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A Clear Contrast to Bentzin
A key component to any close race is clearly defining why you’re better than the other guy. The best answers I get when I interview candidates for the 40/40 project always come from the question, “What separates you from (the other candidate)? What makes you the better choice?”
Throughout her campaign, Howard separated herself from Bentzin. The op-ed she wrote for Burnt Orange Report was titled, “An Independent vs. a Rubber Stamp.” On school finance, Bentzin was going to bring more of the same failed leadership, whereas Howard was going to use her experience and be a positive voice for change in the Texas House. Bentzin was no better than Tom Delay – Howard grew up in the community and represented the values of HD 48.
Howard talked about why Bentzin was the wrong choice, and why she was the right choice. Her campaign was never an “anyone but Bentzin” campaign. Her campaign always gave reasons why she was the better choice.
It helped that Bentzin had the kind of rap sheet that he did. Not all Republican candidates are going to be that way. For example, Kirk England, the Republican that Katy Hubener is running against, is much "cleaner" than Bentzin. But the strategy is the same – provide a positive contrast to the other guy, and let the voters trust that you’re going to represent their interests.
How Howard achieved that feat are the other two reasons why she won.
Appeal to Independent Women
When I interviewed Donna Howard for the 40/40 project, I was impressed with how honest and likeable she was. Her answers were straight-forward and on message, but they never appeared rehearsed. She talked about her experience, and how that applied to what she believes needs to be done to improve education and health care in the state. I agreed with everything she said. At the end of the interview, I thought, “OK, she gets it.”
But while her message was strong, I wasn’t particularly impressed with delivery. The rhetoric didn’t want to send me running to the polls – and when I first saw her TV ad, I thought the same thing. In all honesty, I thought the ad was kind of boring. But then I talked to my Mom about the TV ad.
My Mom loved it. As she put it, “She’s sitting there, looking right at me, which is nice. There aren’t any banners flying around and graphics everywhere. It’s simple, and she speaks logically about how her experience makes her qualified. It’s so much different from all the other political ads you see today.”
For my mother, the ad appealed to logic and reason. Howard looked very professional, and she spoke simply about wanting the best for our children. It was sincere and forthright, making Howard came off as a concerned mother and citizen – not as a politician. In doing so, she turned out the women’s vote – Democrats, Independents, and probably even a fair amount of Republican women – like nobody’s business.
Successful Democratic Support on ALL Levels
In Austin, there’s often a disdainful divide between the “grassroots” and the “establishment” Democratic operatives. Turf wars make no sense to me, especially because our candidates only succeed when everyone on all levels work together. What’s more, without a strong candidate – like we had with Donna Howard – it can all be a wasted effort. This time around, though, everyone did an excellent job helping out.
Howard had a wonderful grassroots operation. From the help of University Democrats to the support of Glen Maxey’s use of innovative phone-banking and grassroots systems, the grassroots effort pulled a great deal of weight in this campaign. Whenever you get people excited on the ground, then it’s ten times easier to get voters to the polls. I think everyone in Austin is pleased with the grassroots effort, and we’re excited/hopeful that the same effort will be put into all our other races come November.
Howard’s campaign also benefited from a terrific media plan. In addition to the television ad I’ve already talked about, Howard received a tremendous amount of support from direct mail pieces. The Travis County Democratic Party helped create the direct mail pieces, along with a few other “establishment” Democrats. As Austin-American Statesman writer Jason Embry pointed out in his article:
Howard's allies used several campaign mail pieces to link Bentzin to DeLay, who has been indicted in connection with his role in helping Republicans win control of the Texas House in 2002. That link grew stronger in January when Bentzin disclosed that he hired political consultant John Colyandro to work on his unsuccessful state Senate campaign in 2002 but paid Colyandro through a third-party printing company, which kept Colyandro's name off Bentzin's campaign-finance reports…
"This was effectively won on the first go-round in how they used the TRMPAC information effectively against Bentzin," Republican pollster Mike Baselice said.
Howard’s campaign sought the help and cooperation from Democrats on all levels, all of whom helped deliver her message to the voters of HD 48. That cooperation and appreciation for everyone – local organizations, professional associations, grassroots workers, consultants and campaign strategists – was a big key to her success, and I imagine any further success Democrats have in Austin and around the state will come from similar cooperation and respect for Democrats on all levels.
In Conclusion
Howard won her race because she was an excellent candidate that ran a great campaign. At the end of the day, she gave the speeches, she shook the hands, and she worked with her campaign to ensure the best opportunity for success. But she also benefited from an excellent support system.
To steal from the main issue of the day – kids succeed in school when they have a successful learning environment. When teachers, parents, and the kids work together, then anything is possible.
The better equipped Democrats are to work together for Democratic candidates, the better chance our candidates will have to succeed.
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