CHAPTER 10

Campaigning for Office

LEARNING OUTCOMES
After reading this chapter, students will be able to:
1. Explain the eligibility requirements for president, senator, and representative, and discuss why
an individual may choose to become a candidate for public office.
2. Produce a plan for a modern campaign for the United States Senate including the strategy, staff,
and finances necessary for such an endeavor.
3. Discuss the role of the print, electronic, and social media in a political campaign including the
news, debates, and paid advertising.
4. Demonstrate an understanding of the evolution of campaign finance regulation, the
development of political action committees (PACs) and the current state of such regulation.
5. Describe the general outline of today’s campaign for the presidency and discuss the impact of
the primary system to the outcome of the nomination process.

OVERVIEW
Free and fair elections are the basis for the continuation of a democratic form of government. To qualify
as free and fair, elections should be fairly administered, information about the candidates and issues must
be available through a free press, and voters must be free from coercion and intimidation.
People may choose to run for political office to further their careers, to carry out specific political
programs, or in response to certain issues or events. The legal qualifications for holding political office
are minimal at both the state and local levels, but holders of political office still are predominantly white
and male and are likely to be from the professional class.
American political campaigns are lengthy and extremely expensive. In the last decade, they have
become more candidate centered rather than party centered in response to technological innovations and
decreasing party identification. Candidates have begun to rely less on the party and more on paid
professional consultants to perform the various tasks necessary to wage a political campaign. The crucial
task of professional political consultants is image building. The campaign organization devises a
campaign strategy to maximize the candidate’s chances of winning. Candidates use public opinion polls
and focus groups to gauge their popularity and to test the mood of the country.
Political campaigns have well-thought strategies to use the media to the advantage of their
candidates. Campaigns want to maximize exposure of the candidate through free coverage on the news,
paid advertising, success in candidate debates. Not only do campaigns plan how to get media coverage

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 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office 127

but they interpret events and news for the media hoping to influence voters to think positively of the
candidate.
The amount of money spent in financing campaigns is increasing steadily. A variety of corrupt
practices acts have been passed to regulate campaign finance. The Federal Election Campaign Act of
1971 and its amendments in 1974 and 1976 instituted major reforms by limiting spending and
contributions; the acts allowed corporations, labor unions, and interest groups to set up political action
committees (PACs) to raise money for candidates. Additionally, public matching funds were made
available to primary campaigns if certain criteria were met. The intent was to help candidates be
competitive in the primaries. New techniques, including “soft money” contributions to the parties and
independent expenditures, were later developed. The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act (BCRA) of 2002
banned soft money contributions to the national parties, limited advertising by interest groups, and
increased the limits on individual contributions. By 2008, most of the major candidates refused public
funding in the primary campaigns, as did the Obama campaign in the general election, resulting in very
large differences between the campaigns in financial resources. The idea of “leveling the playing field”
for candidates in either the primaries or the general election seemed to be obsolete.
After the Democratic Convention of 1968, the McGovern-Fraser Commission formulated new
rules for primaries, which were adopted by all Democrats and by Republicans in many states. These
reforms opened up the nomination process for the presidency to all voters. The new system effectively
removed control of the nomination process from the political party members and gave it to the voting
public. Sometimes this produces a great party leader, and other years it produces a candidate who is not
well supported by party loyalists and who cannot win the election.
A presidential primary is a statewide election to help a political party determine its presidential
nominee at the national convention. Some states use the caucus method of choosing convention delegates.
The primary campaign recently has been shortened to the first few months of the election year.
The party conventions are held to finalize the nomination of a candidate for president. Normally,
the convention is used to unite the party and to introduce the winning candidate to the public. It marks the
beginning of the general election campaign. Contested conventions have been rare in the last 50 years.
The general election campaign begins after Labor Day in September. Presidential candidates and
their campaign organizations use advertising, appearances, speeches, and debates to win support from
voters. In recent years, attention has been lavished on battleground states where presidential contests were
closely fought.

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128 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office

CHAPTER OUTLINE
Chapter 10 teaches you that free elections are the cornerstone of the American political system. Voters
choose one candidate from a pool of candidates to hold political office by casting ballots in local, state,
and federal elections. Voters are free from intimidation or coercion and are able to get easy access to
information about the election, as provided for by a free press.
The authors also make a point to provide a brief tutorial on how to read figures and tables and
emphasize the importance of visuals such as those found throughout this book to their understanding of
the course content. This should help overcome some students’ tendency to skip over visuals thinking that
they are unimportant, rather than carefully selected and prepared, as they are in this, and most, texts. The
authors make the points that students should study visuals carefully and note that often they will be tested
on this information. Like many figures, tables, and photographs, these visuals present descriptive data.
Descriptive information provides an answer to what or who questions but does not typically answer why
or how questions. Analysis (why or how) is a form of critical thinking.

