Some post-election observationsDate: 9/18/2014 When I’m vacation I make a pretty concerted effort to unplug from the local news I cover, but I was compelled to watch the election results from the primary – once a political junkie, always a political junkie.
Based on what I covered and the results of the various campaigning, I’d like to offer some advice to the candidates that still stand.
Postcards do not replace old-fashioned grassroots campaigning. I received quite a number of these over-sized postcards and in several cases they seemed to have taken the place of getting out to meet potential voters. They should not.
If used, the post cards should not have spelling errors in them.
Don’t complain about lack of media coverage if you don’t send out press releases or call me. Give me some real stories. I did receive some from some of the candidates. Let me ask the readers: would you want me to publish releases like they do on MassLive – relatively unedited straight from the candidate? Does that really help you make a decision?
Candidates, please say something. Say something significant. Say something in detail. Some candidates did and some didn’t. I’m in favor of actually knowing in what a candidate believes. Perhaps the surface is fine for some, but not for me.
I heard stump speeches from many of the candidates these ‘papers covered. I heard the same stories over and over. What I had hoped to hear over the course of the primary season was the evolution of the message. Some candidates did that, while others didn’t.
Get out there. You can’t campaign from your home. You have to meet people and speak with them.
And please consider advertising in a well-respected medium that doesn’t slant coverage with endorsements – like this ‘paper.
Hey, Martha
The Commonwealth now has an interesting gubernatorial race. Both mainstream candidates came out of previous elections with lessons to learn and it appears that one of them, Charlie Baker, actually learned them.
Baker came across as a stiff corporate type when he ran against Deval Patrick. He has changed considerably and in this era of Tea Party Republicans, Baker seems to strike the pose of a William Weld, a moderate Republican willing to work with others.
He is also willing to talk to the press. I appreciate that.
Martha Coakley should have learned a huge lesson from her near humiliation at the hands of Scott Brown a few years back, but I’m not convinced she has. If she hopes to win, Coakley needs to be accessible to both press and voters and communicate with both.
Coakley needs to be seen as relating to the average voter. I don’t think she has reached that level.
With two interesting independent candidates in the mix, Evan Falchuk and Jeff McCormack, this will not be an easy walk to the finish line for either the Republican or Democratic candidate.
Freedom!
Because my wife is from Glasgow, we’ve been watching with great interest the campaign for Scottish independence. It’s a highly divisive subject with the country divided pretty equally, including members of my wife’s family.
Frankly, I don’t know why a group of people who’ve been under the thumb of a foreign government for centuries and frequently seen as second-class citizens by too many of their fellow citizens in the United Kingdom wouldn’t clamor for freedom.
Of course, the economic realities are daunting to many as is the thought of building a governmental infrastructure from almost scratch.
I can’t help but be a romantic though and wonder if the Scots can do it, could we in the four western counties become out own state. I sure the idea would be just as radical as an independent Scotland.
Agree? Disagree? Drop me a line at news@thereminder.com or at 280 N. Main St., East Longmeadow, MA 01028. As always, this column represents the opinion of its author and not the publishers or advertisers of this newspaper.
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