The Handlers
Suit or polo shirt? Glasses or contact lenses? Breakfast or barbeque?
Perhaps not what to say, but certainly how to say it.
For the answers to these problems many candidates will turn to their
campaign managers, the people who work behind the scenes to guide those
who would be Members of Parliament through the complex web of issues,
demographics and image that are central to the art of running a modern
political campaign.
The CBC has explored the world of three political handlers in Nova Scotia:
one each from the Liberals, the Conservatives, and the NDP. Their beliefs
on the issues and how to run the federal government may be very different,
but they all have to deliver their message to the same voters. They need
to identify a focus for the campaign, design a look for the candidate
and all campaign materials, and create a schedule for the candidate. The
plan is to both swing undecided voters and motivate the party faithful.
They have to do it with a staff that is comprised almost entirely of volunteers.
They do this without fanfare, intentionally focusing the spotlight on
the candidate. Here these campaigners, who have long been an integral
part of the political process, are revealed.
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| Dale Palmeter |
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Dale Palmeter, managing Liberal Scott Brison’s campaign in Kings Hants,
has the tricky assignment of a candidate who has switched parties from the
Progressive Conservatives. Palmeter has fought more than a dozen campaigns,
going back to Joe Clark’s days. As Jennifer Henderson reports, he
may need every bit of that experience to return Brison to Parliament.  AUDIO (Runs 7:59)
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| Andy Moir |
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Andy Moir, campaign manager of Arthur Bull’s NDP campaign in West
Nova, has never run a political campaign before. He’s chosen a tough
assignment, a riding that has never elected a New Democrat before. Moir,
a former TV producer and writer, hopes his communications experience, with
some help from the internet, will pull his candidate through. Jennifer Henderson
reports.AUDIO
(Runs 7:30)
Steve Taylor, co-chair of Conservative Steve Streatch’s campaign
in Sackville-Eastern Shore, is counting on boundless energy and a broad
web of political connections to unseat a popular NDP MP. Jennifer Henderson
reports that as the campaign winds down, Taylor is pumped up for victory.AUDIO
(Runs 7:30)
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