I. WHO WANTS TO BE A CANDIDATE?

Democratic political systems require competitive elections with opposition candidates. If there is
no competition for any office, then the public has no ability to make a choice about leadership or
policies to be pursued.
A. Why They Run
There are two categories of individuals who run for office—the self-starters and those
who are recruited by the party. Self-starters may choose to get involved to gain publicity
to further a career, because of a commitment to a specific policy issue, or because of a
political cause. Recruited candidates have been chosen by party leaders because they
appear to have qualities that are necessary to gain the support of the voters.
B. The Nomination Process
Depending on the office and on state law, candidates can be placed on a party’s general
election ticket by a state or local party convention, a party caucus, or a primary election.
C. Who Is Eligible?
Qualifications for candidates vary from office to office, but few offices have restrictive
limitations. Residency requirements are common for legislative positions. Some offices
have age requirements (25 years of age for the U.S. House, 30 years of age for the U.S.
Senate, and 35 years of age for the presidency). Uniquely, the president cannot be a
naturalized citizen.
D. Who Runs?
Although there are few restrictions on being a candidate, most candidates are not
demographically representative of the general population. Traditionally, the
overwhelming majority of candidates are white, male, and relatively well off.
1. Women as Candidates. Since the 1970s, there has been a focused effort to
increase the number of women candidates, and in recent years, more women have
run for office. Women are more likely to run for local and state offices, though

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 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office 129

the number of women elected to Congress recently has increased significantly.

Nancy Pelosi is the first woman to be elected Speaker of the House. Although the
percentage is still relatively low by comparison to other nations, women make up
approximately 17 percent of the U.S. Congress.
2. Lawyers as Candidates. A very large number of elected officials at all levels are
lawyers. These professionals enjoy more flexible schedules and have careers that
prepare them well for—and that can be aided by—serving in elected positions.
II. THE 21ST CENTURY CAMPAIGN
Even with the most appealing of candidates, today’s campaigns require a strong organization;
expertise in political polling and marketing; professional assistance in fundraising, accounting,
and financial management; and technological capabilities in every aspect of the campaign.
A. The Changing Campaign
Campaigning for public office has changed dramatically over the past 40 years. In the
years before most households had televisions, campaigning was personalized. Voters
received information about a candidate from an individual—either the candidate, or a
person who was working on behalf of the candidate, or the party of the candidate.
Campaigns today are often less personal, with voters receiving information through the
media—usually in the form of advertising. In recent decades campaigns have become
less party-centered and more candidate-centered. Increasingly candidates form their own
political organizations and choose not to rely on the party organization for campaign
support.
B. The Professional Campaign Staff
It is now commonplace for candidates—even for local offices—to hire consultants for
their campaigns. Political consultants devise a campaign strategy that begins months
before the general election. This strategy includes raising contributions, seeking
endorsements of organized groups, arranging for the candidate to speak at meetings of
organized groups, forming groups for grassroots neighborhood support, developing a
communication strategy that utilizes social networks and the Internet, and creating an
extensive advertising campaign. The staff also often includes a finance chairperson,
pollster, communications director, and press secretary.
III. THE STRATEGY OF WINNING
In American politics, candidates seek to capture all the votes of their party’s supporters, to
convince a majority of the independent voters to vote for them, and to gain a few votes from
supporters of the other party.
A. Candidate Visibility and Appeal
A key issue is the candidate’s name recognition. If the candidate is well known,
especially if the candidate is an incumbent, then the strategy will be to remind voters of
the candidate’s accomplishments and to mobilize them to vote. If the candidate is
unknown, which is likely if he or she is a challenger or a candidate for an open seat, then
the strategy will be to get the candidate known to the voters. After this is accomplished,
challengers frequently opt to criticize the incumbent on his or her positions. If the
candidate is an independent or from a third party, the strategy must also include a
rationale for voters to abandon the major party and to support the third party and its
candidate. Typically, the major party candidate will label a third-party candidate as
unworthy of consideration.

