Back in DC After Campaign Loss?... 4 Basics to Getting Back Out There

The truth about Washington: You're always working for yourself

“Jeez… now what”? Image: DALL-E

So, you’re a 20-something and just lost a GOP or Democratic Senate, House or gubernatorial race. Maybe you’re a young Harris-Walz staffer back in town after working a battleground state.

Regardless, you just made that long shlep back to D.C. in your high-mileage vehicle replete with fast food debris, campaign paraphernalia, and other grim reminders you’re basically broke, unemployed, and now questioning a future working campaigns.

Yeah, it sucks.

But all is not lost — trust me. Been there, done that — more than once.

If you’re just one of those hardcores determined to make a living in this business — and maybe open your own campaign shop down the road — the odds are that you’ll probably go down the tubes again — in a primary, general election, or both — before catching that game-changing career break with a big winner.

OK — So now what?

Despite your loss and light wallet, pat yourself on the back. Your skills repertoire advanced more that you currently realize by investing in yourself. I spent all my 20s rolling those hot — sometimes not — campaign dice.

After a win? Sky’s the limit — and a happy, upbeat holiday season considering your options after taking a trip somewhere sunny… with umbrella-topped stirrers in your rum cocktail. (More on this in a future piece; seriously speaking, your best play after defeating an incumbent or winning an open seat is investing a year (good) or two (better) in a Capitol Hill legislative, communications or administrative job. It’s money in the bank experience before resuming your campaign quest.)

What do I recall most about a campaign loss in my 20s? Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday angst. Cash is short, bills pile up, and staying upbeat among friends and family is challenging.

If you’re determined to head back out on the campaign trail next year — not just give up — take a look at the 2025 gubernatorial races in Virginia and New Jersey and the primaries that develop. Both states feature high-profile off-year races drawing the best talent, big money and lots of attention — real proving grounds for upwardly mobile strivers. Staffing for the most competitive 2026 Senate races will begin developing as early as late winter through early summer of 2025 — just 4-6 months from now. And notably, the special U.S. House election to succeed Trump U.N.-delegate nominee Elise Stefanik (R-NY) is already drawing attention with staffing needs imminent.

Campaign job opportunities are already in the offing — the most resourceful are already making moves. Don’t listen to those saying wait until the New Year…

4 basics to consider if heading back out to a campaign after a loss:

First and foremost—You're always working for yourself

This isn't about being selfish -- it's about becoming self-sufficient.

Teamwork and knowing how to effectively collaborate with others is fundamental to getting ahead in Washington or anywhere else. But in Washington, especially, never think or hope anyone will care about your professional plight and financial well being as much as you do.

The idea here is to never become too (or completely) dependent on just one individual, lawmaker, or one consulting/lobbying firm for help.   

A mentor -- or a mentoring firm -- is great.

But even the biggest firms in DC today merge, fail, or otherwise cease to exist tomorrow. When things go wrong it's every man and woman for themselves. And nothing makes this more crystal clear than arriving back in DC after losing a campaign. The “acquaintances” and “friends” you’d counted on previously don’t get back to you as quickly — if at all.

And be mindful that if you do win a campaign job because a DC or in-state consultant hooked you up — and have no existing rapport with the candidate — you’re far more vulnerable to being jettisoned if that consultant or firm is later canned. Volatility rules. Your insurance policy? Once you secure a job — by any means — just be damn good at what you do, mind your business, and make day-in-and-day-out job performance the sole metric by which you’re judged.

The bottom line to the “you’re always working for yourself” mindset is embracing self-sufficiency and expertise development in a manner that sustains your ability to gain employment vis-a-vis the competition — no matter what happens.

Second — Invest your time and effort becoming a specialist

Investing in your own professional and financial independence by specializing — and becoming expert in one or two related high skill areas — is essential.

This can begin immediately by tweaking your resume/bio to really zero-in and spotlight your expertise. In my case, for example, I started as a House press secretary in a New York City metro district — working primarily to develop my spokesperson and on-the-record skills. Both, obviously, are vital.

Yes, there’s a certain allure when you first see your name in print, and do a few on-camera stand-ups with New York City TV affiliates. But as I looked to bigger campaign opportunities I realized it was far more important to really develop core competencies you that you knew you were as good at, or better than, anyone else seeking a particular campaign job.

I objectively accepted the fact that while solid with reporters on the record via phone, there were better, more effective "naturals" with extrovert personalities for on-camera work. I was okay; I was proficient. But mere proficiency isn’t good enough. My expertise developed more on the communications strategy and writing side of the business — both of which proved highly marketable later in the private sector.   

