HOW SHOULD A CANDIDATE DEVELOP A MANIFESTO

 

James George

STANDARDS FOR AMERICAN POLITICAL PARTIES (c) 2024 JAG
25 March 2024

HOW SHOULD A CANDIDATE 

DEVELOP A MANIFESTO? 

 

Developing a presidential candidate manifesto as envisioned here is akin to developing an audit trail of ideas, plans, and policies that a candidate develops in concert with prospective advisors and cabinet members in preparation for being elected. 

 

The manifesto and associated evidence should provide voter citizens with keen insight and substance about what the candidate believes and how they intend to manage.

Political parties are encouraged to embrace the practice of preparing presidential manifestos. They might say that they already do. 

 

The questions about their approach include:

 

·       Essential content

·       Timeliness

·       Stability of the core foundation

·       Relevance to contemporary needs

·       Relevance and adaptability to emerging and future needs

 

    Political parties would do well to collaborate with academic institutions with representation from multiple disciplines to support their efforts on an ongoing basis. Today, many lobbyist organizations, including “think tanks,” produce content for political parties and the legislative and executive branches of government. The content sources must be transparent as they are often prepared with particular biases.

 

How much time should one expect to devote to the effort? In many respects, a political party’s manifesto might be a precursor indication of future legislative needs and a foundation to continue improving the system. It lives and breathes, as does the nation’s body of laws.

 

First of all, each candidate must assess their position. Do they plan to unseat an incumbent after one four-year term in office, or are they targeting a new opportunity following an incumbent’s second term? It is very hard to unseat an incumbent, especially if the perception is positive about their performance. 

 

However, given the poor quality of present candidates and flaws in the process, no one should be discouraged from the pursuit if they possess superior qualifications.

 

Developing a Presidential Candidate’s Manifesto should be a team effort. It should engage the candidate’s community of supporters, including academic representatives, specialists, prospective cabinet members, constituent organizations, and special interests.

Is it possible for the candidate to refrain from engaging prospective vice-presidential candidates early in the process?

The process of developing a manifesto is preparation for the job. A candidate should earnestly address the initiative to publicize and merchandise the content.

 

The process will take time. Let’s say a presidential candidate will run for office at the next available opportunity, say in four years. Four years out is not too early to start the manifesto. Three years out is not too early to float the first draft. 

 

Two years out, it is time to make the manifesto as robust as possible and to embrace contributors with attribution as members of your team.

 

That means voters should have the candidate’s manifesto to consider and evaluate two years before the election. The product may be iterative. A manifesto may start with policies and then include strategies and details. It is expected to be amended and modified because it is adaptive and aligned to real-world events. Transparency about changes is helpful for citizen voters. It should be posted online.

 

The manifesto provides the following:

 

·       Evidence of diligence

·       Evidence of knowledge and skill

·       Evidence of performance behavior and character

·       Evidence of priorities by the selection of topics and emphasis

·       Evidence of ability

·       Evidence allegiance

 

Political parties have manifestos, aka platforms, that they carry from one election cycle to another. How much of the core content should be expected to change? How much alignment should there be between candidates and their parties? What are the drivers for change in content? How do political parties manage their platforms? Therein, the answers will reveal opportunities for significant improvement and impact the discretionary latitude of presidential candidates.

In the election cycle 2016, this author is amazed at the amount of misunderstanding and variance about the role of government and about a host of social issues derived from that debate. It is as if the Civil War never ended or that a new one has begun.

 

(I wrote that long ago, and it is wholly relevant in 2024.)

 

Part of the problem is that party platforms are too commingled with presidential candidates’ manifestos, and the entire process and cycle are out of synchronization. 

 

A political party should have a solid handle on its brand well before the election cycle so that candidates can participate as team members. Subsequently, the presidential candidates can develop the most current interpretation of priorities and needs aligned with their host party.

 

In the instance of the Republican Party today, there is complete instability, and their leading candidate’s manifesto is underdeveloped. The actors are out of synchronization and misaligned. 

 

To a similar extent, the same might be true of the Democratic Party. (Election 2016 is evidence that both parties are dysfunctional.)