Slate Cards

The best slate card is a mailer with a picture and appeal from the most popular Republican candidate (Trump!) along with mini-promotions of the other R candidates on the ballot. Ideally there's a tear-off list that the voter can take to the polls.

Lots and lots of good reasons to mail them. Customarily it has been the job of the local or state GOP, but mailings have been abbreviated or eliminated because of the general perception that there are better ways to spend limited funds. We're here to say that perception is wrong. Times have changed.

Want to win? Get the slate cards out. All of them.

We know from polling that millions of likely Trump voters won't be reached by any form of direct GOP communication because they live in areas considered to be Republican no-go zones. The idea always has been to build the margins in the suburbs where the votes are. Except those extra votes are no longer there, thanks to the abortion issue. So we need to re-engage with those great Americans who live in the areas most beset by the Democrat triple-calamity of crime, inflation and open borders.

And don't be bashful about showcasing President Trump.

In Democrat urban America he's the most popular Republican since Abraham Lincoln. He moves the needle.

Slate Card Example

This example is from the GOP of Butler County, Ohio. It's half of an 8 1/2 by 11 card, two sided, with space for the address.

Our suggestions:

At least half of one side should display a picture of President Trump with a personal yet forcefully expressive message from him.
Ideally the slate card a voter receives should list only those candidates on that voter's ballot. Several versions of the slate card should be printed so that hard-working candidates in unique districts don't need to share the slate cards with others.
If the card is enlarged to, say, a foldable 8 1/2 by 11, then there will be room for a tear-off ballot for the voter to take to the polls, and a section for a picture and a few pithy words about each candidate.
Plenty of ways to be more creative. Keep in mind that the better the personalization, the better the response.

When to mail them

Before they vote. At least half will vote before election day. Use this schedule:

When they request an absentee ballot. (The list should be available on a daily basis from the county.) Make no mistake: election-day starts when early voting starts. You must be fully engaged. Once they've voted early or returned their absentee ballots, take them off your voter list, so you're not wasting postage later.
Early in the week before the election. If they haven't voted early, then you want to have the last word.

Mail to each individual voter

... instead of every household. Sure, this will increase your overall postage cost by 50 percent. But the surest way to reach each individual voter is to ensure each has a card with his/her name on it. So in the scheme above, mail to only one person in each household. Then, a day or two later, and mailing in the same order of priority, mail to the second person in the household. And then the third. Which will also score a double- or triple- hit on each household.

This is your last shot. Make it count.

Why slate cards?

Sure, the method is old-school. Except ...

Slate cards are the only way to ensure we're reaching all voters.

A slate-card mailing campaign is cheap when compared to the eight-figure nuclear broadcast war waged by both sides. Which usually ends in a stalemate. We just heard about a $10 million media buy in Pennsylvania. It would cost only $1.2 million (12 percent!) for slate-card mailing to each of the 2 million voters in Philadelphia and Allegheny (Pittsburgh) counties. That act alone would move the needle and flip two congressional seats.

Is there data out there on the slate card strategy helping to drive turnout?

In our experience slate cards mailed to Republicans have always been effective in driving Republican turnout. Slate-card mailings have been extremely effective in primaries when the local GOP aims to back up its endorsements.

"Nobody beats the slate card" is an assertion that usually holds true ...

... in primaries. There's no data on general elections because, other than cards mailed to registered Rs, we don't know that a Republican mailing to all voters has even been tried.

Then how do you know it would work?

Experience. Logic. And we know what doesn't work: Inaction. Republican surrender in the metro counties is the reason why Republicans lose most of the competitive Senate and congressional races.

A slate card mailing will:

Ensure the Republican good news reaches everyone. Digital ads can be effective but does anyone know who sees them? Same for all other media.

Support the hard work of all those great Americans leading the Republican charge in metro-county wards. Every voter will see a simple restatement of the Republican philosophy -- safe neighborhoods, secure borders, school choice.

Re-state the obvious and most powerful message: we don't have to live like this! (At least that's our idea.) Speak to voters in a language they understand, and they will respond.

Blunt the strong-armed Democrat efforts to bank as many votes as possible.

Move the needle. Raise the R average by 10 points and we win everywere.

What if there's not enough money?

Then establish priorities. Use this scheme:

All Republicans. This will encourage them to get to the polls. And it will let them know who the right candidates are in the non-partisan (usually judicial) races.

Everyone in precinct categories 1 and 2. (Categories explained here.)

All the men in in precinct categories 3, 4 and 5, in order by the overall precinct rank. Why just the men? Because polls tell us they're more likely to switch from D to R.

Isn't this complicated?

This is 2026. It shouldn't be. If your mail vendor says it can't be done, then find a new vendor. The election is approaching and your candidacy is on the line. If your vendor isn't at least as serious as you, then call these guys. No frills. Great support. They'll guide you through it.