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Dirty campaigns becoming a major U.S. export

Campaigns & Elections, Nov, 2007 by Michael Coleman

When American political pros think "dirty tricks," they might think Watergate, the Swift Boat commercials or the MoveOn.org ad attacking Gen. David Petraeus.

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But rough-and-tumble campaign tactics--like unsubstantiated allegations, voter deception, slanderous remarks and illegal mailings--aren't strictly the domain of aggressive U.S. consultants.

For years, most countries have seen American politics as about as nasty as it gets. But they are increasingly turning to American consultants willing to help them turn up the volume--and win campaigns.

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Mark McKinnon managed media for President George W. Bush's successful 2000 and 2004 campaigns, and has done similar work for candidates in Africa, Eastern Europe and South America. He said political parties and their candidates--regardless of ideology or cultural influences--want to win elections, and they will seek out the most effective ways to do it, even if it means adopting a more confrontational campaign model.

"The reality is that despite enormous cultural differences, elections are basically the same everywhere," said McKinnon, now vice chairman of Public Strategies in Austin, Texas, and president of Maverick Media.

He said foreign candidates rarely relish taking the gloves off--at first.

"There is almost always an initial resistance culturally; most countries aren't used to using the kind of hard-hitting tactics and strategies we use," McKinnon explained. "But as soon as they see that it might help their chances, they are locked and loaded."

Christophe Hofinger, a political consultant in Austria, said "dirty tricks" are becoming more commonplace in a country that has enjoyed a period of civil political discourse.

"The increased use of negative campaigning is certainly detectable in Austrian campaigns," Hofer said.

For example, unsubstantiated media allegations altered a governor's race in Salzburg when unknown sources alleged the incumbent beat his wife. The sitting governor narrowly fended off defeat, but not until his wife turned up at a press conference to refute the claim.

Sometimes, of course, the odor of dirty campaigns doesn't waft to the surface until it is too late for the victimized party to retaliate.

In 2002, Austrian conservative volunteers told rural voters that the Green Party would compel mandatory national vegetarianism. Meat-eating country dwellers weren't having any of that and--although the allegation wasn't true--the Green Party never stood a chance at the polls in that election, despite making strong inroads in other European countries.

Ralph Murphine, a political consultant based in Washington, D.C., and Quito, Ecuador, has worked with more than 500 candidates for public office across Latin America. Murphine says he sees a growing willingness to "go negative" in that part of the world, but says dirty campaigns are nowhere near as prevalent as in the neighboring nation to the north.

"I don't know of any Latin American country that permits the volume and force of the kind of negative campaigning permitted in the United States," Murphine said. "Often, the local election tribunal simply orders offensive material off the air and this discourages its use. Obviously, there are exceptions."

Murphine said Mexico, in particular, is embroiled in a "deep debate" over the role of negative campaigns. Two years ago, Elba Esther Gordillo, the executive director of the nation's largest political party, PRI, got into a political scuffle with party president Roberto Madrazo. Gordillo abandoned the party and splashed nasty billboard ads across the country as Madrazo was running to become Mexico's next president.

The billboard message, stenciled in huge lettering, said: "Do you believe Madrazo? Neither do I." Madrazo ran third in the election and lost every single state--which Murphine says proves that negative campaigning is not only catching on in Mexico, but working.

In a recent gubernatorial election in Baja, one of the opposition parties employed a telephone "poll" asking if the voter would support a candidate "if you knew that candidate was involved in drug dealing"--this despite any evidence of actual criminal activity from the campaign in question.

Such unscrupulous telephone tactics are against the ethical code of the American Association of Political Consultants, but Mexico and other Latin American countries do not operate under any such code, Murphine said.

Nino Saviano, president of U.S.-based Savi Political Consulting, has advised candidates in Italy, the Middle East and Latin America. He said the international trend, especially in new and emerging democracies, leans toward more personal attacks. He said that's in part because political parties in many countries are taking a backseat to individual candidates.

"I think it's because there is more emphasis on the candidate than the party," Saviano explained. "When you put more emphasis on the candidate you have more breeding ground for personal attacks."

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Dirty campaigns becoming a major U.S. export

Campaigns & Elections, Nov, 2007 by Michael Coleman

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