Situation
The Rock Island County Democratic Central Committee made a commitment to engage professional campaign services to assure the re-election of key County Officeholders on the ballot Sheriff, Clerk, Treasurer and Superintendent of Schools. In addition, five of the eight-county board seats on the ballot were competitive and needed support.
Background
Leadership knew Democratic Party supporters were more inclined to vote early, so a communication emphasis was developed to gain momentum for voting early. In addition, the large rise in use of social media and various digital platforms since the last non-Presidential election in 2014 would be a factor in reaching a wide demographic spectrum of voters.
Recommendation
Following a thorough review and assessment, Liberty Bell strategists recommended the Rock Island County Democrats focus on their target audience through Facebook updates, Facebook and Instagram ads, and YouTube video ads, to attract issue supporters to the polls, which included implementation of Democratic Values messaging tied to the candidates. Liberty Bell content specialists concentrated their efforts on early voting, taking advantage of video delivered online integrated with direct mail messages and social media advertising to build preference through focused, consistent messaging. Using traditional broadcast or radio was overkill in terms of coverage area since the only relevant geographic target with Rock Island County, 25% of the Quad City Television market.
Results
Total voters = 51,283 – 12% (increase over 2014 of 45,527)
Total early voting = 20,944 or 41% (a 27% increase over 2014 of 15,139)
Democratic Target early voter performance = 53% of the 33,000 targets
All county office holders re-elected
4 of the 5 targeted County Board Democratic candidates won