Coakley Loss: Political Spin and Backroom Tactics Do Not Work for PR Strategists
PR consultants and political strategists, whether they are Republicans or Democrats, should learn from the mistakes of the Coakley campaign for the U.S. Senate special election in Massachusetts. They tried to use the tactics of the past and failed, and that should be a wake-up call to PR people everywhere.
There are many PR mistakes that led to the loss by Coakley…
MISTAKE #1: Obama set the stage for Coakley’s loss. Politicians and their PR strategists have regularly stated that once elected to office a public figure is not expected to live up to campaign promises. They may believe that, but the people do not and are tired of that attitude.
The people will overlook one or two unkept promises, but the blatant disregard for campaign promises by President Obama is extensive. The underlying problem is the promise that President Obama campaigned on the promise that he would bring “change” to Washington, but his methods of operation have been perceived as more of the same – politics as usual. Voters have not seen a change, at least not the change the expected – the way business is conducted in Washington.
MISTAKE #2: Coakley tied herself to President Obama’s coat tails. The voters, Democrats included, have grown increasingly unhappy with the performance and manipulative tactics of President Obama. Voters are not happy with what the press have called “Chicago style politics” in the efforts to manipulate the House and Senate. Coakley tied herself to Obama so strongly that the voters perceived that she would use similar “Chicago” tactics.
MISTAKE #3: Coakley appeared desperate. Voters are turned off by politicians who will say or do anything to win. Coakley used tactics that made it obvious she was running scared, and that sent voters running to her opponent.
MISTAKE #4: Coakley tied herself to the health care bill. Voters want healthcare reform, but they do not want change for the sake of change. It is obvious to voters that Democrats want to pass a bill, any bill, that changes healthcare just so they can chalk up a win. Voters want genuine healthcare reform, and polls in Massachusetts have clearly shown that. Coakley’s strategists ignored the public and turned her into an apologist for Obama’s healthcare bill. The voters see that bill as ineffective and too expensive, according to widely published polls in the Massachusetts media.
MISTAKE #5: Framing the answer to tough questions will not work anymore. Politicians on both sides have been taught to “frame” their answers to questions from the press. In other words, they give a 30-second sound bite answer that is vague and non-specific, making sure that they get their message into their answer without actually answering the question itself. Politicians and candidates attend workshops where they actually practice this tactic in role-playing situations.
The press are at fault for letting the politicians get away with framing their answers, but when Fox News began demanding specific answers to their questions the Democrats refused to be interviewed by them. Obama’s war with Fox led to greater courage on the part of other members of the press, and greater awareness on the part of the public when they see politicians who do not respond to questions with specific answers.
MISTAKE #6: Attitude. Coakley’s strategists went into the campaign with a superior attitude that cost them votes. It was obvious to the voters that Coakley expected to win and did not see Brown as a threat. She had initial support from Democrats and Kennedy loyalists, but her mistakes and failures rapidly lost her the edge she had going into the campaign. Voters became more and more turned off by what they saw as a superior attitude, which caused them to reject Coakley in favor of Brown, who said he was running for the “people’s seat” not Kennedy’s seat.
MISTAKE #7: Failure to understand where Ted Kennedy got his power. Ted Kennedy could not be defeated for over 40 years because he knew his power camefrom the people. Kennedy spoke for the people, and knew their needs and concerns, and when he spoke publicly he connected with the voters. He knew them because he hung out with them.
Kennedy could be found in pubs and bars rubbing elbows (and bending them) with his working class constituents. He attended weddings and funerals, went to bat for constituents who were in some way mistreated, and showed up for community events. He knew how to be a friend to all, and he knew how to make people feel that he really cared about them – because he really did care. Coakley did not connect with people, and in fact she turned them away because she came across as someone who did not understand their real concerns. Coakley’s strategists did not understand that to fill the Kennedy seat in the U.S. Senate they had to show their candidate was able to also connect with the people as Kennedy did.
Brown Could Blow It
Brown made the connection with the voters, just the way Kennedy did. People identified with him as someone who understands their day to day struggles. He sold himself as a man of the people, who will represent them, not as someone who will go along to get along with the party leaders.
Brown will only survive in Massachusetts if he continues to make the connection with the people that he established in his campaign. The people did not elect him because he is a Republican. They have also proven they will not vote for a candidate just because that person is a Democrat. Voters in Massachusetts, and all across the country, want their elected officials to truly represent the people, not special interests or give in to those who are in political power.
Sen. Scott Brown did the right thing to get elected, now it will be interesting to see if he continues to do the right thing to stay elected.
Spin Doctors and Political Strategists Take Note
It would be wrong to look at the Brown victory in Massachusetts as a response only to issues, or as a national mandate. Certainly there is a message regarding healthcare, the economy, taxes and a general dissatisfaction with politics. However, underlying those issues is the desire on the part of voters to find candidates who will go to Washington and truly represent them without trying to hide their true agenda behind smoke an mirrors.
It will be interesting to see what the PR pros and political strategists learn from what has happened in Massachusetts.