Political Consultants and American Elections Hired to Fight, Hired to Win [Hardcover]

When it comes to elections, campaigns matter. And despite the ever-increasing role of volunteers and amateurs, modern American political campaigns are a professional affair. Understanding how they are run and how campaign strategies are set requires an in-depth analysis of what political consultants do, from opposition research to public opinion polling and from directing media strategies to mobilzing voters--with fundraising a priority at all stages. At all levels of the electoral arena, modern, sophisticated campaigns cannot hope to be effective without the guiding disciplines of professional consultants.

This thoroughly updated edition of Dennis W. Johnson's classic text, originally titledNo Place for Amateurs, highlights the growing importance of social media, targeting and analytics, Super PACs and dark money in a post-Citizens Unitedworld.

Selected Contents: Part One: Professional Campaigning: New Realities, New Challenges1. Political Consultants and Professionally Driven Campaigns  2. Runnin for Office: Not for the Faint of Heart  3. Case Study: Challenging an Incumbent U.S. Senator: The Realities of a Tough, Hard-Fought, Professional Campaign  Part Two: Weapons of Modern Campaigning  4. Political Research: Digging Up the Dirt  5. Testing Public Opinion  6. The Media: Old and New  7. Reaching Out to Voters  8. The Money Chase  Part Three: Wider Reach of Political Consulting  9. Ballot Issues, Local Elections, and Consultants  10. Citizens, Voters, and Democratic Choice

Dennis W. Johnsonis professor emeritus and former associate dean of the George Washington University Graduate School of Political Management.