July 23, 2014 at 2:10 p.m.
A road map for election success (09/11/2008)
Editorial
One can argue with the record of Mitch Daniels as governor of Indiana.
But one can't argue with his ability to run a campaign.
Given some of the hot button issues from his first term - the adoption of Daylight Savings Time, the leasing of the Indiana Toll Road, and the tangled mess of property tax "reform" - Gov. Daniels could conceivably be running scared.
But, so far at least, Hoosier Democrats seem to be unable to mount a credible campaign against him. Daniels doesn't poll strongly by standards for an incumbent, but Democratic nominee Jill Long isn't getting any traction as a challenger.
The crazy thing is, Daniels essentially wrote the playbook on how to win a grassroots campaign for the state's top job. His campaign four years ago provides a roadmap that any challenger can use to build an enthusiastic base.
The key elements of the 2004 Daniels strategy were pretty simple.
First of all, he worked tirelessly. Second, he clocked thousands of miles of travel, never hesitating to stop at a coffee shop or a storefront to visit.
Daniels recognized at the time that winning the governor's office isn't just a matter of TV commercials in major markets.
In an era when broadcast television's audience is sliced into hundreds of pieces by satellite stations and cable TV, that's simply outdated.
Instead, he reasoned, it's about face time, about one-on-one, and about generating "free media" by making news.
Indiana's a small state with lots of small cities and towns. A visit by a gubernatorial candidate to any city other than Indianapolis, Gary, Evansville, Fort Wayne, or Terre Haute is likely to garner good coverage. A visit by the same candidate to communities like Vevay, New Castle, Frankfort, Dunkirk, or Portland virtually guarantees page one.
The same holds true for smaller city radio outlets. Having the campaign come to town is "a big deal," for those of us in small media markets.
Those visits also energize local voters because they say that those local votes matter.
That approach to campaigning can't be done in the handful of weeks left between now and Election Day. It takes months of sustained effort.
A last-ditch buy of TV time won't cut it.
What state Democratic leaders forgot is that Mitch Daniels didn't win the 2004 election because he had the biggest campaign war chest or because he ran the most TV ads.
He won because he worked hard and he worked smart and he was in it for the long haul. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]
But one can't argue with his ability to run a campaign.
Given some of the hot button issues from his first term - the adoption of Daylight Savings Time, the leasing of the Indiana Toll Road, and the tangled mess of property tax "reform" - Gov. Daniels could conceivably be running scared.
But, so far at least, Hoosier Democrats seem to be unable to mount a credible campaign against him. Daniels doesn't poll strongly by standards for an incumbent, but Democratic nominee Jill Long isn't getting any traction as a challenger.
The crazy thing is, Daniels essentially wrote the playbook on how to win a grassroots campaign for the state's top job. His campaign four years ago provides a roadmap that any challenger can use to build an enthusiastic base.
The key elements of the 2004 Daniels strategy were pretty simple.
First of all, he worked tirelessly. Second, he clocked thousands of miles of travel, never hesitating to stop at a coffee shop or a storefront to visit.
Daniels recognized at the time that winning the governor's office isn't just a matter of TV commercials in major markets.
In an era when broadcast television's audience is sliced into hundreds of pieces by satellite stations and cable TV, that's simply outdated.
Instead, he reasoned, it's about face time, about one-on-one, and about generating "free media" by making news.
Indiana's a small state with lots of small cities and towns. A visit by a gubernatorial candidate to any city other than Indianapolis, Gary, Evansville, Fort Wayne, or Terre Haute is likely to garner good coverage. A visit by the same candidate to communities like Vevay, New Castle, Frankfort, Dunkirk, or Portland virtually guarantees page one.
The same holds true for smaller city radio outlets. Having the campaign come to town is "a big deal," for those of us in small media markets.
Those visits also energize local voters because they say that those local votes matter.
That approach to campaigning can't be done in the handful of weeks left between now and Election Day. It takes months of sustained effort.
A last-ditch buy of TV time won't cut it.
What state Democratic leaders forgot is that Mitch Daniels didn't win the 2004 election because he had the biggest campaign war chest or because he ran the most TV ads.
He won because he worked hard and he worked smart and he was in it for the long haul. - J.R.[[In-content Ad]]
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