Becoming an expert in one core discipline — fundraising, opposition research, media production, rapid response, GOTV operations, digital communications — and sub-genres of each -- is the way to go. Unless you’re a higher-end GC (general consultant) basically in charge of everything, the very last thing you want to be is an average "jack of all trades" where you’re marketing 8 or 10 skills.

I'll also note as an aside that you're not going to really develop skills and "live" expertise at any of the growing number of inside the Beltway "campaign academies" or "campaign schools." Learning the ropes in the field — under live fire — is the only way to hone skills.

“Fake it ‘till you make it” is total B.S. and not applicable in the campaign business.

Third — Don't make your next campaign move based solely on money

When assessing campaign job opportunities, the most important variable isn't the money -- it's how much a potential position will push you, expand your boundaries, and help you compete at progressively higher skill levels.

Going back to my example of first working as a GOP House press secretary, my ambition vastly exceeded both my skill level and political connections.

I had my eye on stepping up to work as a New Hampshire presidential primary campaign press secretary. Why? I knew the state well and thought it would be really challenging making a leap from the House to a presidential. In my House press job, I’d get maybe 5 calls weekly from the media. I wanted to get 20 or more per day. I wanted more rapid-paced action.

I was also addicted to The McLaughlin Group — and certain I’d have the opportunity to deal with two of my journalistic heroes, Bob Novak and Jack Germond. That was good enough reason for me to aim higher.

At the time, V.P. George H.W. Bush, Sen. Bob Dole (R-KS) and Rep. Jack Kemp (R-NY) were the 3 top tier 1988 GOP primary candidates. While able to get an interview with all 3 campaigns it was quickly apparent the job I wanted wasn’t going to happen. Nevertheless, I drove to New Hampshire to see all of the GOP presidential aspirants speak at an RNC gathering — including long shot candidates like former Delaware Gov. Pierre “Pete” du Pont, and former Sec. of State Al Haig.

With his libertarian-oriented viewpoints, I became intrigued by du Pont. Long story short, I wandered into the sparsely-attended du Pont hospitality suite, chatted up the small campaign team, and ended up securing the du Pont NH press secretary gig about a month later. One catch: The pay. It was half as much as I was making as a House press secretary.

The result? It was the best professional move I made in my 20s. Despite coming in 4th behind Bush, Dole and Kemp the opportunity to compete at the presidential level, getting to know and engage marquis national reporters, and make invaluable contacts that helped me later, made it all worth it. And despite not buying my spin that du Pont would supplant Jack Kemp as the “conservative alternative” to Bush and Dole, I did have drinks multiple times with Bob Novak and Jack Germond to pursue business. Loved it.

Bottom line: take a lower paying job for a bigger, higher skill level opportunity. It’s only temporary.

Fourth, be nimble, flexible and ready to move quickly… Even consider just “showing up”…

Earlier this year, I saved this short but excellent piece by Eric Wilson of Bullpen Technology Group entitled, “How to Get a Job on a Political Campaign in 2024.”

Why? He rightly mentions one key way to get a campaign job: JUST SHOW UP.

Campaigns have a lot of people offering to help out but very few actually follow through and put in the work. The fastest way to set yourself apart – and get a job – is to show up. Get to a campaign event an hour before it starts, say "yes" to the Saturday door knocking shift, or spend some time helping around campaign HQ.

Find a way to offer hands-on help and make life easier for the campaign staff. Don’t wait for an invitation because campaigners are often too busy to reach out. 

From what I’ve seen over and over and over, new stars are discovered and “made” every election cycle when the hardest working, smartest, most reliable volunteers with the best attitudes prove themselves time and again — and move to paid status.

It’s also the case — over and over — that SO many sons and daughters of wealthy contributors with paid jobs secured by mom or dad are eventually supplanted by these rising star volunteers who will not be denied due to their work ethic, talent, positivity and “happy to do anything” approach to getting ahead. That’s how I got my first paid campaign job. For those who say, “yeah — but that was a long time ago” I say that’s a cop out. If you want something bad enough you find a way to make it happen. And volunteers moving to paid status still happens every cycle.

One final thought:

Like a sports team, you might be just one of 20, 30, 40 or more campaign staffers. You can be an obvious star, lose the race, and be back on the street where you started. But you want to be that individual everyone knows is excellent at what you do and think, yeah, I’d like to work with that person again.

If you can be that person, you’ll win in the end no matter what you choose to do.