Wellstone Action!

posted by elana

JULY 22, 2008

Wellstone Action's Top Ten Tips for Winning Your Election

from the soon-to-be-released new book, Winning Your Election the Wellstone Way

1. Be an authentic candidate. Communicate authenticity to voters by standing up for what you believe in and sharing with voters what it is that calls you to public service.

2. Election Day is a turnout game, so make sure that you have a robust effort to get your supporters to the polls. Get-Out-the-Vote planning should begin on day one of your campaign.

3. Work with reporters to earn media coverage to help communicate the message of your campaign to a broader audience.

4. Even on a grassroots campaign, don't underestimate the importance of raising money. Start by generating a list of personal contacts and send a letter asking for their support.

5. You won't get what you don't ask for. Ask directly for people's money, time, and, of course, their vote.

6. Convert undecided voters into supporters, and supporters into active volunteers and leaders. Ignore the people you'll never convince!

7. Generate repeated, direct, personal contacts with voters. The more personal the conversation, the more effective it is at persuading voters to support you.

8. Repeat that message over and over and over again. When you are completely tired of repeating your message, voters are just beginning to hear it.

9. Develop a compelling message that connects with voters and conveys the central argument of your campaign-why you are running, and why voters should choose you.

10. Lay out your path to victory in a campaign plan that you refer to often. Your plan is not a plan unless it's written down!

Adapted from Winning Your Election the Wellstone Way by Jeff Blodget and Bill Lofy, with Erik Peterson, Sujata Tejwani and Ben Goldfarb.