30 Of The Most Amusing Political Jokes The Internet Has To Offer

The Origins of Political Jokes

Politics - from Greek: Πολιτικά, politiká, ‘affairs of the cities’ - is something that you resonate with, heartily hate, or are partially indifferent to. It’s also the biggest no-no topic at dinner parties, together with religion, sexual orientation, and anything about vaccines (also, maybe your dog’s flatulence patterns). Yet, despite being such a persona non grata topic during casual meets, it nonetheless is the number one fodder for jokes. Political satire spices up these puns. Satiric lines make someone (a politician in this case) or something (political events) look ridiculous to the audience and feel so absurd that they cause laughter and embarrassment.

You might find it true to believe, but the first political puns date back as history jokes in the Soviet Union under the brutal dictatorship of Stalin. The fate of Boris Orman, who worked at a bakery, provides a typical example. In mid-1937, Boris Orman shared an anecdote (political joke) with a coworker in the bakery cafeteria. It led to 10 years of prison because it was said out loud. However, cracking jokes in whisper mode around family tables were the ones that lighted up the spirits of citizens in those dark times.

In the 1980s, even the president of the US, Ronald Reagan, couldn’t resist the old Soviet political jokes. He liked them so much that he had a secret stash of political puns hidden in the Oval Office.

We Love Political Jokes for 2 Reasons

Now, the question here is why we need funny political jokes. Well, we’re no political scientists, but from what our team has gathered, we, the humans of the Earth, tend to make jokes about any Big Thing that takes considerable space in our lives. We do so (willingly or not) just to make it feel more relatable. Based on this, our need to taunt politicians is a way to make them seem less pompous and closer to our reality. 

The other reason for making political jokes might be to spill the bitterness accumulated for various reasons on someone we don’t know personally. Politician jokes are a funny way to show our disagreement with their decisions and speeches.