Eric Ringham and Sasha Aslanian of Minnesota Public Radio have published a remarkably detailed and incisive deconstruction of how Gay, Straight, Democratic and Republican Minnesotans, all working in relentless coordination, beat back an anti-gay marriage referendum in a state that isn't as liberal as many people assume. It was neither easy nor cheap, but they got every major thing right — and succeeded where their counterparts in 30 other states had failed.
MPR's exhaustive (and instructive) post mortem explored in great depth the campaign's research, political alliances with Republicans, fundraising, enlistment of prominent Minnesotans and training of anti-amendment voters on how to talk to their neighbors.
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| David Fleischer |
RESEARCH
Among the resources available to Meyer and Kaner-Roth was a report by California LGBT advocate and consultant David Fleischer, who had made a study of the unsuccessful attempt to thwart Proposition 8 in California in 2008. His report was a document "that all of us read religiously," Meyer said.
...The strategy of using straight people in the ads was not without controversy.
"And part of the reason for that is when you do polls to test potential messages, messengers and ads, gay people don't test that well. Turns out we're unpopular," Fleischer said. "When you let people choose chocolate ice cream, or chocolate ice cream with added gay, people choose chocolate ice cream! ... I just summarized millions of dollars of research done for these campaigns."
Fleisher warned Minnesotans United to prepare a response to the inevitable ads the other side would bombard voters with in the final weeks of the campaign. Ads run by marriage amendment supporters in other states warned of young children being taught about gay marriage in school, stoking a visceral fear in many parents. Twenty days before the election, Minnesota for Marriage released the ads Minnesotans United had been waiting for, and Minnesotans United pounced.
They'd pre-bought a million dollars' worth of ad time. They hoped the conversations with real people would inoculate voters from the power of the ads. They prepared a rapid-response team. One of Gov. Dayton's communications staffers was on loan to fact-check ad claims and push the information out to the media. Clergy United spoke out against claims in the ad. Several media, including MPR News, fact-checked the claims and found them misleading.
...When it came to claims about children, the Vote No coalition helped to neutralize Minnesota for Marriage's arguments by having the Minnesota Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics in its corner.
THE AD CAMPAIGN
The strategy behind the one-on-one conversations also played a part in the campaign's advertising.
Both had expert help from Phyllis Watts, a California psychologist who advised the Minnesota United campaign.
...Watts says voters don't see same-sex marriage as a political issue, but more as a question of values: "And they're struggling with competing values. And one set of values is tradition. ... you know, 'this is just the way it's always been.'
... And then another set of values, which is important and equally compelling for them, and that is to do right by others, to genuinely treat others fairly ... which is a pretty deep value in most people. And quite frankly, in Minnesotans, I think very, very deep."
Watts helped Minnesotans United put together an ad campaign to try to win over these conflicted voters.
"A lot of times what people need is to hear from folks that they can identify with who have long-term marriages, solid marriages, good marriages, have kids, and who say, I'm voting no on this and here's why."
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