Grassroots Tips

The Four Rules to Winning an Election

September 27, 2024 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | Leave a comment

winning an election

Do.  Not.  Get.  Sidetracked.

When it comes to winning an election or organizing for grassroots success, it’s not complicated.  It’s not some secret formula that you need to figure out or pay a lot of money for.

It’s pretty simple and straightforward.  In fact, the rules haven’t changed since this country first started holding elections.

The “rules” were spelled out best by someone who (at the time) was a little known congressman from Illinois who went on to get himself elected President, (shortly before hiring a general who burned my hometown to the ground, but I’ll let it go…).

The four rules to winning an election are:

  1. Obtain a complete list of voters
  2. Determine how they will vote
  3. Contact the favorable voters
  4. Get your voters to the polls

In other words, start with the outer rings of the target and work your way down towards the bulls-eye.  When it comes to summarizing the basics of a get-out-the-vote strategy, you can’t do much better than that.

Of course there are a number of other elements to campaigning, but they don’t really matter very much if you don’t do the basics.  No matter how much modern technology may change “how” things are done, the fundamentals still apply.

These rules don’t just apply to campaigns, but they also apply to successful grassroots political organization in general. You start with those who are registered to vote, identify those who agree with you, provide them with the information they need, and get them to take action when it’s necessary.

Successful campaigns and organizations adopt and apply these rules to effectively mobilize supporters at the local level.

No matter what kind of election or issue-based campaign you’re working on, don’t let yourself get sidetracked.

Do the basics. You’ll be glad you did.

***

Get more useful grassroots tips in the “Grassroots 101 Training Series“

Three Fundamentals of Political Campaigns

September 15, 2024 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | Leave a comment

It’s a fundamental truth of politics that if you don’t win, you can’t govern.

You can’t implement policy if you aren’t elected to a position that allows you to do so, or if you don’t have sympathetic elected officials that are willing to help.

With that being the case, it’s critical that conservatives know the basics of effective campaigning if we expect to see our ideas implemented in government.

The good news is that the fundamentals of a successful campaign of any type is the same today as it was thousands of years ago.

Julius Caesar once said that the only thing needed to conquer the world was “men and money”. Modify that idea slightly by adding “message” and you’ve got a good thumbnail sketch of what political campaigns are all about.

They’re known as “the Three M’s”:

  • Manpower: Do you have the supporters that can build a successful campaign organization?
  • Money: Do you have the resources to run a campaign that identifies, informs and mobilizes your supporters – and gets your message out?
  • Message: What are you saying? And does it motivate people to get involved?

These three elements are universal to all campaigns. They don’t change. That means that you should arrange your campaign accordingly (time, staff, etc.) around those areas of responsibility.

Regardless of whether a campaign is national, state or local in scope, the objective is the same. To win.

Having the most devoted and numerous volunteers, the most money (or enough) and the most compelling message goes a long way towards that goal.

HOW to Create Your Own Endorsement List

September 2, 2024 by Drew McKissick in Grassroots Tips | Leave a comment

endorsement listHow many times has someone asked who you plan to vote for in any given election? Better yet, how many times have you been asked “who should I vote for?” Probably more than once.

Of course you’re not the only one. People who are truly paying attention to politics tend to get more than just one vote in any given election, since they influence the votes of others around them.

Many people put VERY little thought into which candidates they will vote for when (or if) they go to the polls. Many will vote for the candidates with the highest name recognition, or the last yard sign they saw on the way to the polls. Some vote for the candidate who sent them the slickest mail pieces, or who called them on the phone or maybe even knocked on their door. It doesn’t necessarily mean that they know anything about those candidates that really matters. They just don’t have much else to go on.

That’s where your endorsement comes in. It’s the political equivalent of “word of mouth” advertising.

If you don’t believe it works, just look at the business world. Think about the products you buy, or don’t buy, or the movies you do or don’t see simply because of what someone told you. Or the books or other products you did or didn’t buy because of the reviews that they got on the internet. It’s the same thing with elections.

So why not take things to the next level and anticipate the question? Create an endorsement list and make it easy for people to know exactly who you recommend.

Creating an endorsement list is as simple as 1-2-3.

1) List each position that will be on the ballot and which candidates you support.

If you want, you could even get into “why” you support them with a brief sentence or two about each candidate, or just an overall statement at the beginning of the list about what you look for in candidates and that you feel that these candidates meet that standard.

2) Give it a title and personalize it.

Something like: “Suggested Conservative Candidates for (election year or name of the election)”, or just “Jim’s Campaign Endorsements” (if your name is Jim). You can add your name and a way to reach you if people have any questions and want to get involved in any way.

3) Share it!

Email it to everyone in your address book (that the election applies to). Post if on Facebook. Share a link to it on Twitter. Encourage others to share it. Even better, encourage other solid conservatives that you know to create and share a list of their own.

The point is that YOU have more influence on the people that you know than campaigns do – and many people will vote for a candidate simply because you suggested that they should.

Keep in mind that most people put little thought into their votes beyond the candidates that are at the top of the ticket, (who are probably running the most TV and radio ads). This means that your suggestions carry even more weight in “down ballot” races, (such as state senate and house campaigns, county or city council and school board campaigns). Even more so during special and/or local elections that are held at different times that federal elections.

Don’t make it easy for people to cast an uninformed ballot. Your recommendations can make a difference. Share them!

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