What No One Told Me About Navigating DC Political World

 

Growing up, I always wanted a big sister. Someone who had been to high school dances, for example and could tell me what people wore, what to expect etc. This would have saved me a lot of grief when I showed up in a bridesmaid dress from the Nordstrom Rack sale section to an event where everyone else was wearing baby tees and jeans. (Keep in mind this was in the earlier days of the Internet when there was no YouTube or Instagram to tell me how to "dress my aesthetic.")  This feeling continued well into my 20's when I did find mentors who were well-intentioned but I soon discovered victims of the same myths and pressures I was battling myself. What I would have given for some straight talk from someone who has been and there and was willing to admit, nay declare, that the Emperor is often without clothes. As my favorite British comedian Joe Lycett would say "sometimes if you want something to exist you have to make it yourself." 

If you have ever felt like you missed the day of school where they taught you how to "be" in politics this post is for you. This is not tips for networking, or resume writing or job searching. Rather this is about the smoke and mirrors I wish someone had discussed with me when I was intimidated and more or less navigating our unique social structure on my own. Let's go! 

1) Being a "consultant" doesn't mean shit. Okay maybe you all are a lot smarter than I am but when I was in my early to even mid-twenties working on campaigns and doing informational interviews in DC I assumed campaign consultants were all hyper-successful-know-it-alls joining conference calls when they deigned to from their second beach house. The truth is being a campaign consultant can mean a wide array of things. In the first place any asshole can set up a website and hang out a shingle and put up a front but that doesn't mean they are either exceptionally qualified or exceptionally successful at it. In the second place, junior associates or account executives even at well established and respected firms are not necessarily making more money than an RFD on a statewide or a manager on a city council race. (Though they should still take you out to dinner on the company's dime if they come to visit.) This also means that they last minute help that you may be lucky to get from your TV or mail firm is not necessarily deserving of the disdain with which you might be tempted to treat them (and I speak now in retrospect to my asshole of a past self) sure a lot of these DC ship-ins can have chips on their shoulders but some of them are there to earnestly learn what goes on on the ground. TL; DR all "consultants" are not equal. 

2) Campaign awards are basically a giant circle jerk. I love and respect my friends on every 40 Under 40 List, recipients of Pollies, and Reed awards. I will be excited for them every time they are nominated, slightly wistful that I am not there myself, and wholeheartedly post about how deserving they are. That said, these awards like everything else are lower case "p", political. Awards go to managers and consultants who are nominated by big firms, and those that are paying members or sponsors of the lists, publications, or organizations that are issuing them. They are great for marketing and a great way to recognize quality or enterprising work but you are not finding your way on to these lists based on merit alone. Conversely while awards are nice for marketing no one serious is counting awards when it comes to which firms to bring in on a project.

3) Selfies with principals are proof of...having access to a cell phone. My grandson, Organizer Memes, recently posted the lament of an anonymous reader who was worried they were falling behind because their contemporaries were taking pictures with "important politicians" while the poster was on the ground doing what I might call "the real work." While having your picture taken with a Member of Congress who you admire can be fun and meaningful, what it doesn't mean is anything about your relative importance. Back in my day when I had to walk uphill both ways to canvass and had exactly 0 days off a month, we were taught "no star fucking." Essentially, pictures with candidate or their surrogates are for donors and volunteers and you are there to work and MAYBE get a pic along with the rest of the staff if you are lucky.  Taking a picture with a politician means that you were there and you asked them. This could be at a rally, a fundraiser or even when you bumped into them with you boss after returning with his Dunkin' order. But just like having your picture with Mickey Mouse in Disneyland does not make you an Imagineer, having a picture with AOC on its own says only that you have a picture with AOC. 

To drive home my point,  here are some pictures of me in 2007 with Howard Dean while campaigning for disgraced Senator John Edwards and maybe the worst picture of my face in existence with Senator Tammy Baldwin when she visited the MN DFL Headquarters in 2019. 

