Guide to Winning Newspaper Endorsements
Political Candidates Must Promote Themselves, Have Agenda for Future
Aspiring elected leaders can succeed in winning such endorsements, which help establish credibility and increase name recognition, by improving their interviewing skills, staying positive, following ground rules, and having a clear, concise agenda that explains how they will improve public services and enhance the quality of life in a community.
If a newspaper Editorial Board or a board of another politically active community group invites a candidate for an interview, the candidate needs to familiarize himself with the format and the subject areas the board might be interested in. Even if the candidate believes the group is biased toward another candidate, it’s wise to take the process seriously and state one’s case clearly and respectfully. Candidates may not win the endorsement this time around, but the experience may pay off by creating a good impression for future election campaigns.
Political Advocacy Research
Get the ground rules before the interview. Find out how long the interview will last and get the names of everyone who will attend. Figure out about how much time to allocate per question. Do research on the group’s political advocacy. Candidates can then emphasize those aspects of their platforms that dove-tail with those of the newspaper or community group.
Many of the keys to winning an endorsement are common-sense: For instance, be on time. Editorial boards of newspapers frequently schedule many candidates on a single day, so if one candidate is late, it can have a domino effect that frustrates interviewers’ ability to collect all the information they need.
Dress conservatively. Think of the experience as a job interview, as a means to sell one’s self and capabilities. A candidate likely won’t make a good impression by showing up in a sweatshirt and tennis shoes.
Interview Answers
Candidates should not hog the conversation or manipulate answers to segue into another subject they want to talk about. It fools no one and does little but frustrate interviewers. Answers should be focused and to the point, with examples from the candidate’s record and qualifications as well as future goals. If the candidate is hesitant or unsteady, or comes across as overconfident, interviewers may opt for another candidate.
Get specific. For example, does the candidate want to focus on ideas to improve the business climate by redeveloping the downtown, lowering the transient occupancy tax and business license fees? Or advocate an environmental agenda through recycling initiatives, a plastic bag ban and better mass transit and bike lanes?
Candidates should never say, “I would form a blue-ribbon commission to study that issue and await its results before taking a stand.” Almost all local political issues have been studied to death. It’s the candidate’s job to get things done.
Election Campaign Self-Promotion
Don’t dump a load of campaign literature or correspondence on the interviewer’s desk. No one is going to wade into a sea of self-promotion or want to look at photos of the candidate on the beach, in front of a police car or at home with smiling family members gathered around them. Candidates are elected on their ability to connect on a personal level with the electorate, not on their reproductive abilities. It’s usually sufficient to bring a single piece of fact-based campaign literature, along with a short biography highlighting the candidate’s professional background, education and community service.
Local Campaign Slogans
Some candidates effectively use short campaign slogans to sum up their styles of leadership. One congresswoman, for instance, used the slogan “Listen. Then Lead.” American President Barack Obama campaigned on the theme “The Change We Need.” Sometimes, however, these slogans fall flat. “A Creative Problem Solver,” for example, might not light a fire under voters.
Don’t bring a campaign staff member along for the interview. People want to hear what candidates have to say, not what their flacks think. They will only serve as a distraction. Leave them in the lobby.
Endorsements are not the be-all and end-all of political campaigns, of course. But in a close, hard-fought campaign they can make the difference between success and a concession speech. That’s because they help to motivate a target audience. Make time for them, and learn from the experience.
Getting Local Political Endorsements
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