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Running Successful Local Ballot Campaigns

Michigan Municipal League

June 12, 2012

>>About Me<< Partner, Martin Waymire Advocacy Communications Former Free Press and Detroit News reporter 20 years in public policy communications Worked on a dozen or so ballot proposal campaigns Statewide Proposal 1 of 2004 (won) Statewide Proposal 1 of 2002 (lost) Huron County Road Millage 1995 (won) Statewide Proposal C of 1994 (won) Statewide Proposal D of 1992 (won)

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>>Mason Public Schools<<

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O 1995 O First millage

approval since President Richard Nixon in office

O Silver Anvil (the PR field’s most prestigious honor)

Alaiedon Elementary School

>>All the pieces<< Plan (What is your policy goal/solution?) Coalition (Who will work to pass it? Oppose it?) Finances (Budget? How will you fund the campaign?) Research (Can it pass?) Messages/messengers (What and who wins votes?) Accessing the ballot … how will your question get on

the ballot? Coalition and Organization (Who runs/staffs the

campaign?) Earned Media/PR Paid Media Direct voter contact/GOTV efforts Events Inside Tips

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>>Planning<<

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O Design and develop O Determine O Form and name O Campaign staff

Plan: Design and Develop O Define and set your policy goal

(what solves the problem?)

O Define objectives to meet the goal (what strategies and tactics must be executed to win?)

O Develop detailed timelines/calendar (make sure you know legal deadlines; when community events are being held; when you need funds)

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Plan: Determine O Budget and possible funding sources (yes

votes = more costs and more effort!) O Earned, paid and social media tactics O Research needs and how to meet them

(quantitative and qualitative; precinct turnout history; active community groups; churches)

O GOTV strategy and tactics O Legal strategy (election attorney), including

writing the question O ID key supporters and opponents

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Plan: Form and Name Form & Name Coalition/Organization

O Form ballot campaign committee, steering committee and specialty committees (must form campaign committee within 10 days of receiving/spending $500)

O Committees would be PR/Media, GOTV, Fund-raising, Community Organizing

O Recruit supporters (business leaders, neighborhood associations, key local leaders)

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Plan: Campaign ‘staff’ Campaign “staff”:

O Manager O Research O Earned media O Paid media O GOTV O Community Organizing O Volunteers! Especially important in local ballot campaigns (will cover later when we discuss the organization)

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You’ve come together. How to stay together.

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O Plan the work O Work the plan O Revise constantly

>>Finances/Budget<< Possible/likely costs: Design, printing, mailing of collateral materials/lit

pieces Buying voter lists Website Facebook, Twitter, blogger administrators Paid media (radio, newspaper, TV, web, billboards) Lawyer, accountant Fund-raising event(s) (coffees, dinners) Research/poll GOTV activities (buses, cabs, phone bank to call

voters election day) Possible challenge/recount Signature collection (if necessary)

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>>Research<<

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O Quantitative O Qualitative O On-the-Record

Research: Quantitative Quantitative, Qualitative, On-the-Record

Quantitative = Voter Survey (400-600 sample)

O Measure level of support, opposition O Determine best messages for and against O Determine best message senders for and against O Determine your most likely “yes” voters O Test question language O Can this thing even pass?

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Research: Survey Says Getting the Survey Done (Two Options):

O Buy list of high-performance voters O Have a pro develop the questionnaire (search

community, community colleges, university) O Phone bank location (local business) O Volunteers (train them to do calls; 5-7 nights) O Develop caller packets O Need someone to crunch the data O Need someone to analyze the data

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There is an alternative O Press the “easy” button O Hire a professional firm

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Research: Qualitative Qualitative = Focus group(s)

O Test messages and messengers from quantitative research, or vice versa

O Test validity of opposition messages

O Test effectiveness of your ads/literature pieces

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Research: On-the-Record On-the-Record Research Turnout history and results by precinct (where are most

votes; where are most “yes” votes; where are the problem areas)

When will absentee ballots go out? Deadlines: to get wording to clerks for ballot; to get petitions

to clerks; for council to pass resolution putting proposal on ballot

List of neighborhood organizations Community calendar of events List of churches

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Research: Opposition

O Opposition Research O Who are the opponents and what will they do? O Did they file a committee, are they legal? O How much funding will they have? O Their messages? O Their strategies and tactics? O Can you get a mole on the inside?

