The general media establishment often treats odd years as a political lull. And while it’s true that 2023 brought no major nationwide elections, the United Police Fund kept its ongoing battle to defend the police.
One of the most critical campaigns focused on Virginia, where a series of Senate seats were up for grabs. While we are still awaiting the final turnout results, we can already see where United Police Fund and its supporters helped secure a BIG win.
About The Campaign Plan
Between October and early November 2023, the United Police Fund ran an aggressive expressed advocacy campaign in two key districts in Northern Virginia.
The campaign aimed to mobilize pro-police voters, rallying behind two police-friendly candidates: Juan Pablo Segura and JD Diggs.
To do this, the campaigns started with a simple message: It’s time to DEFEND the Police, not defund it. The message was prominently displayed across social media.
Two alternative, location-targeted ads were also launched during the same period, showcasing JD Diggs and Juan Pablo Segura. To continue evoking the same ideals and spirit, each candidate’s text, fonts, and color schemes remained consistent.
Simultaneously, we sent a press release, which the Associated Press and other local agencies picked up.
Finally, during the last days before the election, we also launched an IVR call spree and mass MMS campaign, reminding voters of the importance of their vote.
United Police Fund here.
Our records show that you DID NOT participate in recent CRITICAL elections in Virginia.
If you care about stopping crime and ensuring that our police are funded, PLEASE VOTE for GOP candidate Juan Pablo Segura for Virginia Senate on November 7th.
Can I count on your vote this time? Reply YES or HELP if you need help voting. Reply STOP to end.
Where Was the Action?
The campaign targeted two key senate districts:
- Senate District 31, between Arlington, Fairfax, and Loudoun.
- Senate District 24, in Shenandoah Valley.
Both districts had been flagged as a “toss-up” ahead of this year’s state Senatorial election. In addition to a similar population size (about 150,000 voters each), both had a relatively large population of disengaged voters and saw staunchly anti-police Democrats aiming for their Senate seats.
With that said, each jurisdiction also came with a different challenge.
A Democrat candidate, Barbara Favola, held Senate District 031. We aimed to help a conservative takeover, positioning Republican Juan Pablo Segura as Favola’s urgent replacement.
Meanwhile, District 024 was already in “friendly” hands and held by Emmet Hanger. However, after he decided against running for re-election, the seat was left open for two new candidates: Republican J.D. Diggs and Democrat T. Monty Mason.
What Was United Police Fund’s Position?
In both cases, the Democrat contestants had either expressed their support for the “defunding” movement or had supported initiatives to curtail police action. Therefore, for the United Police Fund, it was imperative to get friendly voices heard.
This time, United Police Fund openly supported the chosen candidates – Segura and Diggs. As the state’s crime rates continue to escalate, we need the support of as many people as possible. In this way, citizens concerned about their safety and security could rest easy again.
Who Were The Voters?
To tap into an impactful section of the electorate, United Police Fund designed the campaign around pro-police low-propensity voters in Virginia. This translated into:
- Non-registered voters and registered voters who had not voted in the last off-year elections
- Who had listed crime and police issues as one of their urgent or high-priority issues
- Largely, who identified as Deeply or Extremely Conservative
In SD 031, 11,312 voters were identified from 8,635 residences. Meanwhile, in SD 024, 25,409 potential voters were identified across 19,163 residences.
Results: A Difficult Triumph
The 2023 off-year elections in Virginia were a difficult race for conservatives nationwide. And yet, United Police Fund can still see this experience as a triumph and a learning opportunity.
Currently, United Police Fund does not have access to the final turnout statistics yet. We expect these to be released in February 2024 (expect a follow-up report on that!). However, we can still extrapolate our impact by looking at the certified results in each jurisdiction.
In SD 024, our initiative played a decisive role in making J.D. Diggs a Senator-Elect. The former Sheriff has a tried-and-tested trajectory of supporting local Police Departments.
Unfortunately, in SD 031, Segura could not take Favola’s seat. And yet, the tighter race will surely serve as a powerful reminder of where the people’s hearts lie.
