What can be learned from the primary election of Aug. 3? Negative campaigning works — usually.
Faced with a double-digit polling deficit at the outset of his campaign for U.S. Senate, Todd Tiahrt launched a non-stop attack on fellow Congressman Jerry Moran. Tiahrt narrowed the gap remarkably and Moran resorted to similar tactics with more and more frequency to protect his lead, casting his attacks on Tiahrt as a mere defense of his record.
Moran eventually won but not by the margin with which he began the race.
In the general election, in solidly Republican Kansas, he probably won’t have to climb into the trenches again to defeat his Democratic challenger. Like gubernatorial candidate Sam Brownback and First District congressional candidate Tim Huelskamp, Moran’s eventual victory seems assured.
But this is politics, and in politics, especially local politics, the conventional wisdom of campaigning isn’t always the truest.
Eric Nystrom, who had successfully won election to the City Commission three times and served multiple terms as mayor, pursued a seat on the Pratt County Commission with promises of change. His characterizations of the current Commission — including his opponent, the genial and well-liked Charles Rinke — were unflattering. Voters responded by placing Nystrom third. Rinke’s closest competition came from Scott Younie, a first-time candidate, who ran on his own merit.
Any of the three men would probably serve the county well. Nystrom and Rinke both have the records to prove it. But voters chose the message they liked best, and in this local context, the message they liked was not negative.