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130 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office

B. Testing the Waters

Opinion polls are a major source of information for both the media and the candidates.
Poll taking is widespread during the primaries. Presidential hopefuls have private polls
taken to make sure that there is at least some chance they could be nominated and, if
nominated, elected. During the presidential campaign, polling is even more frequent.
Polls are taken not only by the regular pollsters—Gallup, Rasmussen, CBS News and
others—but also privately by the candidate and his or her campaign organization. As the
election approaches, many candidates and commercial houses use tracking polls, which
are polls taken almost every day, to find out how well they are competing for votes.
IV. THE MEDIA AND POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS
All forms of the media—television, newspapers, radio, magazines, blogs, and podcasts—have a
significant political impact on American society. Media influence is most obvious during political
campaigns. News coverage of a single event, such as the results of the Iowa caucuses or the New
Hampshire primary, may be the most important factor in having a candidate be referred to in the
media as the front-runner in a presidential campaign. It is not too much of an exaggeration to say
that almost all national political figures, starting with the president, plan every public appearance
and statement to attract media coverage.
A. Advertising
Perhaps one of the most effective political ads of all time was a 30-second spot created by
President Lyndon B. Johnson’s media adviser in 1964. In this ad, a little girl stood in a
field of daisies. As she held a daisy, she pulled the petals off and quietly counted to
herself. Suddenly, when she reached number 10, a deep bass voice cut in and began a
countdown: “10, 9, 8, 7, 6, …” When the voice intoned “zero,” the unmistakable
mushroom cloud of an atomic bomb began to fill the screen. Then President Johnson’s
voice was heard: “These are the stakes. To make a world in which all of God’s children
can live, or to go into the dark. We must either love each other or we must die.” At the
end of the commercial, the message read, “Vote for President Johnson on November 3.”
B. Management of News Coverage
Using political advertising to get a message across to the public is a very expensive tactic.
Coverage by the news media, however, is free; it simply demands that the campaign
ensure that coverage takes place. In recent years, campaign managers have shown
increasing sophistication in creating newsworthy events for journalists to cover. Today,
the art of putting the appropriate spin on a story or event is highly developed. Each
candidate’s or elected official’s press advisers, often referred to as spin doctors, try to
convince the journalists that their interpretations of the political events are correct. Each
political campaign, and the president’s own Office of Communication, send e-mails and
faxes to all the major media, setting out their own version of an event virtually in real
time.
C. Going for the Knockout Punch—Presidential Debates
In presidential elections, perhaps just as important as political advertisements is the
performance of the candidates in televised presidential debates. After the first such debate
in 1960, in which John F. Kennedy, the young senator from Massachusetts, took on the
vice-president of the United States, Richard Nixon, candidates became aware of the great
potential of television for changing the momentum of a campaign.

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 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office 131

D. Political Campaigns and the Internet

Without a doubt, the Internet has become an important vehicle for campaign advertising
and news coverage, as well as for soliciting campaign contributions. This first became
clear during the 2004 presidential elections, when 7 percent of all Internet users
participated in online campaign activities. (Internet users included about two-thirds of all
American adults.)
E. Financing the Campaign
The change in the structure of campaigning has created a greater dependence upon
campaign contributions. As campaigns have focused on advertising through the media to
reach voters, the cost of campaigning has increased dramatically. In 2008, candidates
spent more than $5 billion at all levels. Without the ability to raise large sums of money
for campaign costs, candidates have little chance of winning.
F. Regulating Campaign Financing
The first legislative attempts to control campaign financing occurred in 1925 and 1939.
The 1925 Corrupt Practices Act was ineffective. The Hatch Act of 1939 was not much
more effective.
G. The Federal Election Campaign Act
The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 replaced all previous laws. It attempted to
limit spending on advertising and required disclosure on contributions of over $100.
Unions and corporations could no longer make direct contributions but had to set up
Political Action Committees (PACs). The voluntary income tax form check-off for
contributing to presidential campaigns was created.
1. Further Reforms in 1974. The 1971 Federal Campaign Act and the 1974 Federal
Campaign Amendments regulating campaign contributions and spending set in
place the principles that have guided campaign finance ever since. Through the
Federal Election Campaign Act of 1974, Congress:
• created the Federal Election Commission, charged with overseeing the
enforcement of federal election campaign laws;
• provided for public funding of presidential primaries and general elections;
• limited presidential campaign spending for those who accept public funding;
• placed limitations on contributions (i.e., an individual could contribute
$1,000 per candidate per election, with a maximum total of $25,000. PACs
are limited to $5,000 per candidate per election. These figures did not include
“soft money” contributions to the political parties for party-building
activities, nor independent expenditures.); and
• required disclosure of the source of contributions and purpose of
expenditures.
2. Buckley v. Valeo. The 1971 Campaign Act had placed limits on how much
money a candidate could spend on his or her own campaign. In 1976, the
Supreme Court ruled that this provision was unconstitutional, an infringement
upon freedom of speech. Some states nevertheless continue to attempt to impose
spending limitations, and it is likely that the Supreme Court will be called upon
to review and reconsider its decision in Buckley.

