can agree on is that politics has become increasingly polarized since the mid-2010s. Long gone are the days of John McCain defending Barack Obama from false claims about his citizenship, and of the 1984 presidential candidates joking about their ages. Nowadays, the political divide in the United States is almost impossible to cross, as increased levels of political polarization are reflected both within the politicians and the constituents that they serve. Both Democrats and Republicans in Congress have moved further from the ideological center in the previous few decades (DeSilver, 2022), and eight out of every 10 American voters believe that Democratic and Republican voters cannot even agree on basic facts (Shearer, 2025). There have been various proposed causes for this polarization, ranging from Putnam’s theory of social capital to the effects of social media. However, the fact remains that this polarization—especially on the political right—has been taken further by a handful of highly influential figures who have taken it upon themselves to actively personify their movements.

The trend of American right-wing politics adopting larger-than-life personas who fight every day for their cause finds its roots within the showmanship of professional wrestling. Mixing the athleticism of real, Olympic-style wrestling with the scripted theatrics of a Broadway production, professional wrestling has become a mainstay in American popular culture. The biggest and most well-known professional wrestling company is World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), as it grew from a regional company in the 1950s to a multi-billion-dollar organization in the 2020s. Much of that growth can be attributed to the highly controversial Vince McMahon, who led the company for decades before stepping down when faced with a federal lawsuit from a former WWE employee who accused McMahon of sexual misconduct and abuse (The Associated Press, 2024). Behind the scenes, McMahon led the company as its CEO, but on-screen, he played the character of “Mr. McMahon.” McMahon portrayed the villainous heel for the heroic faces like Terry ‘Hulk Hogan’ Bollea, ‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin, and John Cena. McMahon often blended reality and fiction—otherwise known as kayfabe—in his performances, as the more authentic the product felt, the more that McMahon could control his audience (Rehn, 2025). This control was what all professional wrestlers seek, as the ability to be a successful heel or a face hinged on the cult of personality that they could cultivate.

The ability to elicit either positive or negative emotions in an audience is necessary in the world of professional wrestling, and this ability is becoming increasingly needed in the world of American politics. Evolving from the uneventful, policy-driven discussions with the occasional flare-up of the past, modern politics require aggressive and theatrical performances to gain support for one side while disparaging the other. Common ground has all but disappeared, as the “us-versus-them” mentality common in professional wrestling storylines has become the political standard. Figures like Donald Trump and Charlie Kirk have not offered much respect for their ideological opponents, as that would tarnish the image that they have built up. The MAGA movement and Turning Point USA are reflections of these performances, as people have bought into their performances. Like the character of “Mr. McMahon,” Trump and Kirk both have adopted larger-than-life personas and have embraced the showmanship popularized by professional wrestling. American politics has become a wrestling ring, with voters taking the role of the fans cheering them on.

Donald Trump and the MAGA Movement

President Trump is no stranger to the world of professional wrestling, as he has been closely associated with the McMahon family for decades and has appeared several times on WWE programming. Having a background in reality television with his show The Apprentice, Trump came into the world of politics already knowing how to make himself appear as a charismatic and powerful individual in front of a camera. However, his experiences in professional wrestling gave him valuable insights on how to capitalize on the anti-establishment sentiment integral to his 2015 presidential campaign. In 2015, he set himself apart from the rest of the Republican base by using the tactics of a heel to draw all the attention to himself. Unlike other, more moderate candidates like Jeb Bush, Ben Carson, and Carly Fiorina, Trump went on the offensive, attacking them for their familial associations, religious beliefs, and even physical appearances (Rappeport, 2015). These are all common tactics within professional wrestling, as such offensive remarks are used by heels to polarize their audience. It is within that polarization that Trump has thrived, as the results of the 2015 primary elections and 2016 presidential elections demonstrated that Republicans were tired of the moderate, party-centric candidates that have been the norm since the period of Reagan.

Furthermore, Trump has utilized such rhetoric in each of his presidential campaigns to prop himself up as an outsider and anti-establishment populist who would bring massive change to Washington. Unlike the broad, “up-down” populism utilized by politicians like Bernie Sanders, Trump utilizes a right-wing populist approach where the dynamic is still the people against the elites, but “the people” are taken advantage of by the elites for the benefit of outsiders like Muslim immigrants (Kazin, 2016). The populist approach was not necessarily unique to American politics in 2015, as major political figures in the past, such as Sanders and, to a lesser extent, Barack Obama, have utilized populist rhetoric and have achieved political success (Pew Research Center, 2015). However, Trump’s scapegoating of immigrants, combined with the oratory skills he developed and refined in the WWE, led to what many perceived as an upset victory in the 2016 election. In the primaries and the presidential debates, Trump dominated the microphone using a populist approach, regardless of whether his words were politically offensive or divisive (Hofstra, 2024). Trump’s goal was to appeal to a base that was desperate for a figure that spoke to their feelings and beliefs, and, using the tactics employed by the likes of Hulk Hogan and The Rock, he played that role masterfully.

