What Is The Importance Of Grassroots Organizing In A Presidential Campaign

Everything you never knew about what is the importance of grassroots organizing in a presidential campaign, from its obscure origins to the surprising ways it shapes the world today.

The 1972 presidential campaign of George McGovern is often cited as the watershed moment that cemented the importance of grassroots organizing in modern American politics. McGovern's relentless army of passionate volunteers, many of them college students, managed to secure the Democratic nomination despite being massively outspent by establishment candidates like Hubert Humphrey.

Though McGovern would go on to suffer a historically lopsided defeat against Richard Nixon in the general election, his campaign proved that a scrappy, bottom-up movement could overcome the top-down power of party bosses and moneyed interests. In the wake of McGovern's loss, the Democratic Party would make sweeping reforms to its nominating process, further empowering grassroots activists and diluting the influence of backroom deal-makers.

The Rise of the New Left

To understand the significance of McGovern's achievement, it's important to situate his campaign within the broader context of the 1960s. The decade saw the rise of a vibrant "New Left" movement, comprised of young activists who were deeply disillusioned with the Democratic establishment's cautious incrementalism and perceived complicity in the Vietnam War.

Figures like Students for a Democratic Society and The Weather Underground represented a militant, revolutionary wing of this movement, but the McGovern campaign tapped into a more mainstream, reformist strain. By harnessing the energy of anti-war students and other disaffected constituencies, McGovern was able to assemble a coalition that briefly threatened to upend the party's old guard.

"The establishment, the media, and the political power structure didn't know what hit them. We came out of nowhere and struck a blow that sent shock waves through the country." - Gary Hart, McGovern's campaign manager

The Lasting Impact

Though McGovern's general election defeat was a major setback, the impact of his campaign can still be felt in presidential politics today. The rise of small-dollar, online fundraising exemplified by the Obama 2008 campaign and Sanders 2016 campaign can be traced back to the McGovern model of grassroots mobilization.

Moreover, the empowerment of activist-driven factions within the Democratic Party has reshaped the party's ideology and policy priorities, with issues like the Green New Deal and Medicare for All gaining prominence in recent years. Even mainstream Democratic candidates like Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden have been forced to incorporate grassroots-friendly elements into their campaigns.

The Limits of Grassroots Power

Of course, the story of grassroots organizing in presidential campaigns is not one of unmitigated success. The McGovern campaign's landslide defeat against Nixon demonstrated the challenges of translating activist enthusiasm into electoral victory at the national level. And in more recent cycles, well-funded, establishment-backed candidates have often prevailed over their scrappier, outsider opponents.

Moreover, the decentralized, bottom-up nature of grassroots organizing can sometimes make it difficult to translate campaign energy into effective governing. The Obama administration, for example, was often criticized for failing to harness the full potential of its vaunted field operation once in office.

Nonetheless, the lasting impact of the McGovern campaign, and the broader populist insurgencies it has inspired, cannot be denied. Grassroots organizing has fundamentally reshaped the landscape of American politics, empowering new voices and challenging the dominance of entrenched interests. The precise extent of its influence may be debated, but its importance is undeniable.

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