punditry.ca — uncovering DSU elections

Once on a trip back from Ottawa, I ended up sitting next to Halifax MP Alexa McDonough. We had a great talk about a whole bunch of things, but what I really enjoyed about that conversation was discussing her early political career, her time as the only NPD member in the legislature (and the only woman) and how she managed to build a party that is now on the verge of becoming Nova Scotia’s government. One of the things I found most interesting was that her long provincial and federal career could have ended before it really began. During her third run for the provincial legislature in 1988, she held on to her seat by only 24 votes.

A few months later, at a PC event, (tip to student lobbyists: going as an observer to events held by every party is one of the absolute best way to push your agenda. That’s how Jen Bond ended up being selected by the NDP to make the official report to the party convention about what their membership thought about post-secondary education policy, and how we started a bit of an intra-party fight in the PCs about tuition and the MOU) I got to talking with an old party hand who had managed the campaign of the candidate who came in second to Alexa in that 1988 campaign.

This guy said that during that race he had staked out a new apartment complex as having the perfect demographics for gaining some PC supporters and told the candidate to be sure to spend some time there. Because the residents there were all new to the riding, he also thought it might be missed by the other parties. On election night, his candidate admitted that he never got around to going door-to-door in the area.

On a whim after the election, the campaign manager stopped by the complex and knocked on a few doors. He learned that no candidates had come by during the election and that most of the residents hadn’t voted. A few hours of canvassing there could have easily netted another 24 votes. If that PC candidate had found the time, recent political history in Nova Scotia and Canada could be very different.

This story is a long way of giving the following advice to this year’s candidates: go hard until the end. You have until 8pm tonight to make a difference in this race. Don’t miss an opportunity and don’t get complacent.

If you think you’ve won, you’ve already lost.

In my first post, I offered candidates what I feel is an important piece if advice: GET OUT OF THE SUB!! I think this point needs to be re-iterated because many have failed to take my advice to heart, and it really is for their own good. This goes hand-in-glove with the advice offered by my co-pundit, Mike Tipping. Nothing can serve you better than face-to-face contact with students. Class talks are a great way to make sure lots of students see you, but don’t forget to use the time between classes to visit the many buildings and student hang-outs on our campus that aren’t the SUB lobby.

“But, Lisa, I was meeting students at the Farmers’ Market and supporting Green Week. I had to be in the SUB!” you say. Fine. Mingle with those at the Farmers’ Market. Feed them you’re food service and sustainability talking points, but once you’ve done that, get the hell out if there! And while you are there, don’t talk to the other candidates, and don’t have extended conversations with the CRO and I. I know I’m pretty and funny and you all love talking to me, but my vote only counts for one (a travesty for democracy, I know).

Also, don’t forget about those departments tucked away in places like the Bethune Building (Respiratory Therapy) and City Centre Atlantic on Dresden Row (Costume Studies). They’ll probably vote for you for the sheer fact that you now they exist.

I am sorry to report that I took a page from the book of Debo and skipped the Sexton debate in favour of going to my Family Law class. Unfortunately, the debate was not recorded as planned, so I’m afraid I can’t offer a full recap. Hopefully people will provide Mike with some tips for the Daily Wrap-up. I will be taking notes at tomorrow’s Studley debate.

Word this afternoon is that the location for Friday’s Presidential debate is up in the air (T-Room is a possibility), as the Grawood has been double-booked, and the debate is being ousted in favour of airing the Dal basketball game at the CIS championship in Ottawa.

Jonesy and I are now taking orders for “I survived the 2009 DSU AGM” arm bands made from a sustainable organic bamboo. See you on April 1st, fools!

I’m not in Halifax, so I can’t offer blow-by-blow debate recaps or scary photos of Mark Coffin, but I have participated in a few heavily-contested DSU elections, so perhaps I can give some idea of what goes into a good campaign, and what to look for if you’re trying to predict this year’s outcomes.

Also, if you ever plan to run for a DSU office, particularly an executive position, you might find this useful.

Many, perhaps most, DSU campaigns are won or lost long before the actual campaigning ever begins. How well you’re known on campus (or on facebook), what links you have to well-represented student groups, and your knowledge of the portfolio of the position you’re running for and ability to craft a compelling message around it are all determined months or years before anyone casts a ballot. Shannon Zimmerman, for instance, has been interested in running for President for three years now. I’m sure that will show in the professionalism of her campaign.

Almost as important, however, is what you do in the few weeks right before the election. This is when you put your campaign team together, design your website and your materials, and plan your tactics and strategy.

