Political dress involves a certain degree of strategic formula

For formal appearances, the dark suit, plain tie and American flag pin are common visual cues that have become instantly recognizable as presidential. Over time they've also become expected of candidates.But sometimes a candidate might be helped by veering from the expected."If there is anyone who could possibly benefit from changing up his look it's probably Gov. Rick Perry," Kirwin said. "If he got a bit more cowboy, not so formal, and tried to say 'All these other guys with their stiff shirts and suits are Washington insiders and I'm a real guy from Texas,' it could help him."
Still, when bold patterns and colors can turn people off, experimenting during a campaign can be risky business. Political dress involves a certain degree of strategic formula, but sprucing up the look of a politician is doable, without alienating the public.We asked a few style experts how they might update the candidates' campaign wardrobes. Celebrity stylist and costume designer Jennifer Rade suggests mixing up the candidates' looks with small details, such as wearing a flat-front pant as opposed to a pleated front, a double vented jacket, possibly a check-pattern shirt with a striped tie or a cool watch.
"I don't think they give the population at large enough credit to know that we are OK if you show up and you have more colors in your repertoire than just gray, navy and red," Rade said.Menswear consultant and stylist Michael Macko also believes the candidates can dress up their looks with subtle details. He suggests a simple white pressed cotton pocket square or a navy on white Bengal stripe shirt with a tie, but stressed the biggest improvement the candidates can make is investing in a tailor.
"The error a lot of men make is that they don't have the suit tailored for them," Macko said. "If the suit is properly fitted, you'll see about an inch of cuff of shirt sleeve through a suit."Stylist Vincent Boucher also believes tailoring is important, for a politician or for any man's image. He suggests a gutsier, robustly striped tie for Romney to show his strength and aggressiveness as a candidate, but he noted the importance of staying subtle if the candidate wants to win over the American electorate."In Europe, a pocket square would be no problem, but in the U.S. that sort of signifies maybe (being) a little too costumey," Boucher said.
Boucher added that Ron Paul's seeming lack of attention to his clothing and resemblance to a college professor might actually work for his campaign. "It feeds into that sort of professorial authenticity that he kind of somehow is trying to cultivate," Boucher said. "Like if you put him in spiffier garb, it's not what people are looking for from him."