Why are Democrats donkeys and Republicans elephants?

Question

Where'd those symbols come from?

Answer 1

It was Thomas Nast (1840-1902), a political cartoonist drawing for Harper's Weekly, who in the early '60s first came up with the idea of representing the political parties as animals. The Republicans as elephants they being the liberals whose time had come and couldn't be stopped, and Democrats as donkeys, they being the hard core conservatives too stubborn to see the writing on the wall. Times have really changed, haven't they? Nast, in a cartoon in '61, also created the popular, and now universal, image of Santa Clause.

Answer 2

This question has been asked several times lately. I'm not sure of the history, but the reasoning is obvious.

Elephants are very regal & majestic animals, blessed with communications skills that rival any in the animal kingdom (their subsonic vocals can be heard by other elephants over many miles), they're immensely strong yet dexterous enough to pick individual leaves from a twig, they have incredible memories, are very wise compared to most other animals, and are extremely protective of the herd.

Donkeys are stubborn jackasses, good for pulling a plough or cart (but only if they feel like it) and little else.

Answer 3

Democrats are stubborn and for the working classes Republicans are not able to forget and are for the business classes

Answer 4

donkeys = dumb ||||||| elephants = smart i think