Negative Campaigning in Walton

[DFSboy]

Well, well, well, as the Republican Primary draws nearer, it seems at least one Walton candidate (you guess who) is playing another card for his election bid. The card he?s now playing: Negative Campaigning. I guess that?s what you call it? Some may call it comparison, friendly reminders of an opponents record (only bad stuff), or whatever other political garbage one may term it in efforts only to ease a voters? comfort. Either way, the truth is, I call it ?Negative Campaigning.?

I?ll have to admit, however, if I were running for an election, I may, too, play the same card, although, I?d probably call it something else then. Maybe like ?Informative Campaigning.? But as a voter, I?m a little torn by it.

Come on now, lets? set aside what a political consultant may advise, what has worked in the past, or even what our national politicians engage in?What do you think about ?Negative Campaigning?? Be honest now, like me, you may strongly support a particular candidate, yet he or she has or is now engaging in such Campaigning. Though don?t let that affect your true thoughts here.

Forget about satistics, what do YOU think about ?Negative Campaigning? right here in Walton County? After all, we Waltonians are much different than our fellow citizens of this great State.

Will (Has) such Campaigning ever solely, or in large part, affect(ed) your decision to actually NOT vote for a particular candidate engaged in such practices?

Do you believe such Campaigning will (has) cause(d) you to lean toward the candidate actually spreading negative points about their opponent(s)?

Do you feel like you are being perceived as stupid when a candidate presents you (via mailings, newspaper, and TV or radio advertisements) with negative information concerning an opposing candidate?

Do you believe such Campaigning is effective for the engaged candidate any at all?

Do you think an opposing candidate that does not bounce back with such Campaigning seems more mature (fit) for the position in which he or she is seeking?

Have you heard people say (regarding such Campaigning), ?I don?t want to hear all that negative stuff about the other person, I want to hear why (engaging candidate) is the best choice.? And if so, do you agree?

I really look forward to hearing your thoughts. Heck, one day I may be running for election here in Walton County. Negative or not?

 

[seagrovegirl]

Once the negative campaigning starts the opposing party will have to defend themselves, thus negative campaigning starts on both sides. And it's almost impossible to stop.

A positive campaign would be; *Tauting ones strong points. *Ideas and how to structure change. *Why the voters should vote for him/her. Among other positive points.

IMO.....if a candidate starts a negative campaign, they have nothing possitive to offer the voters, therefore not qualified for public office.

 

[Alicia Leonard]

I think(and just IMHO) that this is a tactic of professional political advisers. Not something we have seen a lot of in local elections, until hired guns come in and run campaigns. I guess we will have to wait and see how locals respond to it.

 

[DFSboy]

Once the negative campaigning starts the opposing party will have to defend themselves, thus negative campaigning starts on both sides. And it's almost impossible to stop.

A positive campaign would be; *Tauting ones strong points. *Ideas and how to structure change. *Why the voters should vote for him/her. Among other positive points.

OMI.....if a candidate starts a negative campaign, they have nothing possitive to offer the voters, therefore not qualified for public office.

seagrovegirl,

I appreciate your reply. I believe your thoughts as shared in your middle and last sentences will be similar to many other citizens of Walton County. It?s really hard to argue your points, at all.

However, in your first sentence I disagree with the statement "will have to defend themselves" once such campaigning has begun. I remember campaigns in this county when an opposing candidate never responded to such campaigning from an instigator, although I?m sure it was very tempting.

Sad thing is, when a strong candidate starts such campaigning, it may very well cause more harm than good, if a lot of people share your thoughts as believed. In a tight (especially crowded) election, this could be costly to the instigator.

 

[Andy A]

Well, well, well, as the Republican Primary draws nearer, it seems at least one Walton candidate (you guess who) is playing another card for his election bid. The card he?s now playing: Negative Campaigning. I guess that?s what you call it? Some may call it comparison, friendly reminders of an opponents record (only bad stuff), or whatever other political garbage one may term it in efforts only to ease a voters? comfort. Either way, the truth is, I call it ?Negative Campaigning.?

I?ll have to admit, however, if I were running for an election, I may, too, play the same card, although, I?d probably call it something else then. Maybe like ?Informative Campaigning.? But as a voter, I?m a little torn by it.

Come on now, lets? set aside what a political consultant may advise, what has worked in the past, or even what our national politicians engage in?What do you think about ?Negative Campaigning?? Be honest now, like me, you may strongly support a particular candidate, yet he or she has or is now engaging in such Campaigning. Though don?t let that affect your true thoughts here.

