Don't Be Libertarian. Begay
The most ignored story of the day.

By -
From the most ignored news story of November 2, 2005 in the Yankton Daily Press and Dakotan. (Registration required, but worth it):

Begay Announces Bid For House Seat

By: BY RANDY DOCKENDORF
randy.dockendorf@yankton.net

After winning only about 1 percent of the vote in his two previous U.S. House races, Terry Begay might be expected to drop out of politics.

Instead, the Volin man said he sees victory straight ahead, even if he is the longest of long shots.

"I'm not running just to send a message. I'm running to win," Begay said. "I'm more confident now. I push harder when people say I can't do it."

and....

"I have an insight into everyday people that members of Congress don't see," he said. "The politicians just spend, spend, spend. They are taxing our future generations. If we don't balance the budget, it will be on the backs of our children and grandchildren."

Begay counts name recognition among his greatest campaign assets this time around. He believes he has benefited from past races, including his 2002 run against two of the state's political heavyweights: Republican Bill Janklow and Democrat Stephanie Herseth.

Janklow, a former attorney general and governor, surged late in the 2002 House race to win the two-year term. After he resigned from office the following year, Herseth won both a special election and general election in 2004.

"If you only run once or twice, people don't take you seriously as a candidate," Begay said. "Now, people recognize me and ask if I'm running."

Read the whole thing here. "If you only run once or twice, people don't take you seriously as a candidate."That's a quote of the day.

Seriously, It's like the existential question about a tree falling in the woods. If a candidate announced for office and nobody heard it, would he really be running? As of yesterday, it's even more official that Terry Begay is off and running, casting aside the shackles of the Libertarian party for independent glory. But just try to find it in the newspapers today. It's like it didn't even make a ripple in a puddle.

As many others, I might shake my head over these people who run in their own style. The ones who run for statewide office, and only spend $500. But in a little way, I have to admire their moxy and somewhat their capacity for self-abuse.

2808 people in South Dakota picked Terry as the "none of the above candidate in 2004" which was down from the 3128 votes he garnered in 2002.

Without being silly, On a $500 budget, what advice would we have for Terry to raise his profile for a statewide office?
1. Go to Sioux Falls. And stay there. It's where most of the votes are. It's the Willie Sutton philosophy on robbing banks - "it's where the money is." You need votes. So go where there are votes. Cause there ain't diddley in Volin.

2. Start going door to door. It's free. $500 will get you a lot of Xeroxed flyers if you cut the paper in half. People like to see their candidates, and you'd be surprised how a 3rd party candidate could do if they actually did that. And door to door means residences and businesses. Visit the coffee shops. You need to constantly be on the move.

3. Two words - Free Media. If you're in Sioux Falls, just like #1, it's also where the media is. Stage events to illustrate your position. If Congresswoman Herseth trash talks you during the campaign, send out a press release and show up on the sidewalk in front of her congressional offices with a bucket of mud to return what she's been slinging. It would get coverage.

Op-ed pieces are good to. Bombard the papers with your press releases. Every other politician does.
There's only three quick tips (this is my lunch hour post), but if you did all three, I'd put money on the fact that a person might be able to garner more votes than 2808.

And remember, in 2006, Don't be Herseth - BEGAY! (I can't wait to see the t-shirts)

Comments

Bob Newland said…
Begay earned his own ignorement. In two previous runs for office, campaigning nominally as a Libertarian since he couldn't get nominated as a Democrat, he did not propose a single governmental initiative either to institute a program or law or to remove one. In his "debates" he reminded me of Curtis LeMay runnig as Perot's mate in '92; Begay appeared to be asleep.

To say that he's "casting off the shackles of the Libertarian Party" is like saying "the pheasant hunting is pretty good this year, because my wife's peonies didn't turn out that well."
5:57 PM
HL said…
The state of SD politics
Much ado about nothing won't keep
me awake. How do you guys do it?
Insomniacs that can't count sheep
If ewe can't count be 101
10:46 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A note from Benedict Ar... Sorry. A note from Stan Adelstein why he thinks you should vote Democrat this year.

By -
Image
(Click on letter to enlarge) And while it may not be printed at taxpayer expense, I don't see a disclaimer, either. When they hold the special session (supposedly at the end of November) , since he's left them already, I think his colleagues should expel him from the caucus. Sure. At that point it's only going to be symbolic. But since he's already said he's running again in the near future, sometimes symbolism is enough.
Read more

Corson County information on Klaudt Rape Charges

By -
Here's some of the information on the Corson County Charges: COUNT I That on or about December of 2005, in the County of Corson, State of South Dakota, Ted Alvin Klaudt did commit the public offense of SECOND DEGREE RAPE (SDCL 22-22-1(2)) in that he did accomplish an act of sexual penetration with his foster daughter, A.M., through the use of force or coercion; and as to COUNT II That on or about July or August of 2006, in the County of Corson, State of South Dakota, Ted Alvin Klaudt did commit the public offense of SECOND DEGREE RAPE (SDCL 22-22-1(2)) in that he did accomplish an act of sexual penetration with his foster daughter, A.M., through the use of force or coercion; and as to COUNT III That on or about July or August of 2006, in the County of Corson, State of South Dakota, Ted Alvin Klaudt did commit the public offense of SECOND DEGREE RAPE (SDCL 22-22-1(2)) in that he did accomplish an act of sexual penetration, separate and distinct from the act alleged in Count II, with...
Read more

It's about health, not potential promiscuity.

By -
As the only South Dakota blogger out with 5 daughters, I feel I need to weigh in on the whole discussion that's occurring with regards to the HPV vaccine, and Governor Rounds' proposal to make it available. My family (including my three oldest girls) watched my mom, their grandmother, succumb slowly and painfully to cancer which spread throughout her body. If a similar fate from a different type of cancer was preventable through a simple shot, why wouldn't anyone advocate for it? At the age most of my kids are going to be getting it, they're still playing with barbies, and negative influences such as most of the programming on MTV, and other assorted trashy television is verboten in my house. All they're going to know about this vaccination is that it's a shot, just like for teatnus or measles. They'll go "Ow, I don't want a shot," and that will be it. Just another mark on their vaccination record. One check box for DPT, one for HPV, and so on...
Read more