Art of Campaigns: Winning Election Strategies from Industry Experts

Chase Russell, president of Grey Eagle Strategies and author of Winning Without Millions, joins me to break down how to build a political movement instead of just a campaign. Winning Without Millions: A Framework for Modern Grassroots Campaignshttps://amzn.to/4gDM4bbFor candidates, consultants, and staffers who want supporters who show up next cycle all on their own, not just voters who turn out once.0:00 Introducing Chase Russell and Winning Without Millions1:08 Why Consultants Sell Tactics Instead of Movements5:03 Why "Grassroots" Became a Dirty Word in Campaigns6:40 Buying a Race vs Building Lasting Voter Support7:54 The Neighborhood Team Model of Field Organizing8:46 The Voter Trust Collapse and How to Overcome It12:09 Translating In-Person Connection Into Digital Content15:15 Keeping a Movement Alive in the Off Year18:26 Can You Build a Movement Without Being an Influencer?23:58 How to Measure Movement Success Without Standard Metrics27:48 How Grey Eagle Vets Candidates Before Signing Them33:39 Positive Messaging vs Attack AdsMost campaign firms are paid to sell mail, texts, and digital, which means the tactics become the goal instead of the strategy. Chase argues that mail and texts are avenues to a movement, not a substitute for one, and that a candidate who spends a million dollars to win a state rep race has to spend it again every cycle because nothing was built underneath the win.We get into what movement building looks like tactically: identifying supporters who want to get involved, training them, and giving captains enough authority that they organize their neighborhoods without staff direction. Chase walks through several case studies in grassroots campaign strategy and keeping a movement alive between elections.

Check it out: https://bootstrapoffice.com/ We connected Campaign Compass to Claude, so now you can just ask your voter file questions in plain English: where are my supporters clustered, who actually turned out in the primary, who should I recruit as volunteers. Then hand it a screenshot of a neighborhood and it cuts you a walk list.

Campaign strategist Caitlin Huxley talks with Ryan Bradburn, a local elected official and software developer, about voter targeting for first-time candidates, including a live Campaign Compass walkthrough of Georgia House District 149.🔗 Tool used in this video: https://bootstrapoffice.com/If you're running for local office or managing your first campaign, this episode shows exactly where to spend your limited time and money.Chapters:00:00 Intro02:33 The Voter Turnout Problem in Local Elections03:28 Campaign Compass Walkthrough05:33 Statewide Dashboard: Georgia Voter Registration Gaps08:33 District Analysis: Georgia HD 14911:14 Common Voter Targeting Mistakes15:29 Campaign Phases, Budgets, and Voter Contact Costs20:49 Exporting Voter Lists for Texting, Calls, and Mail27:18 Get Access at BootstrapOffice.com============Caitlin Huxley:https://huxleystrategies.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitlinhuxley/Ancient Wisdom for Modern Campaigns - https://amzn.to/3XefpAn============Ryan Bradburn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/urnicus/https://urnicus.com/============Most local and state legislative races are decided by a fraction of registered voters, and most first-time candidates burn their budgets trying to reach everyone. In this episode, Caitlin and Ryan break down a smarter campaign strategy: building a voter propensity model, cutting your contact universe down to active voters, and using texting and phone calls before expensive door knocking and mail.Using Campaign Compass, they walk through Georgia's statewide legislative map, uncover districts with massive voter registration gaps and no candidate fielded, and analyze HD 149 in detail: the target universe, the neighborhood team model, phase-by-phase budgets, and how exporting a prioritized voter list can cut outreach costs by 80 percent. They also cover candidate recruitment, volunteer training resources, and why direct voter contact still beats yard signs and digital blasts.About the guest: Ryan Bradburn is a local elected official in Georgia and a software developer. After running his first campaign with a homemade voter targeting spreadsheet, he partnered with Caitlin to build Campaign Compass, a tool that automates professional voter targeting for down-ballot candidates.Subscribe for more campaign strategy breakdowns and conversations with political insiders.#CampaignStrategy #PoliticalCampaigns #CampaignCompass #VoterTargeting

Phones aren't dead, that’s for sure. In this episode of The Art of Campaigns, I sit down with Ken Tracy of Campaign HQ to dig into why phone contact rates are tanking for some campaigns and what they seem to have figured out to avoid the same fate.Recently the Dems put out a 2024 Retrospective that showed a brutal 3% contact rate, with record high attempts. That’s a really depressing combo. On the other hand, Ken tells me about the tech and tactics they use to consistently hit 70%.============Caitlin Huxley:https://huxleystrategies.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitlinhuxley/Ancient Wisdom for Modern Campaigns - https://amzn.to/3XefpAn============Ken Tracy & Campaign HQ:https://www.linkedin.com/in/kennethtracy/https://www.linkedin.com/company/campaign-headquartershttps://campaign-headquarters.com/

This episode I talk to Josef Lentsch, co-founder of Partisan.community and organizer of the Political Tech Summit, about how European elections actually work. We cover why there isn’t one "European system," how public financing shapes campaigns, and what U.S. strategists get wrong about the EU. Josef explains the rise of small parties, GDPR and data limits, and why relational organizing is still underused in Europe. We also dig into the German Left’s digital comeback, the growth of political-tech vendors, and the future of campaign innovation across Europe.

