Daniel Tilson: Reinventing the ’50-state strategy’ in Florida

Florida Democrats deserve a customized version of Howard Dean’s “50-state strategy.” The non-competitive horse — uh, donkey — is already out of the barn in 2014. But the right combination of desire, commitment, creativity and cooperation could flip the script in 2016.

The Democratic National Committee chair from 2005-2009, former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, challenged conventional wisdom that resources should be allocated almost exclusively to “winnable” swing states. Such “wisdom” was and is based on the “science” of electoral politics, data collection, statistical analysis — and all that jazz.

I’m not suggesting any of that isn’t critically relevant and downright essential to winning elections. It was, is, and always will be.

The problem then and now is that an all-encompassing focus on electoral science leaves the human factor undervalued. It overlooks, or worse, casts aside the potential positive impact of ongoing presence and organizing in every state and district in America.

Resource development and allocation based purely on data is a failure of vision. Democrats, independents and disenchanted Republicans in GOP strongholds need a visible, perpetual Democratic Party presence in their midst.

And what about all the politically disengaged folks in those districts? Why register to vote or pay attention to politics when your only choice each election is someone who’s primarily a tool of private business interests, at your expense?

Leading up to Barack Obama’s historic 2008 election, Dean butted heads with “Old School” Democrats like Rahm Emanuel, battling to put “boots on the ground” in every state in the nation. He believed building universal presence and infrastructure, even in deep red states, could only help.

Dean prevailed, implemented the 50-state strategy, and the rest is … instructive history. After Obama’s election and other impressive 2008 results, the party reverted to “traditionalism.” Dean stepped down as DNC chair in 2009.

So what does that mean for Florida?

Yes, a national presidential election is different than state legislative races. Traditional political pundits, statisticians and strategists would recommend against employing “120-district” state House, or “40-district” state Senate strategies in Florida.

Conventional wisdom is that only a resource-rich entity like Obama’s 2012 Organizing for America can make campaigning viable in every Florida district. But Dean proved that will and commitment could go a long way to creating viability, and winning votes.

After writing earlier this week that we need Democratic candidates in every single Florida race and district, a legislator I respect posed a hypothetical to me. He asked what I’d do as party leader with limited funds: Make serious impact in 20 “winnable” House races, or spread a little over all 120 districts?

I answered that the money should go to “winnable” races. But why not also do ongoing, effective brand building, coalition building and infrastructure building, in every community and district in Florida, between elections? Anyone who claims the Florida Democratic Party does that needs to look more closely.

That hypothetical inspired me to offer some hypotheticals of my own for party leaders and grassroots activists statewide to consider.

What if over the next two years, the Florida Democratic Party used Organizing for America’s model to create new community-organizing teams, however small initially, in every “unwinnable” district? What if a dedicated fundraising campaign was launched to facilitate their outreach, communications and candidate recruitment efforts?

What if sympathetic political/media professionals — like myself — offered services to those teams and candidates, at ultra-affordable prices? What if Internet sources of grassroots support were leveraged? What if core messaging organized people of all political persuasions around a single theme — like Fairness for Working Families?

I think the Florida Democratic Party would win new friends and, in time, elections once labeled “unwinnable.”

Daniel Tilson has a Boca Raton-based communications firm called Full Cup Media, specializing in online video and written content for non-profits, political candidates and organizations, and small businesses. Column courtesy of Context Florida.