Welcome to Local Victory! We have hundreds of articles and tips on how to win elections. Be sure to check out our Archives to see a complete list!

The Negative Campaigning Debate

People have lots of different opinions on “negative campaigning.”  Some say never use it, some say always use it… and some are in between.  Every year around election time, there are huge debates on cable news shows and in the editorial pages about “going negative,” and the repercussions of modern political combat. Today, I’d like [...]

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How to Score a Political Upset

It’s great to be the frontrunner in a political campaign.  Media attention, contributions and volunteers flowing in, plans being drawn for your transition team – it’s a good feeling.  Falling behind, on the other hand, becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy: your poll numbers are bad, so the media starts reporting on your imminent demise, which only fuels [...]

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Why YOU Should Run for Office

You should run for office.  Have you thought about it?  Have you spent time thinking over the issues that you would run on, what your slogan would be, where the money would come from? You SHOULD run for office.  Not your boss… not your spouse… not your best friend who always talks about politics.  YOU. [...]

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The Top 3 Principles of Political Design

When you’re running for office, you have to make lots of design decisions for lots of different items.  Campaigns need tons of printed materials, from yard signs and buttons to brochures and billboards.  While political design has lots of things in common with standard business advertising design, it also has its own peculiar best practices. [...]

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The 5 Best Ways to Raise More Money for Your Campaign

Fundraising is hard work, but it has to be done.  Getting your message out, hiring staff, training volunteers… it all costs money.  Fundraising is the lifeline of your campaign, providing the resources you need to do everything you have to do to win.  Because fundraising is so hard, it’s a tragedy when campaigns leave money [...]

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Political Targeting – The Beginner’s Guide

It used to be that after candidates announced, they hit the streets, shaking as many hands and kissing as many babies as they could between the time they entered the race and election day. The rationale for this type of campaign was simple: the more people you contact, the more people will vote for you. The [...]

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Political Fundraising Networks

The most effective way for a local candidate to raise money is through personal contacts and solicitation… by building a personal fundraising network.  National money and PAC  contributions will be few and far between for aspiring local elected officials. In order to accomplish the necessary campaign tasks and achieve success on election day, the candidate [...]

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Running a Grassroots Contributions Campaign

When it comes to political fundraising, there are major efforts and there are minor efforts.  There are strategies, like major donor groups, personal solicitation, and big-ticket events that will raise large percentages of your fundraising dollars.   There are also small-ball fundraising efforts, like Internet fundraising, telemarketing, and minor donor groups, which will raise a relatively [...]

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Does Your Campaign Have Effective Get Out the Vote Literature?

Literature is an integral part of your get out the vote (GOTV) campaign.  There are any number of ways that you can incorporate literature into your get out the vote efforts.  Your campaign may decide to do a targeted mailing, organize a literature drop, or go door-to-door leaving palm cards and doorknob hangers reminding people to vote [...]

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Getting Ready to Run for Office – 8 Steps to Take Today

One mistake that most political candidates make during their first run for office is waiting too long to get started.  No matter what level office you are running for, or thinking of running for, it is never too soon to get started.  Of course, there are many activities that the candidate can’t perform until the campaign [...]

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5 More Secrets for Winning a Political Campaign

I know, I know… in the Local Victory Archives, you can literally find thousands of secrets for winning a political campaign.  Do we really need to publish five more?  We do… and here’s why: this week, I had an interesting conversation with another political strategist about the toughest things candidates face in winning local elections, [...]

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The Pros and Cons of Starting Your Own Political Action Committee

Have you ever thought about starting your own political action committee (PAC)? If you have, you’re not alone. I often get questions about PACs, how to start them, and the pros and cons of running one. (If you’re not sure what a political action committee is, read Local Victory’s What are PACs? ) Today, we’re [...]

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