Lessons From My Father

First term State Senator Laura Kelly had won election in 2004 by only 98 votes in this district where Republicans have a 13% registration advantage over Democrats. We had our work cut out for us in her 2008 campaign for reelection.

2008 was a very challenging year for Democrats in Kansas. As expected, John McCain was running very strong in the state and we had to defend against the “liberal” label Republicans were trying to affix to every Democratic candidate. The Republican challenger, Jim Zeller, was a Navy veteran and receiving strong financial support from his party.

This piece uses references to duty, honor and prayer to bridge the perceived cultural divide between Senator Kelly and her Republican constituents. By focusing on her roots in a military family and support for our troops, we were able to frustrate Republican attempts to paint Democrats as being anti-military. Senator Kelly won reelection, winning a strong 58% of the vote.