SITUATION
In New Hampshire, Senator Maggie Hassan sought re–election to a second term in the U.S. Senate
against challenger Don Bolduc. In 2016, Hassan had won by just 1,017 votes, representing the tightest
margin of any Senate race that cycle.
SOLUTION
Guided by GQR’s research the Hassan campaign made the decision to fortify Senator Hassan’s brand in a clear, positive way with disciplined and consistent communications.
GQR’s research also helped the Hassan campaign:
- Ensure communications matched the mood of the electorate. GQR’s early research assessed the mood of the electorate as uneasy and pessimistic. To match the mood, the campaign adopted a tone with more urgency and edge that conveyed Hassan taking on tough fights and adversaries — including big pharma and China — and winning.
- Maintain a strong economic focus. The campaign understood the importance of talking about the economy throughout the cycle. The campaign highlighted Hassan’s fiscal accountability, her advocacy for small businesses and her accomplishments of lowering the cost of prescription drugs and banning surprise medical billing.
- Counter the main attacks on Hassan without sacrificing the main frame of the campaign. The campaign countered the main attacks on Hassan including being too close to Biden, inflation and taxes, in a way that did enough to minimize the impact of these attacks without deviating from the main frame of the campaign.
- Deliver a focused critique on Bolduc. Abortion was the central issue, but was not the only issue as the case against Bolduc was built on a small set of specific issues that mattered to the people of New Hampshire including: abortion, Social Security and Medicare and prescription drugs.
This strategy helped Hassan achieve a commanding win with 54 percent of the vote.