Welcome back, Saturday Campaign D-I-Yers! For those who tune in, welcome to the Nuts & Bolts of a Democratic campaign. Each week, we discuss issues that help drive successful campaigns. If you’ve missed prior diaries, please visit our group or follow Nuts & Bolts Guide.
For the most part, I plan the diaries in this series out about three or four weeks in advance. When I had originally begun work on this entry, “Don’t Panic,” the idea was to discuss milestones within campaigns, getting work done, and staying focused on the end goal of winning an election.
Those will still be the focus of this entry, but a different Don’t Panic has to be said after this week in particular. It is too easy for Republican action, votes, and efforts to depress or panic Democratic campaigns. Republican policy, money, mail, television, and actions can lead some campaigners to feel depressed. Do not give in to the panic. There are tons of voters and young people in your district who cannot yet vote who are depending on you to run a campaign that gives them a voice. If you are running a race you can win, or a race where your entry is to give people a choice, the moment you put your name on a ballot, you may feel as though you are the target of a lot of Republican hatred and attacks—but also realize you are the one hope a lot of people in your district have for normalcy. Don’t let panic prevent you from getting out there and advocating normalcy to people who badly need it right now.
Your campaign plan isn’t a concrete tablet
Having a campaign plan is a smart way to set timetables and make sure that the work you need to get done happens on a consistent schedule. It can be a reminder of specific checkpoints and prevent your campaign from being complacent and nonfunctional.
Your campaign plan, however, is not a concrete tablet with no wiggle room at all. Too many campaigns “panic” when they fall behind on variables. While falling behind on specific tasks, from fundraising to door knocking, needs to be recognized, rather than panic take the opportunity and start looking at how you can either catch back up or re-evaluate your goals.
Panic will just cause you to get farther and farther behind or to stop entirely. You’re going to find throughout your campaign you can rotate between being ahead of schedule and behind, as everything from weather to family obligations can put you ahead of your plan or behind. Stay focused on the end goal.
Very few things completely end a campaign.
On a daily basis, someone sends me email that says “well, this campaign is OVER” pointing to a mistake a candidate made at a forum, in an endorsement meeting or a county party event. It’s June. It is exceptionally rare that someone commits an error so serious that it actually ends a campaign. Many errors, big and small, will happen in campaigns. You work to minimize them, but we are all human and, well, nothing is ever flawless.
Do not fall into the panic spiral. Evaluate what went wrong and how you can fix it. Remember that your district is full of a lot of voters who, frankly, aren’t incredibly tuned in months away from an election.
Panic by those around you, however, can send the wrong message about your campaign. I’ve often heard the theory that animals can sense anger and fear. Well, voters can tell right away if your campaign is panicked. Stay focused.
Keep your head down, and keep working.
Very few things will make clear to a campaign’s organizers where they stand like a good day of walking a district or meeting with voters who aren’t the inner circle of an advocacy group. Meeting with high propensity voters means you’re going to get lots of advice, concerns, theory and good information too—but meeting with low propensity or mid propensity Democratic voters? It can be a great pick me up about how your campaign is doing, from those who don’t offer a lot of campaign advice and instead just want a conversation with their candidate.
If you ever find yourself frustrated with the way any event in your district goes, think to yourself: I need to spend some time with the voters who aren’t focused in all the time, because they are the difference. People in high prop groups are likely with you (or not) from the beginning. They are incredibly well informed and always vote.
Final thoughts:
In every campaign, you will have panic moments. Things that will cause you or your supporters to be antsy, frustrated, or even at times feeling a bit of despair. This can be natural: you are asking a lot of yourself and others when you run. Letting that take over your campaign, though, or to slow you down? That is a disservice to a lot of people who want to vote for you and express their desire for change. Don’t panic. Don’t agonize. Organize. Pick yourself up, and move on to what is next.
Next on Nuts & Bolts: Parades and Social Events!