On the campaign trail and throughout both of his presidencies, Trump has continued to build and rely on his cult of personality. The Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement is centered around Trump himself, not his ideologies. Whether it be Trump’s foray into cryptocurrency, appearing on various podcasts and Fox News, or dedicating a section of the Oval Office to his branded apparel, some of which state in bold letters that “TRUMP WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING,” the MAGA movement is centered on the concept of an all-important, infallible man (Mills & Wu, 2025). Especially in his second presidency, where political drama is the norm, Trump has consistently kept himself at the center of attention for the media and voters alike. The goal of a showman is to control one’s audience, and Trump has done so for over a decade in American politics. However, as Trump’s time in office will presumably be coming to a close in 2028, the MAGA movement is searching for someone to take the mantle. As is common within professional wrestling, there are always opportunities for surprise returns and a passing of the torch. Yet, there is no major frontrunner; the MAGA brand is inextricably tied to Donald Trump himself, and no one has been able to capture Trump’s unique charisma and appeal that have defined his political career.

Charlie Kirk and Turning Point USA

In recent years, one of the few right-wing American political figures who embodied levels of charisma and popular appeal close to that of Trump was Charlie Kirk. Kirk, similarly to Trump, utilized a unique style of discourse that made him the center of attention wherever he went. This was best exemplified by his college debate series, where Kirk would travel to various campuses across the country to debate with students. Kirk was a skilled orator and knew how to control a conversation, as many of the clips from his debates would go viral. As crowds gathered around him, Kirk, using only a microphone and a camera, positioned himself as someone who embodied the next generation of conservatives. Much like Trump and the MAGA movement, Kirk also embodied his own movement with Turning Point USA (TPUSA). Kirk was a co-founder of TPUSA in 2012 when he was just 18 years old, and he led the group for over a decade in spreading conservative viewpoints on high school and college campuses. Kirk was often theatrical and controversial in his media appearances, as he consistently polarized those around him to either be with him or against him. Like Trump and other professional wrestlers, Kirk maintained a polarizing persona that allowed him to become a national phenomenon, as people who both supported and disagreed with him still flocked in droves to his events. Even the most skilled wrestlers would find it a nearly impossible task to gain the support that Kirk amassed in just a few short years as a media personality and leader of TPUSA.

Kirk seemed poised for a long career as a right-wing commentator and potentially as a politician, as more and more people were drawn to Kirk and his TPUSA movement. However, on September 10, 2025, Kirk was assassinated during a debate at Utah Valley �Թ���. Kirk’s death was shocking, as figures across the political spectrum came together to condemn the assassination and mourn his death. However, even after his passing, he was still a polarizing figure. Kirk had been a longtime adversary of college professors, whom he viewed as pushing an overly leftist ideology at the expense of conservative students. In 2016, he created a “Professor Watchlist” to document such educators (Bunn & Kingkade, 2025); following his assassination, there were several controversial decisions where educators whose responses to the assassination were deemed inappropriate were either suspended or fired (Kingkade, 2025; Zaru & Jones, 2025). His supporters also banded together in response to his funeral, as his podcast and book sales all rose significantly in the wake of his assassination (Genovese, 2025). Kirk lived a life where he captivated polarized audiences online and in person, and even after his passing, people were still divided in how to respond and view his life.

Kirk’s memorial service, held in his home state of Arizona, was not a typically calm, somber procession, but rather one reminiscent of a political rally. Erika Kirk, Charlie Kirk’s widow, entered the arena with a fireworks display and addressed an eager crowd, saying she forgave his assassin because “it was what Christ did and what Charlie would do” (Landers & Adams, 2025). However, other figures who spoke at the event further fanned the flames of polarization. President Trump and White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller called for retribution against Kirk’s political opponents, while describing Kirk as a martyr whose legacy would live on through the movement he created (Levinson-King, 2025). Even at a memorial service, the showman in Trump was still apparent, as he harkened back to the rhetoric he used on the campaign trail. After his assassination, TPUSA has found a new figure to lead it in Erika Kirk, as she has made several media appearances in the months following her husband’s assassination in September. Now that the movement has found someone to continue his work and thousands of people across the country want to join his movement (Rahman, 2025), Kirk’s polarizing legacy will live on.

Conclusion

Professional wrestling has ebbed and flowed in popularity over the years, as there are those who continue to support the industry while others chastise it as nothing more than cheap entertainment. However, one aspect remains clear: the skills required to succeed in professional wrestling are becoming increasingly transferable to the polarized American political sphere. The ability to influence and speak to the hearts and minds of audiences on a global scale is something unique, suited to professional wrestling. If wrestlers cannot convince an audience and draw strong reactions, they eventually move down the card and are eventually let go from the company. Figures like Trump and Kirk understood this fact well when they built their respective movements, as neither figure played it down the middle or attempted to win over everyone. After 2016, the Republican Party took this under consideration and has leaned more and more toward polarizing their base further to the right and away from the left. The Republican Party is intertwined with wrestling because both entities believe the people need someone extraordinary and magnetic to lead the way, as both the moves and policies that they employ are secondary to what the audience feels.

The theatrics used by the Republican Party and its major figures have not been widely adopted by the Democratic Party, as Democrats have polarized their platform less than the Republicans and are still mostly party-centric. But with the wins of progressive populists like Zohran Mamdani in New York and Katie Wilson in Seattle—both of whom have polarized voters around themselves—this trend could change in the future. Regardless, with figures like Linda McMahon as head of the Department of Education and her son-in-law and WWE CCO Paul ‘Triple H’ Levesque recently visiting the White House (Treene & Feldscher, 2025), it seems like Trump and the Republican Party will continue to embrace professional wrestling.

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References

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