Skip to main content

Political Writing: Working With the Candidate


Writers have political views and some support their views with writing. I'm one of these people. Though I never intended to do political writing, I've volunteered to write for my state senator. It's something I can do from home and makes me feel like I'm making a difference. So far, I've worked on two campaigns, and learned from each of them. These are some of the things I've learned.

Respect the candidate's time. Being on the election team doesn't mean you can call at any time. The legislature may be in session, for example, or the candidate may be giving a speech. My candidate participated in local parades. To avoid interrupting the candidate, ask him or her when it is best to call.

Use the right email address. The first time I emailed my senator I used her state address, which is illegal in my state. Instead, I must use her personal address. This is something I didn't know and something you may not know. Again, check with the candidate and ask him or her which address to use.

Understand the decision process. Every candidate has a political team and a manager for this team. While the manager can make suggestions, the candidate is the one who has the final say. He or she is familiar with the political process and has a sense of what will work and what will not.

Be politically savvy. Daniel Goleman, PhD, describes political awareness in his book, "Working with Emotional Intelligence." People who are politically aware, he explains, can accurately read power relationships, detect social networks, understand the forces at work, and read organizational/external realities accurately. As I've discovered, this takes time, patience and practice.

Know what to avoid. Before a letter is mailed I write several drafts and my senator reviews them. She asked me to delete a point because it would stir up controversy. I deferred to her judgment. Words can be controversial as well and I choose them carefully.

Use conflict management skills. Robert Bolton, PhD, lists these skills in his book, "People Skills: How to Assert Yourself, Listen to Others, and Resolve Conflicts." Members of an election or re-election team have different ideas and discussions take up time. Bolton's advice saves time: 1) Define the problem in terms of needs; 2) Brainstorm on solutions; 3) Plan who does what, where and when; 4) Implement the plan; 5) Evaluate the process later.

Allow enough lead-time. Writing drafts, revising them, checking with the candidate, printing, stuffing envelopes and mailing are just a few components of a campaign. All of these things take time. Make sure you have allowed enough time for the review process and for letters or billboards or door knockers to be ready by the deadline date.

I think political writing is improving my health and wellness writing. You may make a similar discovery. Best of all, I'm enjoying myself. If you 're thinking of doing some political writing I encourage you to do it. You will learn new things and see government in action.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Too Much Of Politics Over Policy: 5 Considerations

Is the American system of governing, and political system, wounded, destroyed, weakened, or, merely, undergoing a period, of extreme distress? Those, who have followed politics, and the national news, for decades, realize and recognize, there is widespread apathy, within our electorate, which probably, largely explains, our relatively, low, voter turnout! In addition, many, who vote, do so, based on the empty promises, and rhetoric of political candidates, as well as their perceptions, personal biases, and prejudice, and, rather than hopes and aspirations, focus on self - interest! Unfortunately, we often, witness, far too much emphasis on partisan politics, over, quality policy, and the needs of the American people. With that in mind, this article will attempt to briefly review, examine, and consider, using the mnemonic approach, many of these concerns, and considerations. 1. Political/ personal agenda: Who should, versus, who do, elected officials, actually serve, and represent? T...
Post a Comment
Read more

Political Blogs - How to Write Them Effectively

For years you've probably been hearing about blogs, bloggers, the blogosphere, and all things "bloggy". When most people hear the term blog they might think of some geek in their underwear writing unimportant and pointless stuff for other geeks to read. While many blogs might be like this, political blogs are of a different class. Political blogs can be very informative, enlightening, and funny. If you like politics and think you have what it takes to write a blog on politics, you came to the right place. I'm going to share a few tips with you on how to write a great political blog. Even if you don't know how to write like a journalist it doesn't matter -all you need is passion (and a little knowledge). If you don't have strong political opinions then let me stop you right there and suggest you pick a different topic than politics. In order to write a great blog on politics you have to have politics on the brain, meaning, you have to be a politic...
Post a Comment
Read more

Political Correctness and Bigotry

The word "bigot" gets thrown around all the time in politics, and in many cases it is wrongly placed. I got accused of being a bigot when I suggested that peaceful Muslim-Americans should report those Muslim-Americans who intend terrorist action. This is not bigotry, it is reason. The Muslim-American communities are tight-knit, and people there are in a position to know who is planning what action. So getting them to report the terrorists is simple common sense. I, for one, am as far from being a bigot as anyone can be. Many of my best friends are black or Hindu, and I am myself a Russian-Jewish immigrant. If I can be accused of being a bigot, then what hope is there for anyone else? Cultures differ, and practices in them differ. If something exists at a higher rate of chance, then there are going to be reasons for it, even if those are not the reasons that you expect. Most stereotypes have their roots in reality, even when those roots differ from one's expectat...
Post a Comment
Read more