Generic Voter Groups
Do any readeres have a clue who the Non-Partisan Candidate Evaluation Council and California Voter Guide are? Based on the mailers I received from these organizations, I get the impression both are shilling for somebody, but I’m not sure who.
October 19th, 2004 at 7:53 am
Also watch out for the “Continuing the Republican Revolution.” I think (but have no knowledge) they are Indian Gaming backed groups, they all said to vote Yes on Prop. 70, and some said to vote yes on 63, no on 64…Just dreadful.
October 19th, 2004 at 8:17 am
They’re just generic slate mailer groups.
What a slate mailer group does is get its hands on a target mail list (usually through purchasing it, sometimes through compiling it itself). It then sells (yes!) endorsement space to candidates.
That sort of stuff is more useful in primary elections than here, where a lot of people will just vote straight tickets. If you note, however, a lot of judicial candidates paid to be listed…
October 19th, 2004 at 9:00 am
In that case, I may use it for the opposite purpose of what it was intended. I’ve already decided how to vote on all the federal or statewide stuff, but as to the locals, anyone who paid for a phony endorsement but was too cheap to send me an honest ad telling me what he’s going to do in office will NOT get my vote. I’d sooner vote for the El Cheapo who didn’t advertise at all.
October 19th, 2004 at 9:00 pm
A lot of such people (particularly judicial candidates) don’t have the cash for their own direct mail. Additionally, the slates are worth buying a spot on if they’re going to contain people of vaguely similar ideas (e.g. I doubt I’d buy a spot on a slate mailer from the “Peace Now Campaign” or something).
October 20th, 2004 at 9:08 pm
On today’s Political Human Sacrifice, I heard them talking about a flyer which I believe was from calvoterguide. Only one of the recommendations had any explanatory text, that of David Dreier. So, it might be what TAC says above, or it might be a Dreier front.
October 21st, 2004 at 11:29 am
Post Nr 2 gets it. Take a look at the front web page, upper left: “To request a price and count click here”. Then see “Current Mailers” and “Past Mailers”.
So that’s it – they’re one of the companies responsible for weighing down our mailmen every election cycle.
As a general question, do any of you make up your minds based on a nice 4-color foldout mailer?
October 21st, 2004 at 11:37 am
Depending on the content of such mailers, I might, for the local candidates who I otherwise know nothing about.