How to campaign

I attended a campaign training event some years ago.  The San Diego D party was hosting these every few months as a farming system.  They are very organized out here.  I took notes, you may use this as a foundation and plan for your campaigns.  Please ask questions.

Introduction and Overview

Reasons for running:

• Desire to serve
• Political aspirations 
• Burning issues 
• Someone asked you
• Get rid of incumbents
• Not having an answer can cost you

Women vs. Men

• Women self doubt; doubt qualifications; tend to run when young, establishing themselves in their career; immediate judgement if she has children; man just runs, women need to validate through résumé; women are judged on appearance, men are not

Initial Campaign Activity

• Clean up web history
• Plan for who will tend to regular daily events with family
• Grass roots funding
• Build your team like a business: each role must be filled by a different person with delegated duties; let somebody else do the busy work.
• Build a database of all your previous contacts for support.
• Open your committee.  Bank accounts.
• Insert Your 20__ Political Calendar here

Benefits of Endorsements

• Party Endorsements are beneficial in any election since local races aren’t high profile to voters; without endorsements you are on your own

Candidates Responsibility 

• You are responsible for running your campaign
• Party’s Job is to register voters and get out the vote
• Republicans target below radar boards heavily – farm system – quality of life
• Boards have a large impact on labor; biggest impact on healthcare
• Cities are breaking up how council seats are elected: by district; not at large.

Voter Contact and Targeting

Real goal is to get enough votes to win; enough votes to advance to runoff or win.

Plan purposeful contacts

• Who are you talking to?
• What are you talking about?
• When are you contacting voters?
• Where are you making contacts?
• Why are you talking to these voters?
• How are you contacting these voters?

Make the most of data

• Focus on Strategic Use of Time and Resources
• Outreach and visibility early, hard campaigning late with door-to-door work.
• Appeal to the interests of that voter

Organizing Your Field Program

• Use data to put together a field program 
• Use a voter data management system; available from party and county
• Vote Builder uses scoring system to determine potential for support; ability to manage data; create lists of who and why would vote for you.
• Utilize the skills of your campaign team: schedule, communication, knowledge of resources
• Plan to canvas so that resources are ready
• Support your team
• Collect useful data at each home for early voting

Targeting Options

• Use full socioethnic and demographic breakdown
• Walking neighborhoods are preferred over hilly terrain or sparse regions

Persuasion vs. GOTV

• Persuasion 
• Volunteers are more authentic than paid phone banks.
• Door to door is the gold standard.  +10% results.
• Direct mail is key, biggest expense, most effective at reaching large groups
• Digital is growing in popularity
• GOTV
• Doorhangers; door to door; texting – use opt-in systems;
• Strengths and Weaknesses
• Door-to-door: most effective method; low cost; time intensive
• Direct mail/digital: highly targeted; prefer video
• Contact Practices to Avoid
• Sign waving, robocalls, emails – do not change minds
• Wasting time on NO voters
• Doing too many things at once

Turnout Varies Widely

• Which election is it?  Primary/General?  Mid-term/Presidential?
• Which 3 letters behind your name?
• Republicans vote more than Democrats

Projecting Turnout

• Past 3 elections similar to your own.  Primary/General?  Mid-term/Presidential?
• Use County Website to get previous data
• Insert Targeting: First Steps here
• Insert Example: Setting a Contact Goal here

In-Depth Planning 

• Precinct density and ranking 
• Phone list order
• Continue to track and adjust
• Calculate contact capacity
  • 20/hour knock rate
  • 3 hour shift
  • 60 attempts/shift
  • 1,200 shifts to reach 72k attempts

Prioritize Your Contacts 

• Focus on Strategic Use of Time and Resources
• Don’t waste time, ignore permanent blank ballots
• Personal contacts are the most likely to vote: Margaret Thatcher.

Fundraising Fundamentals

Fundraising is a process 

• Build & Research Donor List

Funding Fuels the Campaign

• Need a solid plan for fundraising and financial management 
• You are the most important fundraiser for your campaign
• Requires confidence, skills, discipline

Goals and Timelines

• Research previous campaigns
• Prepare a budget
• Create a written fundraising plan, timeline, use specific metrics
• Know your filing deadlines
• Rate of fundraising per day is essential for potential success

Types of donors 

• Personal (candidate)
• Ideological – members of political party, religion, cultural, ethnic, interest groups 
• Aversion – to opponent or have a lot to lose
• Institutional power – economic interest

Tactics and Tools

• Volunteers or paid staff to organize fundraising 
• Email system
• Research potential donors 
• Prepare call sheets with donor contact information, giving history, background, and suggested amount to give 
• Schedule daily call time
• After call time, send follow-up mail and email
• Plan fundraising events and meet-and-greets
• Fundraise online through your website and bulk emails
• Sharpen your skills at “making the ask”

Create a donor file

• Sources off donors 
  • Any kind of contact list
  • Membership organizations affiliated with candidate who share goals and values
  • What family ties with help fundraising (or hurt)?
• Community donors and philanthropy

Making the ask in 5 steps

• 1 Connect
• 2 Make your Case

Call Time Process

• 2 hours daily, 25 per hour, reach 6 per hour, get commitment from 3
• Quiet place with no distractions or incoming calls
• Call manager sorts calls and prepares call list with donor history, background, including a specific suggested amount based on donor history.
• Script: Asking?  News?  Urgency?  Goal?
  • Contributions for specific purposes 
  • Host committee members for a fundraiser 
  • Surrogates to raise money for your campaign 
  • Endorsements 
• Scripts must include a specific amount
• Make notes on call sheets to record details of conversation and build relationships.  Obtain emails and personal contact info.
• Most calls will result in leaving a message and following up 
• Stop talking after you ask for the first amount, never talk yourself down from a high level

Remit envelopes include everything to record the donation

Online Solicitation 

Fundraising Events

• Start with meet and greet; ask host to leverage personal networks
• Insert MEET AND GREET HOUSE PARTIES here
• A lot of invited people never show up, they just don’t want to
• Friends and relatives until real word of mouse happens

Finance and Compliance

Rules for how to raise and spend money

Insert STATE / LOCAL REPORTING here

Lots of rules, records for every transaction, expect to be audited

In-kind money and time contributions count towards total contribution for donors 

Messaging and Communications

Use knowledge of voter to tailor message.

3rd party mailings are bought mailings, mixed slate.

Service Clubs: they need a speaker, present yourself as an expert, 20 minutes, never speak as a candidate.

Get an image consultant