Monday, June 16, 2014

From the Dallas Morning News: Political consultants battling it out behind the scenes

I have very little material on political consultants - which is a major deficiency.

These are individuals who have expertise in campaigning - and other related political matter like lobbying - and offer their services to candidates.

Occasionally we will have candidates speak to a class - especially when they see it in their interests to do so. The good ones have a consultant along with them, and they're the ones I'm especially interested in. Sometimes I can talk them into coming back by themselves to talk to the class since they can provide a much clearer inside look at the political / electoral process.

Here's a look at some state races in Dallas that feature the political consultants going at each other.

- Click here for the article.
The bitter, all-Republican fight for the Park Cities-based legislative seats did more than rattle the usually staid politics in that wealthy enclave.
It also provided an up-close look at two opposing political teams and their strategies, driven by attack ads that drew statewide attention — and even a misdemeanor charge against one of the candidates.
Some of the hard-edge tactics worked; some backfired. And, as in many campaigns, the final outcome has prompted a vigorous bout of second-guessing.
The GOP match-ups pitted North Texas newcomer Matt Langston and national political operative Jeff Roe against Mari Woodlief, president and chief executive of Allyn Media, a local advertising and public relations agency.

Here's a 2004 list of the powerful political consultants in Texas.

Click here for Blakemore and Associates - one of the more influential area consultants.

It's tough to make sense of the political landscape - on all three level of government - without appreciating the influence of these individuals.

Elections are sometimes won or lost based on who someone was able to hire as a consultant.