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132 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office

V. INTEREST GROUPS AND CAMPAIGN FINANCE: REACTION TO NEW RULES

In the last two decades, interest groups and individual companies have found new, direct ways to
support elected officials through campaign donations. Elected officials, in turn, have become
dependent on these donations to run increasingly expensive campaigns.
A. PACs and Political Campaigns
Political Action Committees (PACs) are set up to represent a corporation, a labor union,
or an interest group. They raise money and provide candidates with contributions. To be
legitimate, a federal PAC must obtain donations from a minimum of 50 people and
contribute to at least five candidates in a federal election. The number of PACs registered
with the Federal Election Commission has increased significantly since 1976. The
amount of money being contributed to campaigns by PACs also has increased
significantly, and incumbents receive the lion’s share of contributions.
B. Campaign Financing beyond the Limits
The problem of campaign finance is compounded by the practices of issue advocacy
advertising and soft money contributions, which allow contributors to skirt contribution
limitations but still influence the outcome of an election.
1. Contributions to Political Parties. The legislation of 1971and 1974 placed no
restrictions on money given to parties for voter registration, general publicity
about a party’s positions, and the national conventions. Contributions for such
purposes were called soft money, as opposed to regulated hard money.
2. Independent Expenditures. It was soon discovered that it was legal to
make independent expenditures that were not coordinated with the
candidates’ campaigns.
3. Issue Advocacy. A major tactic is for interest groups to buy advertising that
advocates positions on issues and either attack or praise candidates on the basis
of the issues. As long as no candidates are actually endorsed, the tactic is legal.
C. The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002
The Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act was passed by Congress in 2002.
1. Key Elements of the New Law. The act banned soft money contributions to the
national party committees. It also placed limitations on issue advocacy
advertisements and increased the individual contribution limit to $2,000 (from
$1,000) with annual increases. The Act was challenged as unconstitutional but
upheld by the Supreme Court. However, the manner in which the Federal
Election Commission interpreted the law allowed for very little actual reform.
2. The Rise of the 527s. Proving the old adage that money will always find a way to
influence politics, interest groups that had previously made soft money
contributions instead began setting up “527” organizations (named after the
section in the tax code that allows their creation). These 527s ran advertisements
that were claimed to focus on encouraging voter registration and supporting
particular issues, while in reality they often created advertisements meant to
impact election outcomes. In contrast to the 527s, charities and true not-for-profit
organizations are not allowed to participate directly in any type of political
activity. The IRS found in 2005 that a substantial number of churches, charities,
and other tax-exempt organizations engaged in prohibited political activity
during the 2003–2004 election.

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 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office 133

