The Race

If politics is the application of influence and authority then an election is the application of that influence to win the vote of the citizens. Many things from finances to current civic topics and from political background to political denomination determine the outcome and/or circumstances of elections, but the most influential election tool is, and has been, the media. The use and misuse of the media, political advertisements and televised debates has been known to win or lose an election. In the late 1990’s Patrick Kennedy decided to run for the House of Representatives, in Congress. After winning the primary, Kennedy would have only one opponent, Dr. Kevin Vigilante. At 39 years old Vigilante had an excellent background that included John Hopkins University and dozens of medical clinics. At 28 years old Patrick Kennedy was a typical political Kennedy with the drive to carry on the family legacy of public service. The media embraced this Kennedy-mania and Patrick Kennedy won the election 54-56, only 8 percentage points ahead. Kennedy won the election with money and influence in his left pocket and bulging out of his right pocket was the media. At first glance of this election it would seem as though Kennedy won because of name and money. At second glance that is not the complete story. Kennedy won the election through correct use of the media, through negative campaign ads and political influence.

For Vigilante, fundraising for the campaign started with spending 500 hours on the phone and raising a commendable $150,000. Kennedy, on the other hand was not on the phone, he was planning fundraising events, events that would win him media attention, and the citizens approval. Kennedy brought in family members such as Caroline Kennedy, John F. Kennedy Jr., and Hollywood icons such as Tony Bennett. In the end, the fundraising totals were close, Kennedy $1 million and Vigilante $800,000. The fact was, the media had embraced Patrick Kennedy with spotlights, interviews and editorials and the citizens embraced Kennedy because he had the influence to “bring home the bacon.”

During the campaign Kennedy furthered his use of the media through negative advertising. Kennedy launched several ad campaigns the attacked Vigilante on several subjects ranging from only voting 4 times in 20 years and exaggerating an insurance claim on an automobile accident. Holding a news conference, Vigilante proceeded to ask Kennedy to pull the negative ads. Sadly for Vigilante that was the same week Caroline Kennedy was in town and only one news reporter showed up. Caroline was followed intensely by both local and network stations.

Hoping to win some approval in the polls, a stressed out and nervous Vigilante prepared for the upcoming debate. During the debate Vigilante seduced Kennedy into admitting that he would not deny his families wishes. In the end, Vigilante won the debate, but nonetheless no one was watching. The majority of Rhode Islanders were watching a sporting event on another channel.

In the last desperate weeks of the election, Vigilante made several mistakes. Behind in the polls Vigilante made the fatal error of bringing up Kennedy’s problems with cocaine. This tactic turned against Vigilante when he later admitted to using marijuana in college. Yet another grave mistake was his failure to keep his promise of no negative ads. In the last days of the election, Vigilante launched a series of ads that featured Kennedy’s former landlady. She proclaimed that Patrick Kennedy owed her $3,400 for a broken lease. This won Vigilante a few percentages in the polls but eventually turned on him, due to the broken promise.

In conclusion, Patrick Kennedy did not win on name and money alone. His use of election strategy through, media, negative ads and political influence won him a seat in the house. Contributing further to Kennedy’s advantage was the constituents of the community, mostly Italian, senior citizens that vowed their vote for Kennedy from the beginning.