The donkey and elephant became political symbols in the United States through a combination of political satire and popular culture, primarily driven by cartoonists in the 19th century.

Typical contemporary illustrations of the Democratic donkey and the Republican elephant In a few days, America will elect our next president. It’s been a particularly contentious and divisive ...

The Republican party is represented by an elephant and the Democratic party is recognised by the symbol of a donkey. A donkey has come to be a symbol of the Democratic party, while an elephant ...

Thomas Nast, a cartoonist for Harper's Weekly, spoofed the idea by drawing a stubborn Democratic donkey trying to scare a docile, slow moving elephant he said represented the Republicans.