(SeaPRwire) –   By: Gavin Thorne

The explosion of public profanity from top US politicians is not a sign of declining personal decorum. It is a calculated, widely adopted communication tactic that both major parties have leaned into over the past decade. Voters no longer trust polished, focus-grouped soundbites delivered with stiff, performative Capitol Hill polish. Campaign teams have found a well-timed curse word earns more base loyalty and media airtime than any carefully crafted policy address.

Cardiff University politics lecturer Dr Joseph Phillips published the data backing this trend this week. He tracked 692 documented public profanity instances from US presidents, vice presidents and presidential candidates dating back to 1919. 87% of all those recorded instances took place in the past 10 years alone. 78% of those recent cases come directly from Donald Trump and Joe Biden, the two most recent holders of the Oval Office. Woodrow Wilson was the first recorded president to swear publicly, in 1919.

The two leaders’ public use of expletives has made headlines repeatedly in recent years. Earlier this week, Trump responded to an Iranian attack on US forces in Jordan with a blunt, unscripted threat: “We’re going to beat the f**king s**t out of them.” Biden first drew widespread attention for public swearing in 2010, when a hot mic caught him telling then-President Obama the Affordable Care Act was a “big f**king deal.” Trump has expanded the range of profanities used in official presidential rhetoric significantly.

Phillips argues this shift reflects broader changes in US political communication, not just the personalities of the two leaders. Public trust in US political institutions is at near historic lows, and voters actively seek signals that a candidate is unscripted and authentic. Swearing is common in everyday casual speech, so using it in public appearances makes politicians feel more relatable to ordinary voters. It cuts through the constant noise of campaign ads and staged press events easily.

This tactic works partly because there is almost no electoral downside to using profanity for most candidates. Deep ideological divisions between the two major parties mean even voters who dislike public swearing will almost never cross party lines to vote against their preferred candidate. YouGov polls from last year confirm younger voters are far more accepting of profanity across all public spaces. 21% of 18 to 29 year olds see swearing in front of children as acceptable, compared to just 4% of adults over 65.

Every major US political campaign will intentionally incorporate unscripted profanity into candidate messaging for the foreseeable future.

Author bio: Gavin Thorne, an investigative journalist tracking special interests and legislative affairs based in Washington, D.C.