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>>Access and message<<

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O Accessing the ballot O Messengers O Messages

Accessing the ballot O Various state statutes -- 150 or so --

specify what issues may qualify for local ballots (consult an attorney)

O Action of school board, county commission, city/village council

O Signature requirements vary by statute (“County-Local Proposal Petition” sample available at state Bureau of Elections)

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Messages and messengers

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O What are your best messages (per research)?

O Who are your best messengers (per research)?

O What are your opponents’ best messages and messengers (per research)?

O Do different messages and messengers work better with different audiences (senior voters, for example)?

>>Coalition-Building<<

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O Grass-tops O Diversity O Roles

Build a coalition and organization

The more community grass-tops support you have the better your chances

Broad and diverse (business, labor,

government, community leaders, teachers, coaches, pastors, public safety, seniors, minority representation, etc.)

Recruit volunteers who have campaign expertise … research, PR/media, legal, accounting, web and social media, graphic designers, printers, etc.

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Coalition and Organization

O All bring something O Name O Money O Cachet O Practical, applicable campaign skills and

experience

O Make sure all welcome and informed

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Coalition and Organization

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Steering committee Committees

Community organizing

GOTV

PR/earned and paid media

Campaign manager

Research

Fund-raising

Legal, accountant

Coalition and Organization Divvy up the duties by committee/key

function O Chair, GOTV Committee (in charge of GOTV

efforts) O Chair, Fund-raising Committee O Chair, PR/Communications (earned and paid

media, literature development) O Chair, Community Organizing (events, lit drops,

direct contacts with voters) O Legal, accounting

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>>Media<<

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O Earned media/PR O Paid media O Social media

Earned media/PR Develop messages & talking points from the research Hold kickoff news conference Get press to various events (voters must see and feel the

pain and the problem) Meet with editorial board/publisher Hold a debate with opponents Seek third party endorsements Get on TV news Op/eds, letters to the editor

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Paid media O Advertising: Based on research, using best

messages and messengers possible O Direct mail -- 3 at least: one general educational to all

voters, absentee voter mailing, a GOTV mailing within a week of election day)

O Billboards O Web O Possibly radio and TV (expensive, hard to target)

O Yard signs

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Social media/web Develop social media strategies

O Facebook O Blogs O Twitter O YouTube and Flickr (videos and photos to show

the pain/demonstrate the problem)

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>>GOTV!<<

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O Get Out the Vote O Events

Get Out the Vote (GOTV) O List of certain “yes” voters O Call them on election day (phone bank needed with

volunteers) O Drive them to the polls on election day (buses, vans,

cars) O Neighborhood canvassing/door to door O Tell all the “no” voters the election is in two weeks …

yeah, that’s right, two weeks!

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Events O Show voters the problem – tours of

facilities, photos, videos (YouTube, Flickr) O Latch onto existing events (booths at fairs,

lit drops at parades, lit drops at local malls)

O Hold debate with opponents O Hold information nights for community O Visit local long-term care facilities

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Inside tips

O “Quiet” campaigns fail (you must be loud to someone, right?) O Get billboards in prominent locations O Best lists are from Practical Political

Consulting in East Lansing O Voter contact, voter contact, voter contact! O Voters trust teachers, nurses and cops 36

Inside Tips Hold regular meetings of the executive

committee, campaign manager, and committee chairs (at local church, business, private home)

Don’t forego the research! If you think you know what voters think, see me. I’ll make you rich.

You must create a problem before you solve it.

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Questions?

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