D. Campaign Financing and The 2008 Election

The 2008 election put campaign finance laws to the test. Senator McCain raised about
$350 million during 2008 but chose not to accept private donations during the general
election campaign and ran his fall campaign on the $84 million of federal campaign funds
available to him under the law. Senator Obama did not accept any public funds, raised
about $630 million in 2008, and outspent McCain on Get-Out-the-Vote and advertising.
E. Citizens United, Freedom Now, and the Future of Campaign Finance Regulation
The Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC. In many ways, the case
continued the struggle of outside groups and groups not affiliated with political parties to
play a bigger role in political campaigns. Although three decades of campaign finance
laws and regulation had been passed to contain the influence of groups on the political
process and to limit the contributions of individuals, political action committees, and
corporations, the Citizens United decision, on its face, lifted many of those restrictions.
The decision allow corporations, unions, groups such as Citizens United, and others to
spend money in campaign advertising without limit as long as it is not coordinated with a
campaign. Indeed, the restriction against using direct campaign language such as “vote
for Mr. Smith” has been lifted as well.
VI. RUNNING FOR PRESIDENT: THE LONGEST CAMPAIGN
The presidential primary campaign lasts from January until June of the election year.
Traditionally, the final campaign heats up around Labor Day, although if the nominees are
known, it will begin even before the conventions. The first primary election was held in
Wisconsin in 1903. It was a way to open up the process to the ordinary voter and reduce the
power of political bosses. Until 1968, however, only a minority of states had binding primaries.
Some primaries were beauty contests that did not actually select delegates.
A. Reforming the Primaries
After riots outside the 1968 Democratic Convention, the party created the McGovern-
Fraser Commission to recommend reforms. Under the new rules, delegates had to be
chosen by primaries, open caucuses, or elected state conventions, and not by party
leaders. In 1984, however, elected officials re-won the right to attend conventions as
voting superdelegates. The Republicans also instituted most of these reforms.
B. Front-Loading the Primaries
Each state determines the date for its primary or caucus.
1. The Rush to Be First. Because early primaries are more influential, states have
competed to schedule their primaries as early as possible. As a result, the primary
season is essentially over by March. This process is believed to help well-
funded front-runners. By choosing the nominees so early, there is a long lull in
the news between the primaries and the national conventions. However, it also
allows the nominee time to raise funds for the general campaign and to heal any
wounds that were inflicted during the primary battle. James A. Baker and Jimmy
Carter headed a private commission that recommended Iowa and New
Hampshire continue their traditional opening of the electoral season. However,
the commission’s recommendation presented a dramatic departure from the
norm: four regional primaries that would be held in March, April, May, and June
with the order rotated every four years.
2. The 2008 Primary Contest. The contest for the Democratic nomination drew a
large and diverse field of candidates in 2008, including Senator Hillary Clinton

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134 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office

and Senator Barack Obama, who eventually received the nomination. The
Republican contest began with a diverse field as well, but ended fairly early with
the nomination of Senator John McCain.
VII. THE 2012 PRIMARY SEASON
By early fall of 2011, many Republican voters believed that a few strong candidates were
available to challenge President Obama for the 2012 election. However, by the end of 2011, the
Republican field was crowded with candidates who participated in multiple debates during the
late fall pre-primary season. Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney began his second
campaign for the nomination in 2011 as did Ron Paul, who had run as a Libertarian in the past.
Other candidates who attracted an early following were Congresswoman Michelle Bachmann,
former Governor Tim Pawlenty, former Speaker Newt Gingrich, Texas Governor Rick Perry,
Ambassador Jon Huntsman, Jr., and former Senator Rick Santorum. Most of the candidates
competed in the Iowa caucuses and, to the surprise of many, Rick Santorum narrowly won the
contest. Romney won the New Hampshire primary, and the race was on. One by one, the
Republican candidates dropped out of the race, leaving Santorum, Paul, and Governor Romney
who finally clinched the nomination in late May. As the primaries unfolded in the Republican
Party, it was clear that a large and vocal minority of those voters were more conservative than
Mr. Romney, but they were split between social conservatives who supported Senator Santorum
and anti-tax, anti-government voters who favored Ron Paul.
A. On to the National Convention
Each state receives delegates to the national nominating convention for each party. The
number of delegates a state receives is roughly proportional to the population of the state,
with extra delegates if the party’s candidate carried the state in the last
presidential election.
1. Seating the Delegates. A credentials committee approves all delegates. This is
usually not controversial but there have been disputed delegations in the past.
2. Convention Activities. The highlight of the convention is the nomination of the
presidential candidate. Because the identity of the nominee is typically a
foregone conclusion, the television networks have drastically curtailed their
coverage of the conventions in recent years.
B. On to the General Election
The general election campaign actually begins after the two-party conventions officially
proclaim their nominees. The general election campaign strategies for each candidate are
similar to those used during the primaries except that each candidate now tries to
articulate their difference from the opposition in terms of party issues. Voters respond to
the campaigns on the basis of partisanship, the candidates’ personalities, and the issues of
the day. Importantly, campaigns must constantly plan to win enough electoral votes to
receive the majority in the Electoral College. Those states that are likely to be close in the
popular vote are tagged battleground states and see intense campaigning, unlike those
states that are identified as certain wins for a particular candidate.
VII. FEATURES
A. What If . . . Spending Limits Were Placed on Campaigns?
Spending limits would most likely have the effect of deterring millionaire candidates
from getting involved in campaigns and spending unlimited amounts of their own money,
limiting the ability of special interests to influence the outcomes of campaigns, and
lowering the profits of media companies that benefit from the endless campaign