4) Confidence does not equal competence. Maybe it is how I was raised or more likely how I was socialized but if I don't know what I'm talking about I tend not to speak on a subject. If I care to, I try to learn and ask questions. Not so for a lot, and I mean A LOT, of people in our industry. (I will leave you to infer the race and gender of most of them.) When I would visit DC in my younger times, because I was a beautiful naive ingenue, I would marvel at the way that acquaintances would casually drop the names of congressional committees and the bills before them and even more so self-assuredly offer opinions on their sponsors' potential career trajectories. It look me years (read: way longer than it should have) to realize that most of these predictions were ripped straight off of Politico and 538 at best and more likely straight out of their asses. I can't tell you how many people came to me for advice during the 2020 primaries saying "I want to work for X candidate but someone is telling me that only Y can win and I will be burned if I don't work for them." If the past several election cycles have taught us anything it's that nobody knows anything for certain and in many ways conventional wisdom is overrated. The longer I spend in this town the more I recognize overconfidence and lack of curiosity for the red flag toward Losertown that it is.  

5) All the above this advice boils down to the following: take the work seriously, don't yourself so seriously! This is not House of Cards or West Wing and anyone acting like it is, is in fact themselves desperately insecure. While the stakes of our collective work are literally life or death, the stakes of your particular career are not. Don't drive yourself crazy over your "career trajectory." Do what lights you up, that makes you feel passionate and excited to go to work with people you enjoy working with. This is the best way to gain a good reputation, make a real difference and ultimately advance your career. 

You're Doing It Wrong: Are You Underutilizing Your Consultants?

Consultants are more than just product producers. They are there to do what their name implies, consult. Both because they are campaign professionals and because it's good for business your consultants want you to win. As one pointed out to me recently they are making the most money on the campaign while spending the least amount of time on the ground so you may as well make them work for it. Here are five things to ask your consultants to make the most of your relationship and run your best campaign:

1) Ask them to help you find staff. The campaign world is replete with informational interviews, many of them with political consultants. Consultants are often adjunct professors in various PoliSci programs (which means students) and work on several campaigns at once all ending on different schedules. All of this means access to resumes. Helping place staff on campaigns is not only the right thing to do and good for the client, it also helps build a brand. If a consultant has helped place you on a race you are more likely to reach out to them when you are looking to hire a consulting team on that or future races. Plus consultants tend to be friends with other consultants and former colleagues who also have resumes and an interest in placing people as well. It's a win-win-win-win. Networking is the helping economy that makes our world go round and you should not be shy about playing your part in it.

2) Ask them to back you up. It's a good thing my candidate doesn't read my blog because I use this one all the time. Sometimes when I can't convince my candidate of something I know I am correct about, (call time is necessary, yard signs are stupid, you can't go on vacation during a candidate forum) I call my consulting team and talk to about it, make sure we are on the same page, and then bring it up on our consultant call. Consultants want you to win so they are usually more than happy to be your advocate and it often helps a candidate to hear it from more that one source-especially one they don't see every day. NB: Definitely make sure you check in with your consultants first so that you can explain your point of view/present a united front when the subject is broached.

3) Ask them teach you new skills. One of the best parts about managing a campaign is that you get work directly with and learn from experts. Consultants want informed clients and future colleagues so don't be shy about asking why they give you a specific piece of advice or how part of their process works. If you're looking to get experience in a particular consultant's area ask if you can take on a task like crafting a press release or an email. As long something is not particularly intensive or time-sensitive they are usually more than happy to have it off their plate.

4) Ask them to weigh in outside their own purview. Just because someone happens to be a pollster or fundraising consultant doesn't mean that this is their only area of expertise. Most consultants are long-time campaign people and its very difficult to get this far without having a variety of experience and working on a lot of different campaigns. Don't be afraid to lean on your consultants for advice even when it has to do with a project they aren't necessarily involved in.

5) Ask them to help YOU find a job. See number one. Consultants perpetually have their hands in a bunch of different campaigns and they love to embed staffers who they know will be loyal to them. Once your campaign is over, assuming you've done a good job, don't be afraid to reach out about next steps.

