Lesson 38: The Twenty-First-Century Campaign
In this lesson, we will learn about the presidential primary and the
eligibility requirements for running for president, vice president, senator, or
representative. We will also take a look at who typically runs for political
office and how that is changing. Finally, we will discuss what is involved in
running a campaign and see how opinion polls and focus groups have become
critical to running for political office.
If someone decides to run for the office of president, they have a long road
ahead. At every turn, they need funds for campaigning. They need funds to
travel the country, to assemble a staff, and to promote themselves as the
likely candidate.
Then to become their party's candidate for president,
they need to be chosen in the Presidential Primary.
The Presidential Primary is a statewide primary election of delegates to a
political party's national convention, held to determine a party's presidential
nominee.
But before a potential candidate can even decide to run,
they must meet a certain set of criteria.
For President,
a candidate must be a natural-born citizen of at least 35 years of age and have
lived in the country for the last 14 years.
For Vice President:
the criteria is the same as for president,
with one addition -- they cannot be a resident of the same state as the
presidential candidate.
For Senator:
a candidate must be at least 30 years of age and
a citizen for 9 years,
plus a resident of the state they are elected to represent.
And for Representative:
a candidate must be at least 25 years of age and
a citizen for 7 years,
plus a resident of the state they are elected to represent.
If you look at everyone serving in
office, you will quickly see that certain groups are underrepresented.
Historically and currently, most elected officials are white men, but that has
been changing as African Americans, women, and Latinos have started winning
more elections.
Until fairly recently, it was thought that
women were only appropriate candidates for offices at lower levels like school
boards or the state legislature. However, more women are taking higher offices
in Congress, the Supreme Court, and recently, Hillary Clinton became the first
female nominated by a party to run for president.
A candidate can come from
any profession. Most are lawyers because it is easier for them to run a
campaign while still handling their cases. Leaving their job to serve in office
is actually considered a positive career advancement. It is good publicity if
they ever return to the private sector, but also, most positions that lawyers
strive to eventually attain like judgeships, state's attorney, or federal
agency positions are by political appointment.
There is quite a bit to
manage in a campaign. It begins with the Primary Election, an election in which
political parties choose their candidates for the general election.
A General Election is the main election, normally held on the first Tuesday in
November, that determines who will fill various elected positions.
Managing a campaign to
make it through the various steps requires a very organized staff including
experts in polling and marketing, fundraising and accounting, financial
management, and technology management.
Campaigns used to be centered on the party, but that
focus has changed to
the candidate. This change in focus is the result of several factors, including
changes in the electoral system, how television and computers have gained
significance, and the increasing costs of running a campaign.
Years ago when party identification was most important,
party organizations were already in
gear to support their candidate. They could distribute literature and work
towards getting people to vote.
A candidate-centered campaign has changed that
because voters want to
know more about the people who are
running. Party affiliation only tells half of the story.
At every level of government, campaigns have tasks that they must carry out in
order to make a campaign successful. That work used to be in the hands of
volunteers and amateurs, but nowadays, that has changed with the increased
significance of television as a campaign tool. Campaign tasks are now managed
by a Political Consultant.
A Political Consultant is a paid professional hired to
devise a campaign strategy and manage a campaign.
Political Consultants are not neutral. They will only work for candidates from
the party they support.
Opinion polls play a big role in
the presidential campaign. Polls are taken to determine if a candidate is
likely to be elected. Polls are then taken throughout the process to gauge the
candidate's performance.
A Focus Group is another tactic campaigns use to get ideas about how their
candidate comes across to the public. They are a small group of individuals who
are led in a discussion by a professional consultant to gather opinions on
candidates and issues.
When focus groups are put together, it is a common practice to
get a good sample of the public like "soccer moms," "Walmart shoppers," and
"NASCAR dads." They normally discuss their feelings about a candidate and the
issues, the kind of information that cannot be gathered by phone surveys.