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 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office 135

commercials. On the other hand, such measures have been attempted in the past and
never seem to produce the results their well-intentioned advocates imagine.
B. Beyond our Borders: How Short Can a Campaign Be?
In the United States, presidential candidates usually start to build support two years prior
to the general election, and the nominating phase can last nearly 11 months. In the British
system, elections for parliament are scheduled by the Prime Minister (but by law must be
held every five years) by asking the Queen to dissolve parliament. Elections must take
place within 17 days of dissolving parliament. Spending is strictly limited and totals in
the millions compared to the billions spent by candidates and parties in the United States.
C. Politics with a Purpose: Campaign Funds: How Many Sources are There?
Money is the lifeblood of elections. Candidates for office raise and spend hundreds of
millions of dollars. For example, the presidential campaign in 2012 saw more than $2
billion in expenditures. However, not all that money was spent by the Romney and
Obama campaigns or by the Republican or Democratic Parties. With the changes in
campaign finance laws and the court decisions in Citizens United v. FEC and
Freedomnow.org v. FEC, the number of sources for campaign funds to be spent on behalf
of candidates multiplied rapidly.
D. You Can Make a Difference: Students on the Campaign Trail
There are thousands of elected positions in the United States and none of these political
campaigns could be run without the volunteer efforts of students. The 2008 presidential
campaign was of particular interest to young people. A Harvard University study found
that 70 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds followed the 2008 campaign closely. Students can
also get involved in local and statewide races and help with fundraising, voter
registration, door-to-door canvassing, and Election Day get-out-the-vote efforts.

CRITICAL THINKING QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION

1. Why would it be extremely difficult to effectively limit campaign spending?
2. If campaign spending limits were effective, who would be hurt more—those politicians already in
office or those attempting to win an election for the first time? Explain your answer.
3. Do you think American campaigns would generate more or less excitement and voter turnout if
they were considerably shorter?
4. Is it really possible for candidates and parties to explain their platforms and present their
candidates in a couple of weeks?
LECTURE LAUNCHERS
1. This chapter argues that free elections are the cornerstone of the American political system. Use
this claim to initiate a discussion with your students about the characteristics of fair and free
elections. Once you have compiled a list of requirements or associated characteristics, use it to
evaluate U.S. presidential, congressional, and state and local elections. In what ways do U.S.
elections set the standard for the world? In what ways might we reform our electoral system? If
you have international students in your class, ask them to speak to the qualities relative to
elections in their home country.
2. Provide students with a link to past political advertisements (e.g., The Living Room Candidate at
http://www.livingroomcandidate.org/) or show a sampling in class. It may be interesting to draw
from several election years so that you can compare qualities across time. Ask your students to

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136 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office

identify campaign strategies and tactics from the ads. (In other words, what are campaigns trying
to accomplish with this ad?) Evaluate the effectiveness of each ad. What do the ads, taken as a
whole, tell us about the process of campaigning for political office in the United States? What do
they tell us about voters?
3. Why is money so important in U.S. elections? Although Congress has tried on several occasions
to limit the influence of money in elections, most attempts have met with limited success? Why is
it so difficult to regulate money in campaigns? What role does the First Amendment play in this
issue? Would you favor public financing of campaigns beyond the current practices related to the
general election for president? Initiate a discussion about the problems resulting from front-
loading the primaries? Are there any benefits to this approach to primaries? Prior to each
presidential election cycle, the two major parties try to make changes to the primary schedule and
to the rules for campaigns in the hopes of providing an advantaging to their party nominee (e.g.,
Super Tuesday and regional primaries) but usually there are a host of unintended consequences.
In 2005, a commission recommended keeping the Iowa caucuses and the New Hampshire
primary but lumping all of the other states into four regional presidential primaries held in March,
April, May, and June. Ask students to evaluate how this might change the nomination process?
Would it work differently for Democrats and Republicans? Would it change the role that money
plays in picking a nominee? Would it make the primary contests more or less competitive?

