Democratic candidate and former DEP Secretary John Hanger likes to call his effort a “People’s Campaign” and today they earned that moniker by going above and beyond the requirement to get him on the gubernatorial ballot.
“Our great force of volunteers and supporters worked hard all across the state to gather petition signatures,” Hanger said. “This dedication and energy have powered our People’s Campaign and it inspires me every day. I can’t thank every one of you enough.”
It takes 2,000 signatures to get on the Democratic or Republican ballot for Governor. A campaign must also secure a minimum 100 signatures from at least ten separate counties in the state.
The Hanger campaign was able to bring in 4,600 signatures and received 100 from 16 PA counties. According to the campaign, they also collected 200 from eight counties and compiled over 500 in Philadelphia and Delaware. Altogether, they sent in signatures from 34 counties throughout the commonwealth.
Yet Hanger’s “People Campaign” is still trying to hit 5,000 before tomorrow’s deadline.
“Additional petitions will be filed tomorrow,” Hanger Field Director Ed Boito asserted. “They’re still coming in.”
We are still awaiting petition signature counts from State Treasurer Rob McCord, Congresswoman Allyson Schwartz, former DEP Secretary Katie McGinty, former Revenue Secretary Tom Wolf, former Auditor General Jack Wagner and Lebanon County Commissioner Jo Ellen Litz.
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6 Responses
@Jonathan – It is much, and much appreciated. We’ll never beat “the larger campaigns” by The Political Class on cash. But we are beating them with boots on the ground. Thanks for putting your boots on those two days.
Here is the voter registration form, for those who want to register or change registration to vote for The People’s Campaign:
http://www.dosimages.pa.gov/pdf/OnlineVoterRegFormBlank.pdf
Steve Todd
Dauphin County Coordinator
http://www.hangerforgovernor.com
John Hanger represents something people are passionate about.
His votes come from a self-motivated, growing movement across the state. People care about what is happening to Pennsylvania, and as soon as they get wind of what Hanger is doing for us all in so many ways, they question why they were planning to vote for Wolf, and up come no answer, just a series of hypnotic ad blasts stating “THE CHOICE”, like he’s the only choice against Corbett.
Well, guess what… John Hanger is the people’s choice.
The terms “establishment” and “grassroots” are not mutually exclusive. I believe you are confusing “grassroots” with “outsider.” They are not synonyms. Thinking an “establishment” campaign doesn’t have a “grassroots” element to it doesn’t show an appreciation for the term “grassroots.”
As for the importance of numbers, the 2,000 minimum means nothing, any candidate can get that. What matters is the 100 good signatures in at least 10 counties. Hanger’s count appears to rely on many counties with more than 100, but less than 200 signatures. Those are not challenge-proof counties based on the numbers. As for raw numbers, McCord and Wolf will file far more than 7,500 signatures, numbers that will make Hanger’s 4,500 look tiny.
Robbie-
There’s a difference between “the largest campaign” and “the largest grassroots” campaign.
Clearly, McCord and Schwartz are “establishment” candidates. Their campaigns cannot be labeled “grassroots”.
Despite his money for advertising, Wolf has a bit of grassroots campaign himself, as he’s not a party insider.
But, the number of signatures comes down to this:
1) You need a good margin of safety 1.5 to 2 times the number required to fend off a challenge.
2) Any more than that is just for bragging rights or grabbing attention, like a peacock strutting its feathers.
I consider it an open question of whether getting more than 4,000 has any actual value for the manpower expended. Is it a waste of resources? Does even a single member of the voting public go into the booth on election day and pick a candidate based upon the number of signatures? (I think this number is fewer than the number of cases of voter impersonation fraud.)
I think the only value is a VERY short story for one news-cycle and an argument to make to donors that you have a stronger campaign because you got 7,500 signatures and they got 7,000.
It might get a few extra bucks, but I suspect it’s fewer $$$ than if the extra manpower had been spend in fundraising efforts.
@Jonathan – I “highly doubt” you are right. McCord and Wolf definitely will file far more signatures than Hanger, with 100+ signatures in far more counties, and with signatures in far more counties. Schwartz and McGinty will probably file more signatures than Hanger.
I’m pretty sure a few other campaigns have what Hanger’s “People Campaign” has, but a lot more. You don’t have 2, 3 or 4 people file more signatures than you if you have “the largest grassroots support.” He doesn’t. Not even close.
I switched parties and got 17 of those signatures! 🙂
It might not have been much, but it’s something. I wished I could have gone out more (only went out twice), but working at night made it tough since few people are home during the day.
I think this shows that John Hanger is running a true People’s Campaign. He may not have millions to waste on TV ads, but he has the largest grassroots support. He also happens to have people switching parties everyday just to vote for him in May. That is something I highly doubt any of the other candidates have.