Forget about satistics, what do YOU think about ?Negative Campaigning? right here in Walton County? After all, we Waltonians are much different than our fellow citizens of this great State.

Will (Has) such Campaigning ever solely, or in large part, affect(ed) your decision to actually NOT vote for a particular candidate engaged in such practices?

Do you believe such Campaigning will (has) cause(d) you to lean toward the candidate actually spreading negative points about their opponent(s)?

Do you feel like you are being perceived as stupid when a candidate presents you (via mailings, newspaper, and TV or radio advertisements) with negative information concerning an opposing candidate?

Do you believe such Campaigning is effective for the engaged candidate any at all?

Do you think an opposing candidate that does not bounce back with such Campaigning seems more mature (fit) for the position in which he or she is seeking?

Have you heard people say (regarding such Campaigning), ?I don?t want to hear all that negative stuff about the other person, I want to hear why (engaging candidate) is the best choice.? And if so, do you agree?

I really look forward to hearing your thoughts. Heck, one day I may be running for election here in Walton County. Negative or not?

You managed to spend 11 paragraphs talking about "negative campaigning", which I abhor by the way, and never once mention who is doing the negative campaigning and who it's against. What, exactly, are you talking about? Please enlighten me.

 

[DFSboy]

I think(and just IMHO) that this is a tactic of professional political advisers. Not something we have seen a lot of in local elections, until hired guns come in and run campaigns. I guess we will have to wait and see how locals respond to it.

aleonard,

Some ?tactic? from a ?professional political adviser(s)? may have a very different effect in Walton County than in other areas. Hiring one who is a Walton Native, or who knows a lot about this County may the thing to do, however. What do you think about seagrovegirls comments?

 

[DFSboy]

You managed to spend 11 paragraphs talking about "negative campaigning", which I abhor by the way, and never once mention who is doing the negative campaigning and who it's against. What, exactly, are you talking about? Please enlighten me.

Andy A.,

Listen. If I thought such campaigning would harm the instigating candidate of only one vote, and I was supporting that same candidate, I wouldn?t ?mention who is doing the negative campaigning and who it?s against.?

With the use of 11 paragraphs, I asked, ?What do you think about? Negative Campaigning? Sorry for the confusion, hope this enlightens you.

 

[Alicia Leonard]

aleonard,

Some “tactic” from a “professional political adviser(s)” may have a very different effect in Walton County than in other areas. Hiring one who is a Walton Native, or who knows a lot about this County may the thing to do, however. What do you think about seagrovegirls comments?

DfSboy,

I think you have brought light to a good topic. I am only guessing that you may be speaking about an ad I saw this week on the Sheriff's race. I know one of the candidates have hired a political firm to handle their campaign. That is why I mentioned we would have to wait and see how locals feel about the ads.

I agree with SGG that I personally would rather see candidates promote themselves in a positive manner. But, if I was a paid political adviser, I could understand the "tactic' to run comparative ads against the incumbent. It's a way for a candidate to take the focus off the others running and place a client in a lead spot by taking on the person holding office now. It's rather smart in my personal opinion,because it eliminates others from the race and makes it look like it's one against one) but that doesn't tell if it's right. Only the voters of Walton will have final say on it.

ps....there is a danger as well involved with this. Once a rock gets thrown, many from both sides may follow if there is evidence to support it.

 

[Andy A]

Andy A.,

Listen. If I thought such campaigning would harm the instigating candidate of only one vote, and I was supporting that same candidate, I wouldn?t ?mention who is doing the negative campaigning and who it?s against.?

With the use of 11 paragraphs, I asked, ?What do you think about? Negative Campaigning? Sorry for the confusion, hope this enlightens you.

The only ad I've seen regarding two opposing candidates is the one comparing the present sheriff's job performance to what Mike Adkinson would do in a similar situation or how he would more closely monitor funds. Outside of one glaring error regarding the funding of the 911 system by the present sheriff, I saw nothing negative about the ad. It pretty well described what has transpired under the present sheriff's administration. I don't view it as negative at all, except possibly, for the paragraph on 911 funding.
If this is not the ad or "campaigning" you are referring to, then I am still at a loss as to what you are talking about. On the other hand, if you support a specific candidate for office, say so. I feel that beating around the bush when talking about who will fill important offices in this county is a detriment to all of us trying to decide who is the best candidate available to us. Finally, I certainly do not appreciate or condone negative campaigning. I usually recognize it when I see it.

 

[JustaLocal]

Do you believe such Campaigning is effective for the engaged candidate any at all?

It was used against Herman Walker last election. He may have lost in any case, so who knows what impact it had.

I would prefer a candidate prove he is better, rather than the other guy is worse.