Blocks with Letters on them that spell "I quit" on person's hand
Campaign troubles? Know when to quit?
Every campaign experiences turmoil. Do you know when to throw in the towel?

 

After watching last night’s returns from the Virginia governor race, we thought it would be wise to answer the question: When does it make sense for a candidate to hang it up and throw in the towel in their race?

 

The answer: NEVER.  Like NEVER EVER EVER.

 

For weeks, national media and pundits have said that the Virginia governor race was over and that Democrat Terry McAuliffe would run away with the race for Governor in the historical swing state.  In fact, polling as recently as last weekend showed McAuliffe up as much as 14 points.

 

The result? A three point win for McAuliffe.  The pollsters flat out missed this one, and that happens.

 

These results show that no matter what your friends and family say, no matter what your campaign staff may say, and no matter what even your polls say, you should work until the very end. There are plenty of historical examples that prove political prognosticators often get it wrong.

 

Don't let media reports and public polls derail your campaign effort.
Despite what they want us to believe, pollsters and media often flub campaign predictions.

 

It is never too late to be raising money or turning out the vote.  You must fight until the very end, every time.

 

Over the years, we’ve seen a number of candidates pull up just short of the finish line.  Last year, we even had an opponent leave his state to attend a  conference on Election Day, because he thought he had won.  He was wrong.

 

Why would you work hard until the very end and then quit? It doesn’t make sense.

 

Talking heads on the national news networks will try to draw a lot of insights out of the Virginia governor race about the state of the nation’s political environment.

 

But there’s really only one lesson candidates should focus on: Finish the race. Every time.

 

And if campaign turmoil is getting you down, here’s something to keep you inspired.