The Permanent Campaign

This is the archive page for The Permanent Campaign, which is no longer actively sending. Sarah Isgur, a veteran of national campaigns and the hard-knocks world of political communications, provided insight into strategy and mechanics of political campaigns with some behind-the-scenes flavor along the way.

By signing up with your email, you agree to The Dispatch’s privacy policy

The Sweep: Watching the Weathervanes

Reading the tea leaves on where the GOP is heading.

and

The Mop-Up, with Chris Stirewalt

Dissecting calls for the GOP to become a 'workers' party.'

The Sweep: Will RoJo Stay or Will He Go?

Plus: The lessons Republicans are drawing from the final results of House elections.

and

The Mop-Up, with Dan Sena

Talking to an expert on the earliest stages of campaign formation.

The Sweep: Mommy, How Are Candidates Made?

Before the horse race starts, you need your horses.

and

The Sweep: A Taste of 2024 Strategy

A (satirical) peek behind the presidential positioning curtain.

The Sweep: Campaigning in the Biden Era

A quick look back and an early look forward to 2021, 2022, and a hint of 2024.

The Sweep: Insurrection Mailbag Edition

This is a campaign newsletter. But inherent in any discussion of campaigns is self-government. What ...

The Sweep: Democrats Take the Senate, but For How Long?

Plus, a look ahead to the 2022 Senate map.

The Sweep: Redistricting Wars Begin

Plus, a few notes on the Georgia Senate elections.

The Late-Week Mop-Up With Alice Stewart

A campaign veteran turned pundit goes down to Georgia.

The Sweep: Back to the Future

A look ahead at the limited electoral docket of 2021.

Late Week Mop-Up with Baoky Vu

Talking Georgia politics with a DeKalb County elections official.

and

The Sweep: Georgia Heats Up

And the Kraken runs out of ocean.

and

Late-Week Mop Up with Doug Heye

Talking Georgia with the Republican National Committee's former comms director.

The Sweep: The 2020 Election in Seven Graphics

Now that the dust has settled a bit, it's time to pick through the data.