IN-CLASS ACTIVITIES
1. In a lecture, you could take a closer look at the presidential caucus procedure. The caucus method
is more complex than a primary but the end result is the same—the selection of delegates to the
national convention. In a typical caucus procedure, voters meet at the local level to select
representatives to attend a county or district caucus. This process is repeated at various levels
until the representatives meet at the state convention, where delegates are selected to attend the
national convention. Although more states use presidential primaries, there are states that select
delegates through the caucus method. Some of your students may have participated in a caucus.
Ask them to share their experience.
2. Image has become an important factor in the campaign process. The candidate attempts to build a
positive image while attacking the image of the other candidates. This has led to negative
campaign tactics. When information that could damage the image of an opponent is discovered,
the candidate is encouraged to use the information to tarnish the image of the opponent. Although
many voters say they do not like this type of campaigning, these tactics are on the increase and in
many cases have proven to be very effective in influencing the voters. However, research in
Political Science demonstrates that negative advertising depresses voter turnout across all
candidates and races. Discuss the implications for public funding of campaigns given this
information.
3. Have your students watch Mike Nichols’ Primary Colors, based on the novel by Joe Klein and
inspired by Bill Clinton’s improbable run for the presidency in 1992. Ask your students whether
they agree with the decisions made by the Stanton campaign, especially the more cut-throat and
hardball actions taken as victory seems more and more achievable for the main characters.

IMPORTANT TERMS/KEY TERMS/MARGINAL DEFINITIONS

Battleground State—A state that is likely to be so closely fought that the campaigns devote exceptional
effort to winning the popular and electoral vote there.

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 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office 137

Beauty Contest—A presidential primary in which contending candidates compete for popular votes but
the results do not control the selection of delegates to the national convention.
Caucus—A meeting of party members designed to select candidates and propose policies.
Closed Primary—A type of primary in which the voter is limited to choosing candidates of the party of
which he or she is a member.
Communications Director—A professional specialist who plans the communications strategy and
advertising campaign for the candidate.
Corrupt Practices Acts—A series of acts passed by Congress in an attempt to limit and regulate the size
and sources of contributions and expenditures in political campaigns.
Credentials Committee—A committee used by political parties at their national conventions to
determine which delegates may participate. The committee inspects the claim of each prospective
delegate to be seated as a legitimate representative of his or her state
Finance Chairperson—The campaign professional who directs fundraising, campaign spending, and
compliance with campaign finance laws and reporting requirements.
Focus Group—A small group of individuals who are led in discussion by a professional consultant in
order to gather opinions on and responses to candidates and issues.
Front-Runner—The presidential candidate who appears to be ahead at a given time in the primary
season.
Front-Loading—The practice of moving presidential primary elections to the early part of the campaign
to maximize the impact of these primaries on the nomination.
Get Out the Vote (GOTV)—This phrase describes the multiple efforts expended by campaigns to get
voters out to the polls on election day.
Hard Money—This refers to political contributions and campaign spending that is recorded under the
regulations set forth in law and by the Federal Election Commission.
Hatch Act—An act passed in 1939 that restricted the political activities of government employees. It also
prohibited a political group from spending more than $3 million in any campaign and limited
individual contributions to a campaign committee to $5,000.
Independent Expenditures—Nonregulated contributions from PACs, organizations, and individuals.
The funds may be spent on advertising or other campaign activities, so long as those expenditures
are not coordinated with those of a candidate.
Issue Advocacy Advertising—Advertising paid for by interest groups that support or oppose a candidate
or a candidate’s position on an issue without mentioning voting or elections.
Open Primary—A primary in which any registered voter can vote (but must vote for candidates of only

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138 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office

one party).
Political Action Committee (PAC)—A committee set up by and representing a corporation, labor union,
or special-interest group. PACs raise and give campaign donations.
Political Consultant—A paid professional hired to devise a campaign strategy and manage a campaign.
Pollster—The person or firm who conducts public opinion polls for the campaign.
Presidential Primary—A statewide primary election of delegates to a political party’s national
convention, held to determine a party’s presidential nominee.
Press Secretary—The individual who interacts directly with the journalists covering the campaign.
Soft Money—Campaign contributions unregulated by federal or state law, usually given to parties and
party committees to help fund general party activities.
Spin—An interpretation of campaign events or election results that is favorable to the candidate’s
campaign strategy.
Spin doctors—A political campaign adviser who tries to convince journalists of the truth of a particular
interpretation of events.
Superdelegate—A party leader or elected official who is given the right to vote at the party’s national
convention. Superdelegates are not elected at the state level.
Super PAC—A political committee that can accept unlimited contributions from individuals and
corporations to spend supporting a candidate as long as their efforts are not coordinated with the
candidate’s own campaign.
Tracking Poll—A poll taken for the candidate on a nearly daily basis as election day approaches.

