From an outside, non-US-citizen perspective, it boggles my mind that people in the US think of relatability as a distinguishing factor when choosing a political

From an outside, non-US-citizen perspective, it boggles my mind that people in the US think of relatability as a distinguishing factor when choosing a political candidate/party to run their country. I do not need to happily drink a beer with Merkel to know she was an efficient chancellor who all things considered did a lot of good (and some bad) to my country, nor do I need to find Scholz unlikeable to believe his coalition will be a net negative for our general well-being. What people around me care about is whether their government is capable of solving what the voters think are pressing matters, not necessarily if politicians are likeable. Sometimes, it is all about trade-offs, even if the less bad choice comes with a crook.