It’s another Saturday, so for those who tune in, welcome to a diary discussing the Nuts & Bolts of a Democratic Campaign. If you’ve missed out, you can catch up anytime: Just visit our group or follow Nuts & Bolts Guide. Every week I try to tackle issues I’ve been asked about, and with the help of other campaign workers and notes, we tackle subjects about how to improve and build better campaigns.
This week, I’m at Netroots Nation, as activists, candidates, media and certainly voters gather to talk about some of the big issues coming in 2020. In campaigns, we like to talk about big issues, the bigger the campaign, the larger the scope of the discussion.
Whether you are running for school board or US President, though, there is always room for campaigns to mention good news. President Obama did this very effectively, marketing “HOPE” for his campaign. You can convince voters of problems by articulating them, but the way to get their vote is often by offering a positive vision, the promise of opportunity, development and solutions that you offer.
This week on Nuts & Bolts, we should talk about the positive frame in campaigns.
Negative campaigning isn't just about the other guy.
When political activists hear negative campaigning, they think of dirty campaigns that use media, messaging, and attacks on other candidates. This kind of negative campaign, they say, is all about tearing down another candidate.
That certainly can be one type of negative campaign. What most campaigns don’t think of as negative campaigning is one entrenched in a constant discussion of how horrible things are while offering no comparative solutions. If you are running for a school board and your big problem is the lunch program, a negative campaign could be one that spends all of your time talking about how terrible something is, without making it clear the fact there is an opportunity for change. Let’s give two examples:
The school lunch program at John Smith School District is horrible; students are provided little option, and for students who are vegan or on dietary restrictions, there are no opportunities. We should fix this.
This intro is a negative frame with a hands up at the end “Well, it sucks, I guess someone should do something”. This does not sell anyone on your candidate. Now, let’s look at embracing a positive frame.
Like a lot of you, I was concerned about the school lunch program at John Smith School district. I heard your complaints about the lack of options available for students. I believe this gives us a real opportunity to make positive changes for our school, and if elected, I know this is the kind of problem we can solve and make everyone feel welcome in our cafeterias!
Admittedly, writing for a fictional candidate about fictional issues is not my strong suit, but for this example, I think we can cover the basics. In contrast to “we should fix this”, the candidate works to show that they are already thinking about solutions. They involved the community by listening. They tell voters: I’ve got this, and I think we can do something great.
When we live in a negative framing of issues without positive solutions, the sense of opportunity and success, voters are left without energy for your campaign. Provided a positive chance to see a problem and an opportunity they are more likely to be engaged.
Voters don’t always need long plans — but plans almost always represent a positive vision of the future. No candidate presents a plan saying: “Well, if we do this, we can maintain the status quo”. Candidates present plans to inspire people to believe in hope and opportunity.
Negative Framing goes beyond issues
For people who have read my diaries for years on Daily Kos, you have often heard me complain about campaign advertisements I view as self-sabotage. “We are doomed”, “This is too difficult”, “We can’t succeed”.
In opposition, I tend to like messaging that says: “We can do this!” or messages that provide hope about the future of a campaign. Pessimistic campaigning may help raise you some money, and for US Congressional, Senate, or Presidential candidates maybe it would work to bring in money nationally, but I remain firm in my belief that as campaigns get smaller, you see the damage this kind of messaging does to those who want to support your candidacy.
Imagine if someone running for a state house seat or a school board seat held a house party and began with: “Well, I have to start by telling you that we are totally doomed. They’ve out-fundraised us, they have more people, more money, and I doubt we can even be competitive.”
No matter what they say next, are you writing a check to that candidate? HELL NO. The belief that in larger scale, it just turns off fewer voters while bringing in money is something I have very mixed feelings about. Still, when you campaign especially in person, always maintain a positive frame: “WE CAN DO THIS.” “I believe we can win.” “If you can help our campaign, I know we can knock more doors and help campaigns.”
Negative framing causes self-doubt
A candidate came to a training program about two years ago and told the group that one of the problems she had with her campaign was that at night, after hearing all the discussion about how much the Republicans had on hand and how in trouble she was, she said “I felt hopeless, I felt like I shouldn’t have bothered.” This was in a targeted race that Democratic organizations thought we could win.
But messaging around her was meant to scare people into voting, and at the same time, it scared the candidate into feeling like she was being beaten up on both sides — Republicans who disliked her issues, and Democratic faithful because she apparently wasn’t raising enough or that her race was troubled.
Her race wasn’t troubled. By every metric we had, her fundraising was doing fine, her door count and volunteers were doing fine. Despite people telling her the talk about difficulty was just to spur donors and voters, it weighed on her, and that can diminish how hard a candidate works on their own campaign.
Final thoughts
Understand the problems your district faces, understand the opportunities, and when you campaign, embrace the idea that your victory can be a part of something truly positive. Make voters feel as though something positive is possible. Allow them to feel as though they can be part of that opportunity.