2 Electing leaders
Perhaps the place you will be most accustomed to seeing campaigns on social issues is in electoral politics. Despite so much of electoral politics being centred on political parties, they often involve campaigning for individual candidates. Electoral politics, however, is not the only space where democratic processes create opportunities for individualised campaigns in support of candidates or leaders. These kinds of campaigns emerge wherever democratic processes are in place for leadership selection, such as within trade unions and civil society organisations.
These campaigns involve a fixed electorate, but nonetheless require identifying a constituency within this electorate to mobilise in support of your desired candidate. The basis of having a particular candidate elected, then, is to ask, ‘who is the constituency that is most likely to vote for them’ and targeting your campaign at mobilising those people.
Here are some examples of individualised campaigns and how mobilising constituencies plays a central role.
1. Political parties and local, regional, and national government: electing leaders in the public sector
Party politics in the UK takes place at multiple levels. Individual leaders can run as candidates to be councillors, mayors, MPs, as well as for leadership positions within their parties. In these campaigns, you will hear the word ‘constituency’ used both to mean an electoral boundary and in the sense of less clearly defined groups with shared interests or politics.
Often candidates run for election as a candidate for a political party, meaning that, even within a geographic boundary, candidacy is dependent upon winning the approval of the party itself. Here, social and political outlooks will influence decision-making more explicitly.
In this context there are two factors to consider when identifying a constituency:
- Your constituency is likely to be geographically bound (i.e., you will have to find them within a pre-defined area).
- Candidates running for a political party must also identify a constituency – or more than one constituency – within their party membership.
2. Trade unions: electing leaders in the workplace
Campaigns also serve an important function in electing leaders in workplace unions. Again, this takes place at multiple levels. Trade union leaders are elected within individual workplaces, in regional branches and at the national level. In some respects, identifying a constituency in this context is more straightforward, as instead of having to worry about a wider electorate, trade union leaders are only elected by their members.
In this context, constituencies will exist around structures (workplaces and the trade union organisation) and the material interests/social and political outlooks of the individuals organised around these structures will still be the basis on which constituencies are formed.
Here, identifying a constituency may involve asking:
- What are the most pressing issues for the membership and how can I speak to them?
- Are there any political/ideological interests I need to be aware of and/or who might be on my side?
3. Civil society: electing leaders in the community
Less commonly, you may find democratic organisations that exist in civil society. These can include residents’ associations and community land trusts (organised around neighbourhoods, buildings, and space), social movement organisations (climate activist groups, racial equality organisations, charities and pressure groups), as well as multi-issue organisations (community unions, religious organisations).
Where democratic processes exist in civil society organisations, they tend to, again, be membership organisations, with membership being arranged solely around the organisational structure. As above, the material interests/social and political outlooks of the membership will still be the basis on which constituencies are formed.
Again, you should consider:
- What are the most pressing issues for the membership and how can I speak to them?
- Are there any political interests I need to be aware of and/or who might be on my side?
Activity 2 Approaching an election campaign
Sharon Thompson is a Birmingham City Councillor and trade union activist. Her journey to being an elected leader has taken her through community organisations, workplace trade unions, and party politics.
Watch the video below where Sharon talks about her approach to planning an election campaign. After you have watched it, think of one of the scenarios outlined above (1-3) where you could imagine yourself undertaking an electoral campaign or that relates to the campaign issue you identified in Activity 1 (could your issue involve campaigning to elect a different councillor who supports your campaign for instance?). Use your local community, workplace, or an organisation you are a member of as your example and plot your campaign across a four-week timeline using the table provided. This could also include informal organisations and groups.
Transcript: Video 2 Sharon Thompson – Resistance to power
Consider the following and then fill out the table below with your ideas.
- Research: What different neighbourhoods are there in your area, or departments/social groups in your workplace/organisation? What are they like? Are there any ‘network hubs’ or community infrastructure where lots of people meet? Who do you think would support you and where would your support be weaker? What are the issues affecting your target constituency that will be important to take a stance on?
- Press and communications: What do you want people to know about your campaign and how will you communicate it? (Local newspapers, social media, leaflets/posters etc.)
- One-to-one conversations: Could you speak to people in person? Find out if they would vote for you or your candidate. If not, why? Will this involve knocking on doors, speaking to colleagues in break-out rooms etc.
- Events: Speak with lots of people at once and get press and social media attention on your campaign. Relevant events could be pre-existing community events that you can use to your advantage or ones you plan yourself.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Research | ||||
| Comms | ||||
| One-to-one conversations | ||||
| Events |
Comment
The chair of a union branch is an elected leader who oversees local union activity. I have decided to run to be the chair of my workplace trade union branch. Below is a campaign timeline of activities I will undertake.
| Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Research | Find out what issues matter most to staff and colleagues. | |||
| Comms | Announce my candidacy via email, social media, and poster around work. | Announce the central issue I will seek to work on if elected. | Remind all my supporters to vote via email and phone call. | |
| One-to-one conversations | Have one-to-one conversations with as many staff as possible and sign them up to my campaign if they seem interested. | Campaign volunteers to keep up with one-to-one conversations to find out most important issues. | Find out who is planning to vote for or against me in the election. | Speak with colleagues who expressed support for me and remind them to vote. |
| Events | Hold a launch event after work where I can speak to people about my campaign as they leave for home. |