novelnext Chapter 43 How to run for office?
Chapter 43 How to run for office?
In the temporary office, a long silence fell after Leo announced his candidacy for mayor.
Frank and Sarah were both stunned by this earth-shattering decision.
The excitement gradually cooled down after a few minutes.
Sarah was the first to speak, her brow furrowed.
"Leo, I don't mean to discourage you, but do we really know how to run for mayor of Pittsburgh?"
"I mean, look at what we have now."
"You are just a history graduate student and an executive member of a peripheral department. Our funding, apart from that federal fund that can only be used for construction, is almost zero. We only have a few people and a team of volunteers."
"This is simply an impossible task."
Her tone softened, and a complex emotion flickered in her eyes.
"And, Leo... I have to ask you something."
"Did you bring up this idea because of the argument Frank and I had last night?"
"I know that finding a common enemy is the best way to divert attention from internal conflicts, but I don't want us to be like that. I don't want you to use such a crazy decision to cover up the real problems between us."
Frank listened to Sarah's words and, unusually, did not refute them.
He looked away from the wall and at Leo, saying in a deep voice, "Sarah is right, kid. Don't let our argument lead you to impulsively challenge the mayor. It's not worth it."
"I understand protesting in the streets and mobilizing my brothers in the union to vote, but a real mayoral election is another matter. There are too many intricacies and rules involved, and we are all laymen."
They all looked at Leo, waiting for his answer.
Leo did not answer their questions directly.
He simply leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, as if sorting out his thoughts.
In fact, his consciousness was communicating with Roosevelt.
"Mr. President, am I qualified to run for mayor?" Leo asked.
Roosevelt's voice echoed in his mind, full of power.
"Qualifications? Kid, in American political elections, qualifications are never determined by your resume on paper, but by the unique narrative you can offer to the voters!"
"Open a history book and you'll find it full of the most deserving losers."
"In 1860, William Seward had a king-like resume. He was governor, a senator, and the undisputed leader of the Republican Party. Everyone thought he was a shoo-in for victory, but what happened?"
"He lost to a rural lawyer from Illinois, Abraham Lincoln."
"What did Lincoln have? Only a mediocre term as a congressman and two unsuccessful campaigns for senator. But Lincoln had a narrative that Seward could not have—he was the fence-breaker."
"What is the narrative of the current mayor, Cartwright? He is an experienced, steady, and reliable administrator."
"This narrative might have worked in times of peace and prosperity, but in today's Pittsburgh, a city filled with unemployment and despair, it only makes him seem like an out-of-touch, detached old man."
"And what is your narrative?" Roosevelt countered. "You are a young man abandoned by this corrupt system, but you did not give up. You rose again from among the people and, with your wisdom and courage, brought tangible changes to them."
"You are an outsider, a challenger, and a doer."
"Now tell me, Leo, which narrative resonates more deeply in Pittsburgh today?"
Leo opened his eyes.
He looked at his two companions and reorganized Roosevelt's theory of "narrative" in his own words.
"Sarah, Frank, you're both right."
"My resume is a mess, our money is pitifully small, and our team is ridiculously small. From the perspective of any traditional political analyst, our challenge to Cartwright is a suicidal attack that is bound to fail."
"But that is precisely our greatest advantage."
He stood up, his voice becoming stronger.
"What is Cartwright's story? He would tell voters that he served as mayor for eight years, was experienced, had a wide network of connections, and was a reliable and stable administrator."
"This story sounds good, but it has a fatal flaw—it can't explain why unemployment is still rising in our South Pittsburgh community under the leadership of this 'experienced manager'? Why our roads are still full of potholes? Why do our children still have to do their homework in a run-down community center?"
"His experience is worthless in the face of the real suffering felt by the people. His prudence is, in the eyes of the people, merely a synonym for 'inaction.'"
Leo turned to Sarah and Frank.
"And what is our story?"
"Our story is about how a young man abandoned by this corrupt system rose up again from among the people."
"Our story is about a group of forgotten old workers who rose up to defend their homeland."
"Our story is about how we used our wisdom and courage to take back the money that rightfully belonged to the people of Pittsburgh from those bureaucrats in Washington!"
"Cartwright is talking to voters about his past achievements, while we are showing voters a future they can actually touch!"
"Sarah, Frank, tell me, in Pittsburgh today, which story resonates most deeply?"
Frank and Sarah both fell silent.
They looked at Leo, the confusion and worry on their faces gradually fading, replaced by a renewed excitement and hope.
Leo continued, "Our ongoing Pittsburgh Regeneration Project is our best story. We're not making empty promises to voters about the future; we're showing them the future we're creating with our own hands through every new road we build and every new park we construct."
"We're not just talking, we're doing."
“Okay, even if our story is more compelling than his,” Sarah pressed, “then what about the money? A mayoral election requires at least several million dollars. Cartwright has Morganfield and those construction oligarchs behind him who can fund him, but what about us? Where are we going to find the money?”
"Now let's talk about money, which is the most practical and crucial issue." Roosevelt's voice in his mind became serious.
