Sadly, at least for Trump, i think it came down to
1 party loyalty
2 identity politics
3 active voter suppression in key states
4 The Electoral College, which was designed to prevent this exact thing (demagoguery)
#1 & #2 are discussed in
"Democracy for Realists: Why Elections Do Not Produce Responsive Government (Princeton Studies in Political Behavior)"
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0691169446
#2 also discussed in
"The Politics of Resentment: Rural Consciousness in Wisconsin and the Rise of Scott Walker (Chicago Studies in American Politics)" https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/022634911X
1 party loyalty
2 identity politics
3 active voter suppression in key states
4 The Electoral College, which was designed to prevent this exact thing (demagoguery)
#1 & #2 are discussed in "Democracy for Realists: Why Elections Do Not Produce Responsive Government (Princeton Studies in Political Behavior)" https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0691169446
#2 also discussed in "The Politics of Resentment: Rural Consciousness in Wisconsin and the Rise of Scott Walker (Chicago Studies in American Politics)" https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/022634911X
#3 and other dirty tricks discussed in "Ratfked: The True Story Behind the Secret Plan to Steal America's Democracy" https://www.amazon.com/Ratf-ked-Behind-Americas-Democracy/dp...
and
"The Great Suppression: Voting Rights, Corporate Cash, and the Conservative Assault on Democracy" https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/110190576X