Gov. Terry McAuliffe, the architect of the Virginia Democrats' new data and field investments
In 2008, Barack Obama pioneered a new generation of voter outreach, powered by modern data analytics, that is still revolutionizing politics. Ever since, others have sought to replicate Obama's success, though it's not always easily done: After all, candidates seeking lower office can't simply copy the best practices of a multi-billion dollar nationwide presidential campaign.
But the Democratic Party in Virginia is making major investments in its data and field operations that can pay dividends up and down the ballot—including in the state's hotly contested legislative elections next month. And we're already seeing results:
Under the guidance of Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D), the party has hired dozens of field organizers and commissioned sophisticated surveys of the electorate for this fall’s state legislative races, in which Republicans are trying to hold onto a two-seat majority in the state Senate. The Democrats hope that the investment will pay off not just this year but also in 2016, when political observers expect Virginia to be one of the most competitive states in the presidential race.
The state party has 69 paid field staffers working on five competitive state Senate races, about 14 times as many as it did in 2011, the last time only state lawmakers were on the ballot. That’s 20 more staffers than U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) employed when he ran for reelection last year. Already, party operatives said, the infusion of cash has paid off: The newly hired staffers have called more voters, done more volunteer shifts and held more one-on-one meetings with potential volunteers than Warner’s staffers did in the statewide election.
As television advertising becomes less effective over time, direct targeting of voters is growing more important, and it's heartening to see that Virginia Democrats grasp this new reality. Republicans, meanwhile, are still struggling to catch up: They've hired
just a dozen staffers to the Democrats' 69 field operatives.
But individual campaigns still matter, and the candidates who are actually out in the trenches need their own resources to be able to take advantage of the tools the party is supplying them with. And that's where we come in. Daily Kos has endorsed eight excellent Democrats running for the Virginia state Senate and House this fall, all of whom are running in winnable races. Winning is never cheap, though, and they need our help in order to capitalize on the investments the Democratic Party has made on their behalf.
So please, give $1 to each of these great candidates so that they can make the most of the Democrats' upgraded field and data operations and win in November.