During this period, you (or one of your campaign aides with OCD) should also be building the heart of your campaign, your excel spreadsheet.

Time is your most important resource during campaign week. You want to maximize every second. No matter how well-known your opponent is on campus, they can’t possibly be personal friends with more people than you can talk to in a week, and if you plan your time better than they do, you can gain a lot of ground.

I maintain that class talks are the best possible use of your time. The vast majority of students that vote aren’t going to be well-versed in the issues or candidates, and actually seeing someone, in person, (not this newfangled YouTubery) give a one minute (never a five minute) speech can easily be a deciding factor when they make their choice for your position.

For both of my executive campaigns, I scoured the Dal timetable and built a list of one class for almost every half-hour block, all week. I went for both the largest classes and a good mix of disciplines and years so that I wasn’t talking to the same people more than I had to. I then emailed all the profs for permission, and if I heard back that a certain class wasn’t open for a talk, I had enough time to replace it on my list with one that was. (Also be sure to take into account the time it takes to get from one end of Dal to the other.) I also added in all the debates and society events that I planned to attend (and my own courses).

By the time elections come, you’ve got a full schedule and you never have to waste time trying to convince a prof to let you speak or annoy your fellow candidates by tagging along to their talks.

It will also guarantee that you’re spending time with students all over campus (did you guys know there are night classes in the basement of Fenwick) and not just hanging out in the SUB.

You’ll also have an incredibly valuable commodity. One that candidates in other races will be very interested in getting their hands on, and willing to provide all kinds of introductions, low-key endorsements and other logistical and political help in exchange.

For the candidates who are running right now and don’t have a good schedule, two bits of advice: 1. take some time every night and plan out your next day in as much detail as you can and 2. find out who does have a solid list, and make a new friend.

I ventured into the SUB at around 1:00 this afternoon on my way to the DalOUT office. I was there until 3:00 and I didn’t even make it to the staircase. I sat down on one of the couches to have a gander at what the candidates came up with for their posters. Within mere moments, I was chatting with Matt Golding [current VP (Finance & Operations)] about the posters and the upcoming DSU Annual General Meeting, which, incidentally, should make this week an even bigger shit-show than it is normally. Following Matt’s visit, I had sightings of and, in a few cases, full-on conversations with Snow, Zimmerman, Debogorski, Jennex, LeForte, Burns, fellow pundits Coffin and shutter-bug Hillman, and CRO Amyotte.

My advice to pundits and others interested in talking to or overhearing candidates: Hang out in the SUB lobby. I swear, there is some sort of homing signal.

My advice to candidates: For your own health and well-being, stay out of the SUB! Unless you’re using the time to talk to people who don’t already know you, it will just wear on you. Also, don’t think that being overly nice to the pundits will get you into our good graces. What will get you into my good graces is permission to cut you to pieces with wit (thanks, Craig).

On that note…

This year’s posters, some of which require a more dedicated viewing than I alloted them today, are what I would call generally adequate. Snow has re-used his photo from last year’s Senate campaign (fine, I guess, since his physical appearance hasn’t changed drastically). Zimmerman’s is clean and simple. Debogorski’s manifesto is much more succinct than last year’s, and has far fewer grammatical errors, but a whopping three mentions of food service. Also, I was left with the distinct impression that I, as what others would deem a “DSU Insider”, apparently “rule” the DSU. To which I ask, “Where’s my coronation?!”

On the BoG front, Harris and Rai opted for the “too much information” approach. Both have posters littered with photos, words and graphs (of all things). Frankly, I couldn’t be bothered to get up from the couch in order to get close enough to read them. That will have to wait until tomorrow. Conrad, FPW, and Horne are relying more on their good looks, which is valid given that it’s BoG, so a higher percentage of people will likely vote on a “(s)he’s hot” basis, and all three are good-looking. Honestly, ever since FPW wore his job interview suit to a Council meeting, the girls have been crazy for him. The general response to his poster, however, is the question, “Is he Spanish?” (Answer: He is not) given the red-yellow-red horizontal stripes. Worldly as he is, Fred is aware of the resemblance and explained to me that, as I suspected, he was just going for two colours that attract the eye, and he has succeeded in that regard.

Hobbs’ and Simms’ posters use a similar distillation/contrast(?) (some photo editing technique for which I’m sure I don’t know the correct term). Jennex highlights, through pictures, his “in the field” involvement with the Union.

I think we’re in for an interesting and entertaining week, folks. I look forward to reading the comments of my fellow pundits and our gentle readers.