In this episode of The Art of Campaigns, I sit down with Michael Cohen, a longtime campaign strategist, pollster, and author of Modern Political Campaigns. Together we unpack how AI is reshaping the campaign landscape from top to bottom.We cover:1. How down-ballot campaigns are leveling up with generative AI2. Why AI is better as a strategist’s tool, not a voter-facing gimmick3. The power (and limitations) of sentiment analysis in modern campaigns4. What campaigners should be tracking beyond polling numbers5. Why the “contact stack” might be the future of integrated outreachWhether you're a field director, digital lead, or just someone trying to make smarter moves in political strategy, this conversation is a must-watch. We’re talking real, tested insights from inside the campaign war room.Check out Michael's updated edition of Modern Political CampaignsSubscribe for more episodes with campaign pros and political tacticiansJoin the newsletter for behind-the-scenes takes and strategy deep-dives============Caitlin Huxley: https://huxleystrategies.com/ / caitlinhuxley Ancient Wisdom for Modern Campaigns - https://amzn.to/3XefpAn ============Michael Cohen: / michaeldavidcohen Modern Political Campaigns - https://amzn.to/3ETgjMa

In this episode, I spoke with Elijah Day and Madisyn Pettit from Patriot Grassroots about running smarter field operations. We talked through canvassing timelines, data integrity, volunteer burnout, and what actually works on the ground.Strategy 1: Start EarlyStrategy 2: Treat Volunteers WellStrategy 3: Outreach Works Best When CombinedBonus: The Louisiana Field Test============Chapters ⁠00:00⁠ Introductions ⁠01:21⁠ The importance of starting early ⁠03:23⁠ Issue-ID petitions ⁠04:48⁠ Poor decision making ⁠06:37⁠ Don't make assumptions ⁠08:25⁠ Treating your volunteers right ⁠13:13⁠ Efficacy of different types of canvassers ⁠16:13⁠ Patriot Academy ⁠18:19⁠ Combating Burnout ⁠19:49⁠ Ensuring Quality Control ⁠23:22⁠ Reaching "Unwalkable" Voters ⁠25:14⁠ Integrating a Field Program into Your Plan ⁠30:14⁠ Software Recommendations============Caitlin Huxley: https://huxleystrategies.com/ / caitlinhuxley Ancient Wisdom for Modern Campaigns - https://amzn.to/3XefpAn ============Elijah Day: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elijah-day-a14033ba/ Madisyn Pettit: https://www.linkedin.com/in/madisyn-pettit-7410151a6/

In this conversation, Justin Nudo & I discuss fundraising strategies, where folks go wrong, and why it's so hard to find a good fundraiser these days. We dive deep into the personal nature of campaigns, how to expand your network organically, and the secret to breaking into those PAC piggy banks.

In this conversation, Mike Yelovich & I discuss campaigning, focusing on data strategies, voter targeting, and the importance of understanding low propensity swing voters. We explore the balance between data-driven decisions and intuition, the significance of polling, some positive indicators of a successful campaign, and much more.============Caitlin Huxley:https://huxleystrategies.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitlinhuxley/Ancient Wisdom for Modern Campaigns - https://amzn.to/3XefpAn============Mike Yelovich:https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-yelovich/https://x.com/mikeyelovich

In this, I sit down with Michael Cohen to discuss my book, Ancient Wisdom for Modern Campaigns, and how Sun Tzu’s The Art of War offers valuable lessons for modern political strategy. We explore key principles—like knowing your battlefield, leveraging strengths, and outmaneuvering opponents—and how they apply to winning elections today. Whether you’re a candidate, strategist, or just fascinated by the mechanics of campaigns, this episode unpacks timeless insights with real-world applications.============Chapters:00:00 Introduction to Sun Tzu and Political Campaigns02:00 About Caitlin Huxley03:17 Writing the book05:07 "The general who makes many calculations..."06:05 "Know your enemy, and know yourself..."06:53 Independent Expenditures09:33 What does war have to do with politics?11:45 Communicating on the battlefield12:35 Victory or death... of your ideals14:15 Iterating on your plan16:19 "Let your great object be victory, not lengthy campaigns..."20:05 Conclusion and Final Thoughts21:47 You should read the book.============Caitlin Huxley:https://huxleystrategies.com/https://www.linkedin.com/in/caitlinhuxley/Ancient Wisdom for Modern Campaigns - https://amzn.to/3XefpAn============Michael Cohen:https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldavidcohen/Modern Political Campaigns - https://amzn.to/3ETgjMa