District Campaign Allows Time to Reach More Voters

PALM SPRINGS – Mayor Pro Tem Geoff Kors, elected to serve a four-year term on the Palm Springs City Council in November 2015, is the only one of 10 candidates running in the city’s first district-based elections on Nov. 5 to have run both an at-large campaign and a district campaign.

There is a marked difference.

Kors is seeking the District 3 seat. He has two challengers: Alan P. “Alfie” Pettit and Michael Dilger.

When he ran four years ago, Kors was the top vote-getter in a six-person race. He grabbed 7,377 votes, just shy of 37% of the votes cast.

In District 3, there are fewer registered voters than the number of votes Kors received in the last election. As of Sept. 30, there are 5,035 in District 3, according to City Clerk Anthony Mejia. The District extends from Vista Chino to Ramon Road and includes a majority of downtown Palm Springs.

That’s one major difference between a district campaign and an at-large campaign.

“I will reach a larger percentage of voters through my phone calling and door knocking in my district because door knocking takes a lot of time,” Kors told Uken Report. “Doing it citywide, you reach a much smaller percentage.”

Due to a smaller percentage of voters needed to reach, Kors is not relying on television ads for his District campaign.

“I don’t think you can reach a sufficient number of voters given you now have 80% fewer voters in your district than you did citywide,” Kors said. “To spend money on television ads is a lot less effective than it was when I ran an at-large campaign.”

To run a district campaign, Kors has spent to date $65,020, according to his latest campaign statement filed Sept. 26. To date, he reported $104,600  in total contributions.

In 2015, Kors reported total contributions of $239,000 and spent $209,000,, according to his campaign statement filed on Dec. 31, 2015.

For his district campaign this year, Kors held only one fundraiser.

“I am hugely gratified by the response to my re-election and the support I have received from hundreds of individuals,” Kors said. “The only fundraiser that I held was in March and I will not hold any additional fundraisers. The early support has enabled me to focus my time on house parties, town halls and speaking with residents and hearing their ideas and concerns.”

That’s about where the differences begin end. Kors is following the winning strategy that propelled him to victory before: hard work, shoe leather, and listening,

Kors has held at least two dozen of his “Conversation with Geoff” events. Seven have been held – or will be held – this month alone. They have attracted as few as 20 people and as many as 140 people and everything in between. No matter the number, they are intimate conversations where there is a healthy exchange of ideas and brainstorming.

At the popular “Conversation with Geoff” events, he might talk about one or two issues, then he opens it up for dialogue, Kors said.

“People can ask anything they want or share ideas that they want,” Kors said. “There’s the ability for us to go back and forth or have other people jump in on a subject.”

Kors has also opened an official headquarters office in the heart of District 3. It is located at 270 N. Palm Canyon Drive. He employs many of the tried-and-true campaign strategies, including mailers, door-to- visits, phone banks, and more.

 

To the outsider looking in, he gives the impression he’s running as though he’s at least 10 or more points behind his competitors.

“I won’t take a single vote for granted,” Kors said. “I find campaigns provide a great opportunity to interact with residents and business owners to hear their concerns, to get ideas that will all make me more effective in my work. It’s about running a smart, strong campaign, being accessible, and doing the work. And, like last time, I’m running a very positive campaign. That’s how I always run. That’s what I think people of Palm Springs want and what they deserve.”