Democratic organizers hold 'Advance Camp' to help train 2020 workers
WASHINGTON — The very real concern about how campaigns can build up their operations was at the heart of a daylong gathering of more than 1,500 activists in Washington organized by veterans of Democratic campaigns.
The goal of the all-day “Advance Camp” was to help channel the energy of young Democrats eager to unseat President Donald Trump into action with an eye toward potential key roles, if often unglamorous ones, in campaigns up and down the ballot in 2020. But organizers also brought an important message: that no matter what campaign you might start with, Democrats need to unite behind the eventual nominee.
Political advance workers orchestrate public events as small as a diner visit or house party and as large as a rally drawing tens of thousands. Sessions introduced attendees to the nitty-gritty of those jobs, how they interact with reporters, how those roles have changed and what kinds of careers are possible after advance. There was also a presentation with critical tips on cybersecurity as well as preventing and addressing sexual harassment in campaigns — both topics that came to the forefront in 2016.
“We can no longer allow campaigns to be a breeding ground of bad behavior,” said Rene Redwood, who runs a consulting practice working with campaigns to address harassment issues.
Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia also addressed attendees with his wife, Anne Holton, describing how advance teams helped ease the pressure of the 100 days they spent on the Clinton ticket in 2016.
“The campaign was a blast until the last two hours,” Kaine joked during his pep talk. “The world is dependent on you.”
Doug Landry, who worked on the Clinton and Obama campaigns, conceived of the idea with colleagues, initially expecting perhaps a few dozen people to sign up, not the 1,550 who ultimately arrived at the Howard University campus Saturday. Because volunteer organizers wanted the event to be free, they appealed to the Democratic advance community to help fund it — raising more than $22,000.
Organizers said they’d work to provide all attendees’ resumes to Democratic presidential campaigns — and the campaigns said they were eager to bring them on board, if not immediately, even if they also worked early on for potential opponents.