WEB LINKS
Center for Responsive Politics—a nonpartisan, independent, and nonprofit research group that tracks
money in U.S. politics and its effect on elections and public policy: www.opensecrets.org
Federal Election Commission—an independent regulatory agency created by Congress in 1975 to
administer and enforce the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA)—the statute that governs the
financing of federal elections; contains detailed information about current campaign financing
laws and the latest filings of finance reports: www.fec.gov
Project Vote Smart—investigates voting records and campaign financing information: www.vote-
smart.org

INSTRUCTOR RESOURCES
PRINTED MEDIA RESOURCES
Karpf, David. The MoveOn Effect: The Unexpected Transformation of American Political Advocacy.

Copyright © Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.

 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office 139

New York: Oxford University Press, 2012. The author examines how today’s organizations use
the Internet and social media to gain supporters and motivate followers to join others in common
cause. His work addresses the new ways that organizations arise, organize, fund-raise and operate
across the country utilizing the capacity of the internet to connect their followers.
Lau, Richard R., et al., eds. How Voters Decide: Information Processing in Election Campaigns.
Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press, 2006. The researchers who wrote this book
attempted to get “inside the heads” of citizens who confront huge amounts of information during
modern presidential campaigns. The researchers argued that we should care not just about which
candidates receive the most votes, but also about how many citizens voted “correctly”—that is, in
accordance with their own interests.
MoveOn. MoveOn’s 50 Ways to Love Your Country: How to Find Your Political Voice and Become a
Catalyst for Change. Makawao, Maui, HI: Inner Ocean Publishing, 2004. This book contains 50
short chapters in which individuals describe how they sought to make a difference by getting
involved in the political process. MoveOn has been called a “shadow party” to the Democrats.
Nevertheless, the techniques described here could be used just as easily by Republicans. The
volume is also available on audiotape.
Nelson, Michael, ed. The Elections of 2008. Washington, DC: CQ Press, 2009. This collection of essays
by well-known political scientists comments on all aspects of the 2008 campaign, from the
primaries through the general election.
Plouffe, David. The Audacity to Win: The Inside Story and Lesson of Barack Obama’s Historic Victory.
New York: Viking, 2009. David Plouffe, one of President Obama’s closest advisers, and political
consultants tell the inside story of the Obama campaign’s strategy for winning in 2008. This is a
good look at the inside of a high-powered campaign apparatus.
Smidt, Corwin, Kevin den Dulk, Bryan Froehle, James Penning, Stephen Monsma, and Douglas L.
Koopman. The Disappearing God Gap? Religion in the 2008 Presidential Election. New York:
Oxford University Press, 2010. After two elections in which religious conservatives seemed to
have played a strong role, religion and religious views were much less important in the election of
2008. The authors examine the role of religion in American elections and comment on how that
role changed in the Obama election.
Thurber, James A., and Candice J. Nelson, eds. Campaigns and Elections American Style:
Transforming American Politics. New York: Westview Press, 2004. The articles in this book
consider the basics of American campaigns and discuss practical campaign politics. They
examine the evolution of campaigns over time, including town meetings, talk radio, infomercials,
and focus groups. In this book, you will discover how campaign themes and strategies are

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140 Chapter 10: Campaigning for Office

determined.
Wayne, Stephen J. The Road to the White House, 2008: The Politics of Presidential Elections. Belmont,
CA: Wadsworth Publishing, 2008. Stephen Wayne examines the changes in the election process
since 1996 and provides an excellent analysis of the presidential selection process.

MEDIA RESOURCES
Bulworth—A 1998 satirical film starring Warren Beatty and Halle Berry. Jay Bulworth, a senator who is
fed up with politics and life in general, hires a hit man to carry out his own assassination. He then
throws political caution to the wind in campaign appearances by telling the truth and behaving the
way he really wants to behave.
The Candidate—A 1972 film, starring a young Robert Redford, that effectively investigates and satirizes
the decisions that a candidate for the U.S. Senate must make. It’s a political classic.’
Game Change—Released in 2012, this movie portrays the Republican campaign in 2008 with an
emphasis on the introduction of Sarah Palin as the vice presidential candidate. It stars Ed Harris,
Julianne Moore, and Woody Harrelson.
If You Can’t Say Anything Nice—Negative campaigning seems to have become the norm in recent
years. This 1999 program looks at the resulting decline in popularity of politics among the
electorate and suggests approaches to restoring faith in the process. It is part of the series Politics
as Usual, available from the Films Media Group.
Money Talks: The Influence of Money on American Politics—Bill Moyers reports on the influence of
money on our political system. Produced in 1994.
Primary Colors—A 1998 film starring John Travolta as a Southern governor, loosely based on Bill
Clinton, who is plagued by a sex scandal during his run for the presidency.

Copyright © Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.