The Art of Campaign Management
Hunter Winstead
GOVT 327: State and Local Government
November 28, 2016
The election process in the United States encompasses a wide array of rules and
systematic procedures. Election types can range from a local businessman running for mayor to a
lifetime politician running for the office of the President of the United States. Although the
campaigns for different positions can vary exponentially, it is evident that the role of a campaign
manager is essential at all levels. In order to successfully grasp the concept of campaign
management, it is beneficial to investigate all of the opportunities and obstacles that a manager
of a real campaign must handle. This evaluation necessitates identifying a real candidate running
for U.S. House of Representatives, clarifying this candidate’s position on the issues, evaluating
his or her respective district, and analyzing how a manager would gain support and protect the
candidate from certain interest groups.
The Candidate on the Issues
In order to fully examine the responsibilities of a campaign manager, it is beneficial to
consider the example of Randy Neugebauer running for reelection to the U.S. House of
Representatives. Neugebauer has represented the nineteenth district of Texas since 2003 and has
very strong stances on the issues. He is a lifelong conservative who proclaims his wish to
maintain a small government that strictly upholds the Constitution.1 According to his website, he
is a strong advocate for the farming community, he opposes Obamacare and wants to place
health responsibilities in the hands of doctors and patients rather than bureaucrats.
With regard to economic regulation, he believes that the best way to achieve economic
growth is to reduce red tape and allow businesses to freely flourish. Neugebauer also strongly
believes in local education by urging that schooling should be controlled by localities as opposed
to the federal government. He is pro-life and consistently stresses that Planned Parenthood
1 “About,” Randy Neugebauer, last updated 2016, accessed November 27, 2016,
https://randy.house.gov/about.
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should be defunded. Finally, he believes in lowering taxes in order to take stress away from
citizens and allow them to stimulate economic growth.2 This information demonstrates the stance
that Neugebauer embodies on many major issues.
As a campaign manager, it is essential to ensure that the candidate properly reflects the
major opinions of the district. Fortunately, the nineteenth district of Texas is very closely
associated with Neugebauer’s views. This district consists of a large landmass within western
Texas, including mostly rural areas. His district also includes the city of Lubbock, which is home
to Texas Tech University. The ethnic breakdown of the district renders about 46% white, 36.5%
Hispanic, and 6.0% black, which precipitates that most of the inhabitants are middle-class
conservatives.3 The majority of these individuals are pro-gun, pro-life, and pro-small
government; therefore, it is evident that the views of Neugebauer successfully reflect those of his
district.
Support from Interest Groups
An important opportunity that a campaign manager must take advantage of is to ensure
that his or her candidate receives support from crucial interest groups, lobbyists, and political
action committees (PACs). Primarily, it is paramount for Neugebauer to receive the support of
the American Conservative Union (ACU). Since this group is one of the leading forces for
modern conservativism, it is imperative for a manger to ensure that Neugebauer has its support.
The manager could specifically go about gaining support from the ACU by broadcasting
Neugebauer’s strong conservative views.
2 “Issues,” Randy Neugebauer, last updated 2016, accessed November 27, 2016,
https://randy.house.gov/issues.
3 “My Congressional District,” U.S. Census Bureau, last updated 2016, accessed November 27,
2016, https://www.census.gov/mycd/.
2
Another valuable interest group that would strengthen Neugebauer’s campaign is the
National Rifle Association (NRA). As stated earlier, the majority of his constituents are middle-
class white individuals that openly value their right to bear arms. According to the group’s
website, the NRA “is the country's leading charitable organization in support of the shooting
sports, having awarded thousands of grants in support of educational programs.”4 Since the NRA
is such a well-known group with regard to gun advocacy, it is crucial for Neugebauer to gain its
support. In order for the campaign manager to gain support from the NRA, he or she could
employ an array of tactics. Specifically, the action would involve approaching the interest group
and asking for support based on the candidate’s very strong pro-gun stance. Ultimately, this
information indicates the importance of the campaign manager’s ability to gain the support of
both the ACU and the NRA in order to strengthen Neugebauer’s campaign.
Protection from Interest Groups
The campaign manager must also work to protect Neugebauer from certain interest
groups and lobbyists. The first group that Neugebauer should be protected from is the American
Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The ACLU has been known to promote liberal agendas and cause
political harm to leading conservatives. Due to Neugebauer’s rightwing stance, the ACLU sets
out to diminish his political viability. For example, the group rates the congressmen at 0%, thus
stating that he is directly opposed to the agenda of the ACLU.5 The campaign manager can
protect Neugebauer from this group by focusing on other groups that appreciate his service.
4 “NRA Foundation," National Rifle Association, last updated 2016, accessed November 27,
2016, https://www.friendsofnra.org/.
5 “Randy Neugebauer's Ratings and Endorsements on Issue: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights,”
Vote Smart, last updated 2016, accessed November 27, 2016,
https://votesmart.org/candidate/evaluations/49522/randy-
Neugebauerebauer/13#.WDs8COErLVp.
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Additionally, he or she could stress the far-left agenda of the ACLU and identify this position as
the reason for its opposition to the congressman.
Another group that should be kept away from Neugebauer is the Americans for
Democratic Action (ADA). This PAC clearly focuses on advancing the liberal ideology and is on
the opposite end of the political spectrum from the congressman. This PAC is dangerous because
it would likely support any candidate that would run against Neugebauer because of his
rightwing opinions. The primary way that the campaign manager could protect the congressmen
from this group would be to ensure that his constituents maintain conservative views and remain
satisfied with Neugebauer’s service. This action could specifically entail promoting the
conservative agenda within the nineteenth district and diminishing the likelihood of a powerful
liberal opponent. Based on these examples, it is apparent that the campaign manager must protect
Neugebauer from both the ACLU and the ADA.
As shown through the example of Randy Neugebauer campaigning for his House of
Representatives seat, the roles and responsibilities of a campaign manager are crucial. Although
various races for office are vastly different, it is clear that campaign managers are needed
regardless of the level. By grasping this understanding of the importance of campaign
management, an individual will be more equipped when investigating the subject of state and
local government.
Bibliography
“About.” Randy Neugebauer. Last updated 2016. Accessed November 27, 2016,
https://randy.house.gov/about.
4
“Issues.” Randy Neugebauer. Last updated 2016. Accessed November 27, 2016,
https://randy.house.gov/issues.
“My Congressional District.” U.S. Census Bureau. Last updated 2016. Accessed November 27,
2016, https://www.census.gov/mycd/.
“NRA Foundation." National Rifle Association. Last updated 2016. Accessed November 27,
2016, https://www.friendsofnra.org/.
“Randy Neugebauer's Ratings and Endorsements on Issue: Civil Liberties and Civil Rights.”
Vote Smart. Last updated 2016. Accessed November 27, 2016,
https://votesmart.org/candidate/evaluations/49522/randy-
Neugebauerebauer/13#.WDs8COErLVp.
5
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