Ten More Votes! A Firm Of One's Own with Eric Hogensen

One of the things I love the most about our community is that you have people wherever you go. To wit, I am in Los Angeles looking for my next adventure and the consultants and operatives of the West Coast (and yes, the GC culture is a huge thing here, another post on that later) have been nothing but generous with their time. I sat down with Eric Hogensen of HSG campaigns to learn more about his business AND his exciting new project, Ten More Votes!

Who are you? Tell us a little about yourself and your career trajectory.

I was born in Chicago and raised around Madison, Wisconsin. My mother is Mexican and father is Jewish. I was raised in a fairly political household by left-wing radical artists and got a Poli Sci degree but I didn’t work on my first campaign until after college. I started as a Field Organizer in WA-03 (Olympia) in the summer of 2000, literally fell in love with campaigns on that race and I've been doing it ever since. I came up through field, did a Kentucky Governor’s race, a Presidential cycle for Clark in South Carolina and a Congressional race in Vegas. Along the way I did a little bit of everything from press to finance to managing.

What do you love about campaigns?

I think of campaigns like a mosquito zapper. One pops up and all these people from all over suddenly flock to it. I’m definitely a people person so I love that feeling of camaraderie and teamwork. There’s nothing like that pace and that energy. I especially love managing because you are in the middle of everything, you move things forward, you influence the candidate, there’s no part of the race you don’t touch. But it takes so much out of you.

When did you start your own firm and why?

I believe you only have two or three races in you to manage and really do it well. I won my congressional race in ‘06 started my firm in ’07. I got some good staff that I trusted and rented a couple rooms above a soccer bar in Milwaukee, focused on mail and digital. Once it got going, I moved things out to CA because I love it here. The weather is great and my wife is from SC and so she missed warm weather. 

What surprised you about starting your own firm?

The thing I was least prepared for is that once you're a consultant all your relationships with other consultants change. As a manager, they’re helping you get jobs and you are helping them by staffing their races. As a fellow it’s just different. Even if you’re not in direct competition maybe they’re on a race with someone with whom you are. Also the reality of constantly selling/finding clients. The impact and the beast of that is intense.

Tell us about Ten More Votes.

Ten More Votes is a mobile voter contact campaign app for Democratic campaigns that volunteers and supporters can use to easily call, text and canvass for the campaign. No other platform allows you to do all three and its ease of use, in my opinion, is second to none. 

How did this come about?

My friend Kelly (who is a tech person) and I were talking. He was building apps and doing some freelance projects and we decided to do a project together.  It did come out of what I perceive to be a gap in campaign technology. There are solutions out there but I don't think they are as simple as they can be and for me this filled that gap.

How have you seen this kind of technology change over the course of your career?

I've by seen it go from nothing in 2000 -basically we were just chatting with each other on AIM-- to now where smart campaigns spend a significant part of their budget and devote staff to digital. So literally from 0 to like 50% when you consider how much tech is a part of everything. The key becomes how do you integrate everything; how do you curate what’s out there? You don't want to get distracted by shiny objects. At the same time there are fundamentals that don't have anything to do with digital: management, messaging, good candidates that won't ever change. 

If people want to learn more about how 10 more votes works how can they find out?

You can use this link to sign up for a demo. CampaignSick readers get 10% off their first two months of using the app!

What else do you want people to know about Ten More Votes?

We used to talk about this like a FUBU product, for us by us. Lot's of people come from the tech world and want to tell us how to improve things, knowing nothing about the process. I built this with us in mind. I'm a campaign person; I'm not an angel investor or a tech bro. Basically I love your readers and and I want their feedback because that's who we build this for.

What do you wish you had known earlier in your career?

Be more mindful of how you treat people. When you are young and passionate you get caught up in the moment and you lose sight of how the things you say affect people. I never lacked confidence, I can tell you that, but there's a way to be confident without being cocky. People will remember how you treat them long after you've forgotten what you said.

Guest Post: Starting A Relationship With Your Consultants

Ben Holse is a Junior Account Manager at The Campaign Workshop. The Campaign Workshop has recently released its latest e-book, Ready Set, Go: Jump Start Your Next Campaign. Which you can get here for free.

