What Should You Collect

The monetary value of political items fluctuates based on a number of factors. Some things to consider:

• Many collectors are very condition conscious. So if an item has even minimal damage, its value will be impacted. Therefore, many collectors are willing to pay a premium price for items in superb condition.
• Some items are produced in a region where the quantity created is quite small. With more collectors than there are items to go around, this can create an increase in value for those limited-quantity items.
• Throughout history, there have been some campaigns for specific candidates where political campaign memorabilia is virtually non-existent. Items for these candidates command premium prices.
• Specific types of political campaign memorabilia are highly prized by certain collectors. Examples may include political campaign textiles, campaign flags, jugate pinback buttons (those that show both the presidential and vice presidential candidate on one button), older 3-dimensional items, china, mechanical items and very colorful campaign buttons.
• Note: When rare campaign material is offered at auction, you may see a "bidding war" where two collectors raise the price of an item far beyond what most collectors might pay.
• Items created for certain candidates tend to have a greater value than for others. For example, Abraham Lincoln campaign items are very popular and tend to cost more than for other candidates of the 1800s. Other candidates for whom their campaign items may be more prized depending on the rarity of the items include Teddy and Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy and Ronald Reagan, as well as many third-party candidates such as Eugene Debs, Henry Ford, Huey Long and Henry Wallace, since their items were distributed in more limited quantites.
• Items created during current political campaigns can often create a flurry of excitement at that moment, causing abnormally high prices. Generally, if a collector has the patience, these items become available at some point in the future for more reasonable prices once the dust settles.
• There are collectors who believe that political campaign memorabilia can be a good investment. While it may be true that money can be made in the hobby, most collectors say that this is not their primary reason for collecting.