New strategies, new technologies help sway "youth vote"
Katie Connolly
Issue date: 3/21/07 Section: Features
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On Friday March 9, the Institute of Politics (IOP) released the latest findings from its ongoing Youth Voters Survey. The survey found that in the 2006 midterm elections the youth vote was likely the deciding factor for Jon Tester (D-MT) and Jim Webb (D-VA) in their close Senate races. The election of these two Democrats helped their party assume control of the Senate.
Along with comprehensively polling the attitudes of 18-24 year olds, the survey interviewed staff in 59 midterm campaigns. The interviews covered House, Senate and Gubernatorial races.
The survey results, unveiled at the IOP sponsored Campaign 2008: Targeting Young Voters Conference, indicate that even though voters under 30 outnumbered those over 65 in the 2004 Presidential election, campaign managers still disregard the youth vote. Less then 15% of campaign staff surveyed listed young voters as a "very important" demographic group, while over 50% view seniors as very important.
The message from the conference for '08 campaigners was clear: ignore the youth at your peril. In between trading good-natured barbs, keynote speakers Joe Trippi, National Campaign Manager for Howard Dean in 2004, and Mike Murphy, Senior Strategist for John McCain's bid in 2000, stressed that young people are at the center of a campaigning revolution.
Social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace, cell phones with cameras, and even the now humble text message, have enabled new, experimental styles of campaigning. But they are not without a few political dangers. The ubiquity of this technology heightens the chances that a candidate will be caught in an unguarded moment, says Trippi. These days no candidate can pretend to be something they are not for too long.
"No-one can be on guard 24/7," Trippi said. "If authentically who you are is a guy who says racist things every now and then, that will come out."
Trippi says America is witnessing a deep transition in campaigning, from the phoniness of a contrived 30-second television ad to the verisimilitude of catching a candidate's private moment on your cell phone.
Along with comprehensively polling the attitudes of 18-24 year olds, the survey interviewed staff in 59 midterm campaigns. The interviews covered House, Senate and Gubernatorial races.
The survey results, unveiled at the IOP sponsored Campaign 2008: Targeting Young Voters Conference, indicate that even though voters under 30 outnumbered those over 65 in the 2004 Presidential election, campaign managers still disregard the youth vote. Less then 15% of campaign staff surveyed listed young voters as a "very important" demographic group, while over 50% view seniors as very important.
The message from the conference for '08 campaigners was clear: ignore the youth at your peril. In between trading good-natured barbs, keynote speakers Joe Trippi, National Campaign Manager for Howard Dean in 2004, and Mike Murphy, Senior Strategist for John McCain's bid in 2000, stressed that young people are at the center of a campaigning revolution.
Social networking sites like Facebook and MySpace, cell phones with cameras, and even the now humble text message, have enabled new, experimental styles of campaigning. But they are not without a few political dangers. The ubiquity of this technology heightens the chances that a candidate will be caught in an unguarded moment, says Trippi. These days no candidate can pretend to be something they are not for too long.
"No-one can be on guard 24/7," Trippi said. "If authentically who you are is a guy who says racist things every now and then, that will come out."
Trippi says America is witnessing a deep transition in campaigning, from the phoniness of a contrived 30-second television ad to the verisimilitude of catching a candidate's private moment on your cell phone.
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