Campaigning amid COVID-19: a challenge

Since 2015, Connie Chapman has been involved in political races in Las Cruces and Doña Ana County. Her first gig was working on the campaign for then-city council candidate Kasandra Gandara, who went on to win the District 1 race.

Since then, she’s served in various capacities for nine other candidates – all Democrats – seeking election to local and legislative offices. At present, she’s involved in three campaigns, but in only one of them is there any competition in the Primary. That race is for State Senate District 38, and Chapman is managing Carrie Hamblen’s bid to replace Mary Kay Papen. Longtime incumbent Papen is seeking re-election in District 38, and, in addition to Hamblen, she’s running against Tracy Perry in the Primary.

The Bulletin sought out Chapman’s thoughts on running or helping campaigns in the time of social distancing and event cancellations.

Bulletin: What are the biggest issues candidates face related to the following areas: door-knocking, cancelled group events (debates, fundraisers, etc.) and getting effective messaging out? How are they addressing these issues? And if different ones are doing different things, please expound.

Chapman: Here are my thoughts from how I see Carrie having to navigate her campaign, since she is my only candidate in the Primary with opposition. I’m also working with Sen. William Soules' re-election and Rep. Angelica Rubio's. But neither of them has opponents in June.
As soon as the restrictions came on door-door contact, I turned all my attention to Carrie. Sen. Soules and Rep. Rubio had barely returned from the 30-day session when things started to unravel. The social distancing was put in place just three days after candidates filed on March 10.
My advice to them is to serve their districts by keeping them informed. There will be time for campaigning for the General Election after the Primary and COVID-19 is more under control. More than likely, they will have to attend a Special Session in the coming months. They are fortunate they don't have Primary opponents. 
As far as door knocking, it’s the bread and butter of a campaign. There’s no substitute for being able to meet and talk with a potential voter one-on-one, especially for a newcomer. I think not being able to introduce yourself to the voters one-on-one will be a disadvantage for the challengers. The incumbents may not be a household name in daily conversation, but when voting, their name is familiar to voters
from previous elections (assuming this is a regular voter). The best way for a voter to remember a candidate's name while voting is if that candidate made a personal impression at some point. And one-
on-one at the door is the gold standard. 
Not being able to knock on doors of newly registered voters, or voters who don't regularly vote cuts down on participation, and less participation tends to favor incumbents. 
As far as cancelled meet/greets and fundraisers, they can be, but aren’t always, an efficient way to meet
a specific group of voters, and these voters are likely to support the candidate as friends and neighbors.
At these functions, a candidate hopefully gains the votes and receives donations at the same time. It's also where campaigns recruit volunteers, ask if folks will put up a yard sign, etc.
Forums and debates are different, and how I wish Las Cruces would someday host a true debate. Our public meetings are forums, very tame and polite, but none are scheduled for this Primary election
season. This type of candidate/voter interaction can be very revealing as to how quick candidates think on their feet, if they have their own original ideas or if they tend to piggyback onto an opponent’s
answer or will even take a stand or wobble. So what's one candidate's misfortune becomes a benefit to the other.
How we address all of the above is still being formulated. I've learned the best-planned campaign is always in transition, but this year it's transition times 10. Some of the other outreach we were planning to do include a mail campaign, social media, print advertising, campaign signs, etc. Print advertising, as you know, is only a viable form of communication if people are reading print. Another unknown.

Bulletin: Does this fundamentally change the campaign season in a way that favors the incumbents?
Why or why not? And maybe, why yes in some ways and no in some ways? What roles do technology
and social media play?

Chapman: I do think, in general, incumbents will still hold the advantage, but with a technologically savvy candidate, it could help to level the playing field somewhat. The biggest unknown is the type of voter and voter turnout. Are the previous supporters of the incumbent still "old school," or have they moved forward, progressed with the times and engage in the platforms that would expose them to a digital campaign presented by the challenger?
Are the supporters of the incumbent even reachable by social media? And/or can the technologically savvy challenger design a digital campaign so engaging that it draws in those who haven't previously
been Primary voters and engages them to go vote? Can a social media campaign engage the first-time, newly registered, young voter to participate and counter the tried-and-true voter who has supported the incumbent from previous elections? We’ll find out.

Bulletin: In the time that you’ve been doing this, what’s been most rewarding about it? Most frustrating?

Chapman: The most rewarding is knowing I've played a part in having dedicated, caring and knowledgeable people elected to represent our community. Two in the state House of Representatives,
five on the city council, one on the county commission and two elected to the Soil & Water Conservation District board of supervisors. 
The most frustrating is the lack of engagement from the general public. They have no idea how much difference their local elected leaders affect their daily lives, and that it matters who we have in local positions. I wish people wouldn't judge a candidate's viability by how much money is raised early on in a campaign. A dedicated candidate with solid policy ideas that speak to the community's needs and concerns and who is willing to work for the vote, is always a viable candidate. Money spent on campaigns is out of control, even at the local level. 

Bulletin: And always the most important question: What questions am I not asking that I should be? Please expound.

Chapman: We are just weeks out from the first day of early voting, and campaigns do not have definitive answers surrounding the voting process for this election. COVID-19 is forcing a long, hard look at how to administer the Primary Election and comply with the direction for community safety. Drafts of mailers should be in the final stages of approval. Providing basic information surrounding early-voting dates, times and locations is normally part of a candidate's messaging. If an all-mail-in election is approved,
that has potential to drive up voter participation. The unexpected potential increase in voter participation could skew the analysis that campaigns used to identify the voters they’ve been courting.
It’s another twist in the political world of 2020.