2011 Election - Lessons Learned

• We should request feedback from all of our candidates before it gets too late and their memory of the campaign fades. What should we do better next time? What worked well for them? Were the signs big enough? Could you read the web site address from a passing car?

• In the Ocotber 6, 2011 general election, money was not a limiting factor – organization limited what we could do with the money. We could have prepared and printed more customized brochures if we had someone for whom this was the primary responsibility. Need additional people to look after signs and brochures (get quotes, prepare art work and layouts). We did no media releases, because no one was assigned, and we didn't have a process for approving them and a disttribution list for sending them.

• We considered doing radio and/or newspaper advertising if we had the money. We had enough money to at least run an ad campaign in one of the smaller markets (Hamilton for example, were we had a candidate in every riding). Again we didn't have a person with that responsibility focusing on it.

• Good regional coordinators made a big difference. They were the ones who recruited many of the candidates. Probably need to give them more training on how to recruit candidates. The Campaign Director needs to follow up with them at least once a week. Coordinators need to follow up with candidates and push them to get their signatures early. Candidates should collect their signatures well before the writ is dropped.

• Have “flying squads” in each region who will collect signatures for paper candidates or help candidates where necessary.

• Signs were not available until late in the campaign, two weeks before Election Day. (They were ordered 3 1/2 weeks before Election Day.) We need to know how many signs each candidate will use well in advance, maybe 2 months before Election Day. Brochures were ready for some candidates a little earlier, but not for all candidates. The Candidate App asked for this information. Regional Coordinators should confirm requests for signs and brochures before the order is placed, even for candidates who don't plan to campaign.

• It's probably not a good idea to order signs and brochures before the candidate has collected their signatures.

• Whats UR Sign was the company that printed 339 signs for us at $4.25 each, much lower than any other quote I was able to get. They also provided the best 'stakes,' 16"x1/4" steel rods that fit between the corplast layers and didn't bend in a strong wind.

• Probably better to get signs and brochures printed locally, to avoid shipping charges. E.g. find suppliers in Ottawa, Hamilton, London, Thunder Bay, etc. Maybe regional coordinators should get local quotes, or arrange with What’s UR Sign to ship to regional coordinators.

• Don’t submit the C-1 Candidate Registration form until the candidate has enough signatures. It isn’t required unless they want to open a bank account to collect contributions for their campaign. It creates extra paperwork (audited CR-1) if the get registered but don’t get their name on the ballot.

• Better candidate training, especially for new members. If they can't make it to a training sesssion (Caucus Meeting), should we endorse them as a candidate.