Campaigns & Elections - August 2007 - (Page 81)

campaign doctor Managing Your Friend’s Campaign? Think “Consigliore.” ADVICE BY CRAIG VAROGA Q: A good friend has asked me to manage her campaign for legislature next year. This will be the first campaign for both of us. Any idea of the role and time commitment something like this involves? A: Friendship is a beautiful thing, so don’t mess it up with a boss-employee relationship. And never mind that first-time candidates will benefit from professionals who’ve been around the track before. Remain an unpaid consigliore. Help vet potential managers. Use your business background to professionalize the campaign’s cash flow and reporting procedures. And, if appropriate, offer to help keep an eye on the candidate’s business operations, so that she can focus on the campaign without getting distracted by non-political matters. Q: We have all the consultants, the candidate and the family coming for a two-day retreat. What topics should we cover? A: Ask attendees for topics, organize and obligations. As for a two-day meeting, that’s hooey. A well-run meeting will not take more than one working day, breaks included. Since out-of-towners may need to stay overnight, include an all-group meal either before the retreat (as an ice breaker) or after (as a recap). Q: How do we do a field program for gated communities and the like? A: Maybe not at all. Many gated com- subscriptions to average daily commutes to likely religious affiliation and church attendance. Q: Is it okay to go negative in a campaign for local judge? A: I can’t say if it’s appropriate or munities restrict landscaping, street parking, holiday decorations, political yard signs and—here’s the rub—outside access by either commercial vendors or political workers. So think “voter communication” rather than “field outreach.” Instead of going door-to-door, use mail and phones to go around and over the gates. Q: Since church attendance is a reliable indicator of how people vote, where do we find that information? The census? A: The U.S. Census Bureau does not useful, but it’s increasingly common. According to a recent report by the Justice at Stake Campaign, candidates sponsored 60 percent of all negative ads in 2006 state Supreme Court races. Justice at Stake derided this negativity, calling it unbecoming “by individuals whose judicial temperament is an important qualification for office.” Q: I am campaign manager for a statewide race next year and am looking for guidance on whether we should allow footage of any televised debates to be re-broadcast. A: Old conventional wisdom: Prohibit their recommendations into a draft agenda and then circulate to the group for feedback. Be sure to cover the political lay of the land, candidate research, policy development, polling schedule, media budget and timing, earned media, organization and operations, dates and timeline, fund raising, voter file and targeting analysis, announcement schedule, and family/personal needs collect this data and, in fact, is prohibited by law from asking questions on religious affiliation. It does, though, list contacts for groups like Hartford Institute for Religious Research at Hartford Seminary, Glenmary Research Center and American Religion Data Archive. Talk with your state party or voterfile vendor, since most files have extensive data on everything from magazine re-broadcasting debate footage, since it could multiply the negative fallout from a candidate gaffe, especially if re-broadcasting would allow the opponent to use footage of a mistake in a TV ad. New conventional wisdom: Don’t be so uptight, especially since online video sharing makes it harder to prohibit all re-broadcasting. Also, online activists from both parties are advocating for unfettered re-broadcasting of debates to offset mainstream media’s traditional role in calling the winners and losers of debates. Craig Varoga is CEO of Varoga & Rice (http://VRstrategies.com.) E-mail questions to cvaroga@VRstrategies.com. CAMPAIGNS & ELECTIONS 08.07 81 http://VRstrategies.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Campaigns & Elections - August 2007

Cover Contents Editor’s Note Ames Straw Poll Cavalcade; Last Candidate Standing; The New Dollar-A-Year Guy; Web Videos That Can Change the Election Across State Lines: Campaign News from Around the Country People and Organizations Movers and Shakers: Ten Questions for Matthew Taylor and Philip de Vellis Campaign Consultant Sign-Ups Reel Time Cover Story: Building Blocks From Madison Avenue to K Street Money Can’t Buy Votes Dick Cheney: Roll Model for Millions Ames: Still Weird, Still Important How to Do Tougher, Quicker Crisis Management Online Cause-Based SocNets Lure Issue Voters The Great Exaggeration Why Primetime TV is Alive and Well, Politically Speaking Buyer’s Guide Tips for Toeing the Fine Line Between Employment, Friendship Managing Your Friend’s Campaign? Think ‘Consigliore’ Off The Record

Campaigns & Elections - August 2007

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