POLS 125 Chapter 3: Congressional Elections:

• School: University of Vermont
• Department: Political Science
• Course: POLS 125
• Professor: Deborah Lynn Guber

Document Summary

Candidates need to achieve several interrelated objectives to compete successfully in election: they need to: Biggest factor in house campaigns is incumbency: most incumbents can reassemble their previous personnel from the last campaign and often keep elements of their campaigns intact between elections. Almost 90% of house members campaign organizations are managed by a paid staffer or an outside consultant. Professional staff carry out press relations in most campaigns. Fund raising requires skill and connections with individuals that are able and willing to make contributions. Polling , advertising and direct mail are handled primarily by campaign professionals hired on a contractual basis. Incumbents are the most likely to have professionally produced campaign communications: relatively few longshot challengers hire professional staff or consultants for direct mail efforts. The internet is a new weapon in campaign arsenals providing campaigns with inexpensive and reliable means of communication, organizing voters, raising money, disseminating press releases and releasing ads.