Any experienced campaign manager or campaign operative can recall a bad experience working with a consultant. Perhaps the consultant couldn’t deliver what they promised, they were unresponsive or didn’t hit deadlines. Undoubtedly, a lot of what goes into a successful relationship depends on the campaigns and the consultants themselves. How you start the relationship is important. As a former political organizer turned consultant, here are my tips on how to jumpstart a successful relationship your campaign consultants.

Start Early
For campaigns, it’s never too early to begin a dialogue with your campaign consultant. Depending on the service you’re hiring the consultant for and the payment structure that is in place, there often aren’t any additional costs associated with beginning the process early. Early on, consultants can be helpful in recruiting campaign staff, putting together budgets and developing campaign plans. Beginning early is also in the best interest of the consultant, as it gives them a better chance of gauging their workload and can help to avoid learning curves.

Work Hard
In order for your relationship to be a success, there needs to be hard work and dedication on both sides of the table. Campaigns will rightfully expect their consultants to work on tight deadlines with quick turnaround. However this is a two way street. Campaigns will get out of your campaign-consultant relationship what they put into it. In order for consultants to hit deadlines, they will often need campaigns to be able to work hard and be able to get materials quickly.

Be Responsive
Without a doubt, campaigns can be hectic and chaotic. While being responsive can seem like a given in any professional relationship, in the crazy world of campaigns it can actually be tougher than you think. Emails from your consultant tend to get put on the backburner when you’re putting out fires elsewhere. While your consultants will largely drive the train on setting deadlines and timelines, it’s critical that campaigns are responsive. Even if you don’t have the time to shoot your consultant an email, a quick phone call or text message will often suffice.

Set Deadlines
In order for your relationship to be a success, there needs to be accountability. One of the best ways to set this accountability is by setting very clear deadlines. Most good consultants will ask for clear deadlines on when they need approval and feedback, and will follow up if they don’t hear back by the agreed time. But the campaign should also feel empowered to set these deadlines and ask for first drafts and feedback.

Push back when you need to
It’s important that your relationship is strong enough that you aren’t afraid to step on a few toes. In order for a consultant to do their job, they need to push the campaign to think in ways that they may otherwise not. And anytime you are asking someone to step outside of their comfort zone, there presents the opportunity for confrontation. If a campaign doesn’t think that a given tactic will be effective or if there are on-the-ground considerations that the consultant doesn’t know about, the campaign needs to feel empowered to speak up and push back. The campaign-consultant relationship needs to be collaborative and that includes not being afraid to be open and honest with each other.

Don’t overpromise
Campaigns are almost always built on short timelines. Within the context of these finite time constraints, there can sometimes exist the tendency to overpromise. But it’s important to remember that the campaign-consultant relationship is built on trust and there is no advantage to overpromising what you cannot deliver. This goes for both the campaign and the consultant. Overpromising will only serve to throw off timelines and deadlines and leave everyone frustrated in the process.

Don’t be a dick
While this one should also seem like a given, in the crazy world of campaigns, anyone can be a little on edge on any given day. Campaigns should of course feel empowered to push their consultants and expect high quality work. That said, for campaigns, there is little advantage to being a dick to your consultant. It won’t help move things along faster and it will only damage the relationship between you and your team.

Be up front
The relationship should, in some ways, be like the client-lawyer relationship. In order for your consultant to do their job, the campaign needs to be totally open and up front. You can’t hold back on things like not hitting field or fundraising goals just because they are embarrassing. Your consultant can’t help you fix a problem they don’t know exists. Not being upfront about any of the campaign’s potential negatives will only leave the team unprepared if and when these issues do come out.

Keep the lines of communication open.
Keeping the lines of communication open with your consultant is key. The best client-consultant relationships are communicative with a continual back and forth via email, text messages and weekly check in calls. You never know what connection your campaign consultant may have or when a second take on an issue can help bring a different perspective.

The $5,000 Campaign Training Controversy

I've gotten a lot of questions about a recent article that began thusly:

"Two top veterans of President Obama’s campaigns are asking political campaigners to pay $5,000 per person for the chance to learn their secrets and then work for five weeks in an unpaid campaign job somewhere in America."

The criticism being that 270 Strategies is asking international activists to pay $5,000 to volunteer on campaigns.

