Dean rallies Democrats on campaigning
By PATRICK JACKSON
The News Journal
08/02/2006
Read Comments
WILMINGTON -- Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean brought a message familiar to every Delaware candidate in a Tuesday visit to rally the local party forces he is helping finance.
Person-to-person politics beats big media campaigns when it comes to winning over voters.
"You can't win a campaign with just expensive TV ads," Dean said. "You've got to go out and make yourself known. ... You have to go to people who didn't vote the way you voted and convince them of your position."
And that's why Dean has pressed through criticism to follow through on a "50-state" strategy for building stronger Democratic voting in all states, whether they are currently red or blue on the political map.
Extra funding from the national party has allowed the state party to hire a full-time communications manager and two field directors.
Party officials would not say how much that is costing.
And as he spoke to about 175 party loyalists at a $50-per-person event at Residences at Rodney Square in Wilmington, Dean emphasized the need for Delaware party workers to focus on Delaware, even if the high-profile U.S. Senate contest between Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Rick Santorum and challenger Bob Casey is tempting for activists.
And as he spoke to about 175 party loyalists at a $50-per-person event at Residences at Rodney Square in Wilmington, Dean emphasized the need for Delaware party workers to focus on Delaware, even if the high-profile U.S. Senate contest between Pennsylvania Republican Sen. Rick Santorum and challenger Bob Casey is tempting for activists.
Dean pointed to the last two statewide positions held by Republicans -- the state auditor's job held by R. Thomas Wagner, who is unopposed in his re-election bid, and the state's lone seat in Congress, held by Rep. Mike Castle.
Castle will face the winner of a Democratic primary between Dennis Spivack and Karen Hartley-Nagle, who also will appear on the November ballot on the Indepen-dent Party of Delaware line, and Green Party candidate Michael Berg.
State Democrats also have the race for attorney general between Democrat Beau Biden and Republican Ferris Wharton. But that didn't enter the calculations at the fundraiser.
"We only have seven of nine [statewide] offices," said Dean, former governor of Vermont. "We're not 100 percent Democratic here yet. We still have work to do right here."
Steve Biener, a former Democratic congressional candidate, said he thought the message was right for a state like Delaware that has always relied on door-to-door politics.
"I think coming from a small state himself, Gov. Dean understands the importance of retail politics, and Delaware is very retail-oriented already," Biener said. "The question is how well it will play nationally."
Molly Jurusik, the state party's executive director, said the support from the national party is helping in a big way. The two-year DNC commitment means the party has five full-time people, and that translates into better organizing efforts and the ability to reach down below statewide and legislative races.
"It gets us beyond just being able to do triage and gives us the ability to go out, get the party organized and mobilized," she said. "And we know it's long-term -- at least through '08 -- so we can plan further ahead."
Adopting new strategies
University of Delaware political science professor Joe Pika says the 50-state approach is long overdue for Democrats. Besides saving the state party money, getting the direct aid from the national party also gives the DNC a bigger voice in areas such as candidate recruitment, Pika said.
"The Democrats are playing catch-up," he said. "This is something Republicans have been doing since the Watergate debacle in the 1970s, when they realized they needed to rebuild the infrastructure of their party. ... It may not be paying for staff, but the Republicans have a number of ways they provide support to state and local parties."
Delaware Republican Party Chairman Terry Strine said the local GOP receives in-kind technical assistance in areas such as developing voter databases and ad production techniques. The national party, he said, focuses its money and direct staff assistance in big battleground states, leaving other state parties in areas considered either safe -- or solidly Democratic -- to fend for themselves.
The state GOP has four full-time staffers and two part-time workers, Strine said, all of whom are paid out of locally raised money.
"Would I like that kind of help? Of course I would," he said. "But I understand their strategy, and we are grateful for the technical assistance we receive. ... On the other hand, being forced to swim to survive has forced us to develop a deeper and wider base of support."
According to the parties' latest filings with the Federal Election Commission, Delaware Democrats have raised about $215,900 since January and have about $81,150 available for the start of election season. The state GOP has raised about $418,600 and has $92,600 to fund its activities.
"We've had an edge," Strine said. "But we're going to have to work harder because the Democrats are catching up."
Contact Patrick Jackson at 678-4274 or pjackson@delawareonline.com.