How to Rebuild the New Jersey Democratic Party

by: tabbycat31

Thu Jan 21, 2010 at 01:06:04 PM EST

At the state level

1) Take a page out of Howard Dean’s playbook and pursue a 21 county strategy. I know that there are not as many Democrats in some counties, but they should not be left behind. Even if inroads are made in a state election, they could mean the difference between victory and defeat. In a statewide election, the candidate should visit every county at least once and have a campaign event in the county at least once.

2) Do not be afraid to use primaries to your advantage. An incumbent should not automatically be a shoo-in for re-election. If an incumbent has an approval rating below 50% then he/she should face a primary challenger. When the state Senate is up for election again, I think that nine Democrats who opposed marriage equality should be (and have a likely shot of being) primaried. I think it’s better for an incumbent to lose in the primary and have the party hold onto his/her seat than to see a Republican replace an unpopular incumbent.

3) Make the convention/conference available to all who would like to attend. Personally speaking, I really wanted to go last year, but could not afford the $125 to get in plus travel expenses. Have a low-cost option available (such as no meals, etc) and offer group discounts, student discounts, senior discounts, etc.

4) Walk away from corporate money. Many voters on the left and right are upset about how politicians (again on the right and left) are bought and sold by the corporations. Instead open up donations from $5 to the maximum allowed. The Democratic Party is historically the “party of the people” and it’s time to let the people have a say again.

5) Reach out to voters under 30. They’re less likely to be registered than their older counterparts, and once registered, they’re less likely to turn out and vote (and I count myself as one of them—at least for the next few months). Hold events geared towards younger voters and make politics cool again. Find out what issues matter to younger people (for example student loan debt disproportionally affects voters under 30) and allow them to ask our candidates and elected officials how they would address the problems that younger voters face. If younger people feel that politicians care about them they would vote more often and become more involved.

6) Hold fundraisers at all levels. I’ve received emails from both the state and county Democratic Party inviting me to formal fundraisers that cost either three or four figures a person to attend. Especially in this economy, that is out of the reach for most people. However in the last election season, I attended a fund raiser for our assembly candidates at a local ice cream shop that cost $10 a person to attend. It drew people of all ages from seniors to families with children. Besides who does not like ice cream? If there were more fund raisers like this, I would be attending more and donating more money to the party.

7) Use a visit from a big-name to your advantage. This past election season, the Corzine campaign brought in big names such as President Obama, Vice President Biden, and Former President Clinton, speakers that people want to see. Take a page out of President Obama’s playbook at the DNC and offer free tickets in exchange for a volunteer shift. Many people would spend a few hours knocking on doors or making phone calls if it meant seeing the President speak.

8) Advertise when a big name is coming to town, even if it is for a smaller rally. Last fall in Asbury Park, I had the honor of seeing Cory Booker speak at a rally for Corzine (who was not there). He did not speak to a packed house. However I am convinced that a well-publicized event would have had much better attendance.

9) Use the new media (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs, etc) to your advantage. Having a Facebook page or Twitter account is great, but you have to use it. Not only should the state party use this media, but the individual politicians should as well. Allow users to interact on the new media pages.

10) Give all of the grassroots groups in the state a seat at the table. The people who attend these meetings make up the core of the party’s base. If they’re appeased, then the party already has a steady volunteer army on the ground.

 At the County Level (Note: I live in Monmouth County, so I am going to focus on them—the same strategies could be pursued by every county).

1) Actively have events in every municipality in the county. The party already knows to target municipalities like Asbury Park and Long Branch, but they also have to make inroads in Colts Neck and Rumson, where there are not as many Democrats. The party should have at least one event in every municipality and show them that they are not ignored or written off. In Monmouth County, over the summer there are lots of fairs and festivals that would be a perfect opportunity for the party to recruit volunteers, introduce candidates to the public, and register voters.

2) Open the party meetings to all who want to attend. Progressive radio host Thom Hartmann tells his listeners frequently to show up at the local Democratic Party meetings and to have progressives take it over from within. The problem here is that the meetings are not publicized, and those who want to attend often do not know where to get started.

3) Make sure that every college in the county has a Democratic club/group/chapter (whatever it is called on that campus). There are two colleges in Monmouth County, only one of who has a Democratic Club (Monmouth University has a Republican club but not a Democratic club). Have the county party work with the college to establish a chapter.

4) Work together with all the Democratic candidates that will be on the ticket from the top to the bottom in every election. If someone who is on the streets handing out campaign lit calls the weekend before the election, the county Party should know where to get more and who to get in touch with.

5) Work with the grassroots progressive groups (such as DFA, PDA, OFA, Drinking Liberally, etc) that are located in the county. Have an official from the party attend the meetings.

6) Have voter Q&A seminars even if it is not during election season. In Monmouth County, there is at least one Freeholder up every year, yet many in Monmouth County do not know what a Freeholder is (it’s even more confusing here than the rest of the state because we have a municipality called Freehold—many think a Freeholder is someone from Freehold).

7) Have an active Young Democrats chapter. Monmouth County tried to form one over the summer last year and it folded. The strategy used for growing the base was cold-calling people and inviting them to events out of the blue. In the day and age of caller ID, most young people will not take a call from a strange number. A better way to grow the base would be to hold a few parties and advertise by word of mouth and new media (Facebook, Twitter, etc).

8) Every county party should have a staff member to just handle the new media. The party should have a Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube account. Use the new media to engage the voters, and have them interact with the party.

9) Move the party’s headquarters to the municipality with the highest concentration of registered Democrats. In Monmouth County, this would mean moving from Freehold to a place like Asbury Park of Long Branch.

10) Have the municipal chairs of the party contact each of the registered Democrats in the municipality and keep them updated on what is going on, and the times and locations of the local party meetings.

This is an open thread, have I left anything off from this list? Is there something that you disagree with me on?