It is rare that a controversy arises within the campaign world that I simply have no opinion on. I guess that's true here as well, but I need more information. What does the $5,000 cover (travel, housing, meals, a personalized plan etc)? How did they come up with that budget? These guys are too smart and experienced (I hope) for this to simply be a case of them buying their own hype.

270 Strategies did respond publicly to the criticism, but did not address the above questions. I don't really have commentary outside of what I've said, the article, and 270 Strategies' response. However, it is a big deal in the campaign community so I wanted to put it out there as something to be interested in and aware of. I will be sure to share updates as they unfold.

At the very least, I can't help but wonder what it means that our community was so quick to turn on the brains behind Obama's field program, or for that matter that this was communicated so poorly. Whoa, if true.

Ask An Election Nerd: I'm Getting Overruled By My Consultants!

What kind of advice do you give to a CM in name only (CMINO - or is that redundant)? I have no power of the purse, the strategist is running the show, the candidate is bossy, and even my admin/FD is shitting on me because she sees the other ones doing it. I understand not having authority (I know, that expectation would be "adorable", as one submission put it), but these limits are keeping me from being able to do my job! What can I do? What can of whoop-ass can I open?
________________________________________________________________________________________________
Good question! You have the “benefit” of my boyfriend who is a consultant having been with me when I received this question. In the interest of giving you the fullest information, consultant boyfriend says you are being pushed out and if you really feel you are ineffective then you should leave. So there’s that. I take a slightly more nuanced view below.

You are certainly not alone. As a first-time campaign manager I too found myself executing a plan written by our general and mail consultants who just happened to be good friends with the candidate. On the one hand, it was frustrating not to have autonomy especially since I had dreamed for years of managing a campaign of my very own. On the other hand, I learned so much from our consultants. After all, they had years of experience on me and expertise in areas of campaign management (particularly communications) to which I had never been exposed. To their absolute credit, our consultants allowed me to grow as an operative by explaining why they made certain decisions, coaching me through press releases and allowing me to take credit for decisions when my instincts were correct. Now that I am in a position to do so, I often recommend this firm to my candidates in large part because I know how good they are at working with first time candidates and managers.

Obviously, I don’t know you or the consultants involved. It could be that they are wrong and you are right in these situations, but based on my own experiences, I tend to doubt it. If you were hired after, or particularly by, the consultants (a not uncommon practice) there is a good chance you were in fact hired to execute the day to day of their strategy. If this is the case, the more you push back the more they will circumnavigate you or discount your opinion, even when you have something valuable to contribute. For all these reasons (and I know you’re not going to like this) I suggest accepting a more deferential role and learning from this experience.

As a side note, this thing with your Field Director is totally unacceptable. In that regard, I think you need to have a frank conversation with your candidate and the consultants about your role on the campaign. If you’re getting overruled by consultants in private that’s one thing, but you don’t fight in front of the kids. Once reached, senior level decisions no matter whose decision they really were, should be presented in a united, and mutually respectful, front to the candidate, kitchen cabinet, volunteers and other staff.

That is a tough situation and I certainly feel for you! Feel free to send and update on what you chose to do.

Campaign Love and Mine,

Nancy

Please don't forget to support!

Never Forget.

One of my professors told the following story in class today:

He was consulting on a city council race in NYC in the Battery Park area. Primaries in NYC are this time of year so he was down there doing some GOTV. Suddenly, he saw a plane crash into his base's biggest polling place, aka the World Trade Center. So what did he do? Run? Call 911? Call his wife to let her know he was okay? Nope. He called the Board of Elections to make sure his constituents would still be able to vote. (The guy at the BOE was unaware of the crash and told him he would have to call him back.)

The story was sad and funny and definitely something I could imagine one of my colleagues doing. One of the worst (and sometimes best) aspects of campaigning is its all consuming nature. We become so obsessed with an election that we forget why that election matters, what it represents and the underlying ideals that we are fighting for. Yes, elections are important, but they're important because (we hope) they bring forward the best people and ideas. Elections are a mechanism by which we can indirectly control our quality of life, but they are not life itself...a reminder I think we could all use sometimes.