"In American political elections, there are only a few sources of funding."
"The first, and most common, is money politics from big corporations and the wealthy. Cartwright took this path; his campaign coffers were overflowing with checks from Morganfield and those construction oligarchs."
"This path is impassable, and we must never take it."
"The second option is to rely on the support of political parties."
"Leo, you have an ally in Washington, John Murphy, who will open doors for you to those progressive political action committees."
"Those organizations have a lot of money, and they are always looking for political upstarts to invest in. This is a channel that we can and must utilize, as it can provide the initial fuel for our engine."
Roosevelt paused for a moment, then said, "But you must remember that this fuel carries its own weight and expectations; it can help us get started, but it must never be the cornerstone of this edifice."
"The third option is for the candidate to pay out of their own pocket. Obviously, Leo, this path is irrelevant to us, unless you suddenly find yourself to be some oil tycoon's forgotten illegitimate son."
Leo gave a wry smile to himself.
"Therefore, our true path lies in relying on small donations from tens of thousands of ordinary people."
Roosevelt's voice became powerful.
"People think that using small donations to combat money politics is a product of the modern internet age. No, kid, that's something I've been doing for ages."
"When I ran for re-election in 1936, the entire wealthy class in the country hated me to the core, and the Republican Party's campaign funds were virtually unlimited."
"The DuPont family, the Morgan family, the Rockefeller family, all those bankers and industrial oligarchs I had offended, kept sending money to my rivals."
"My campaign manager was a genius named James Farley, and guess what he did? He bypassed all those traditional political donation channels and went straight to ordinary people across the country to raise money."
He appealed to the farmers, workers, and small shop owners who supported him, saying, "One dollar is not too little, five dollars is not too much. What we need is not your money, but your support."
"I still remember clearly a letter in the report that Farley showed me," Roosevelt said, his voice tinged with warmth.
"That letter came from an ordinary farmer in Oklahoma. He had almost lost everything in the black dust storm that swept across the Midwest; his farm was destroyed, and his family was starving."
"But he still sent us a dollar in the envelope."
"In his letter, he wrote: 'Mr. President, this is the last money I have in my pocket, but I am willing to donate it to you because I believe that only you can lead us out of this damn predicament.'"
Roosevelt paused for a moment.
"My son, remember this: in an election, a dollar from that farmer carries far more weight than a check for ten thousand dollars from the Morgan family."
"Because behind that $10,000 check is just a cold, hard exchange of interests, while behind that $1 ballot is a living, breathing person, a citizen who will go to the polling station on election day, rain or shine, to cast his sacred vote."
Looking at Frank and Sarah, who were worried about the funding problem, Leo said, "We are not alone."
"We also have an ally in Washington, Congressman John Murphy, and my victory is crucial for him to consolidate his political position in Pittsburgh."
"I will seek his support. He will help us open up funding channels to those progressive political action committees, and this money can serve as fuel for our campaign."
Frank interrupted him: "Wait, Leo. You said you were going to seek Murphy's support? Have you forgotten what happened at the victory celebration?"
"His campaign manager, Karen, tried to poach me and Sarah right in front of you! That was definitely Murphy's doing; he never had good intentions from the start. He wanted to break up our team!"
Sarah nodded as well; though she didn't say anything, her expression clearly showed that she agreed with Frank's view.
"Frank, you're absolutely right." Leo's calm reply surprised them. "Karen did what Murphy did with 99% of her permission. Of course, he wanted to break us up and then incorporate us one by one into his own system."
"Then why should we go looking for him? Isn't that just walking into a trap?" Frank was even more puzzled.
"Quite the opposite," Leo said. "It is precisely because they tried and failed that we now have the leverage to negotiate with them."
He looked at Frank and Sarah.
"Think about it, Karen offered you a high-level position in the AFL-CIO and a five-figure salary job in Washington—temptations that most people couldn't resist. But what did you do?"
"Frank, you refused on the spot. Sarah, although you hesitated, you ultimately chose to stay here, to stay in our dilapidated shack."
"Murphy saw all of this. It proved one thing to him: our little team has a loyalty that money and status cannot buy."
"We are not a mob hastily assembled for personal gain; we are a truly committed fighting force."
"In the eyes of a seasoned politician like Murphy, who has been in politics for decades, a loyal and efficient team like ours is the rarest and most valuable political asset in the world."
"He knew he could no longer use those small favors to divide us, so he was left with only one option—to choose to cooperate more deeply with our entire team and invest in us as an equal ally."
"That's politics, Frank," Leo said, his tone turning serious. "You have to accept its rules. Many times, the only way to earn your opponent's respect is to show him your fangs and your unshakeable unity."
He paused, his tone becoming more serious.
"But you must remember that this money from Washington must not be the main force in our battle; it can only be icing on the cake, not a lifeline."
"Our primary source of campaign funds can only come from the thousands of ordinary citizens who support us, from their spontaneous small donations."
Leo shared with Frank and Sarah the concept of "small donations" and the true political significance behind those four words.
This is not a simple fundraising method; it is a ritual that establishes a close connection with the people.