That demonizing started way before the 2016 lead-up; until Obama came into the foreground she was also a clear front-runner for the 2008 election, so the machine was targeting her even then.
I've noted this before, but being in the public eye for too long tends to be really bad news for presidential hopefuls in the US (Biden being the exception that proves the rule in that he eked out a win against a wildly unpopular incumbent who was actively discouraging his own supporters from voting).
I remember seeing her in a magazine cover in the early 90s with BSDM getup and Bill as the gimp. I was pretty young at the time - but even then I knew I was being told "this is the person to hate/fear".
I'm not a fan of HRC but the demonization was in full gear 30 years ago.
"Wildly unpopular"? Maybe in the corporate and media world, but even despite that, he nearly won re-election. You can credibly attribute plenty of negative characteristics to Trump, but "nobody likes him" isn't one of them.
How about, "by all the current means of testing, the least popular in history". There are issues with polling, for sure, but even the more charitable end of the error bars put him in a bad spot.
I've noted this before, but being in the public eye for too long tends to be really bad news for presidential hopefuls in the US (Biden being the exception that proves the rule in that he eked out a win against a wildly unpopular incumbent who was actively discouraging his own supporters from voting).