The Campaign Manager’s Playbook: What’s Needed When and Why

This page is the campaign’s playbook. Refer to it regularly.

Winning campaigns are built on strategy, not luck. This one document is the backbone of that strategy, the framework that keeps a candidate and their team aligned from filing day through Election Day. Without it, campaigns lose focus and chase distractions. With it, every decision, every action, every dollar spent advances the mission. This is the single most important document your campaign will rely on.

In North Carolina, for example, 2026 election candidates’ filing period begins 12pm (noon) Monday, December 1, 2025 and ends 12pm (noon) Friday, December 19, 2025.

This weekly itinerary provides the structure that keeps the campaign disciplined and moving forward from the moment of filing to the final vote on Election Day. This is not a rigid script, since no campaign ever unfolds exactly as expected. Instead, it is a flexible guide that helps you adapt without losing momentum. It’s the tool that allows you to prioritize what matters, stay focused under pressure, and execute with purpose when the stakes are highest.

Important note about this itinerary: While it is flexible, many of the steps are essential to running a successful campaign. The pace of the calendar will get busy, and it is normal to miss a task here and there. If that happens, move the missed item to the top of your priority list and keep going. If too many items are pushed aside, the campaign will start to suffer later on, so do your best to stay on top of them. 

Be sure to bookmark this page and use it for reference. Additional tips and tactics will be added regularly. 

T-Minus Week 4 (four weeks before filing)

Confirm candidate eligibility (residency, registration, district lines). Refile voter registration with party of choice selected. Research filing deadlines, fees, and forms. This is when you decide this is something you really want to do.

T-Minus Week 3-1

Recruit core team, campaign manager and treasurer. These two people are the two most important people on your team. Recruiting to fill these two positions should happen simultaneously. Sometimes the political party you’re affiliated with can refer you to a seasoned campaign treasurer or manager.
As soon as you’ve decided on a treasurer, go down to the Board of Elections and form your committee. There will be forms to fill just for the committee. Individuals who work there will help you out. Forming the committee isn’t your filing for candidacy, but allows you to raise funds and collect money before the actual filing.

Week 1 (Filing as a Candidate)

Although the campaign committee may already be formed to raise funds, election rules only give candidates a limited number of days to file as a candidate. Check with your local Board of Elections well in advance so you know when this filing period is and what the filing fee is for the office the candidate is seeking. It’s also good to know what they’ll be requiring you to provide at the time of filing, so it’s recommended to take a visit to the local Board of Elections office weeks in advance of filing.

IMPORTANT: If the candidate is planning to run for office where there will be a primary, be certain that the candidate has been registered within the party for the required amount of time before the filing date; otherwise, the candidate may not qualify to file under the banner of that party. In North Carolina, candidates must be registered with that party for a minimum of 90 days prior to filing as a candidate. I have seen a candidate get bumped to ‘Independent’ status because they weren’t a Republican long enough at the time of filing.

File Statement of Organization (CRO-2100A) and designate treasurer. File Notice of Candidacy and pay filing fee at the county or state board of elections. Complete Campaign Committee Certification, Candidate Designation of Funds, and Statement of Economic Interest (if required). Ensure all campaign finance paperwork is submitted within deadlines.

Week 2

Build three campaign messaging pillars (platform planks), budget (vote goal, budget, messaging pillars). Greenlight branding styles (logos are not recommended); order business cards with website address on it (can’t emphasize this enough); and, have minimal version of website published with ability to accept donations — continue to build-out and refine website as the campaign evolves.

The Primary Campaign

As soon as the candidate files, the Primary Season begins for most candidates. Primary campaigns vary in length from state to state. It’s crucial that a campaign manager understands how long this election cycle is. In North Carolina, for example, candidate filing for the 2026 elections begins December 1, 2025 and closes December 19, and election day for the primary is Tuesday, March 3, 2026. And, early voting for primaries begins on Tuesday, February 12th. Plus, to make matters even more complex, there could be a runoff election after the primary if thresholds aren’t met and there isn’t a clear winner.

Since the candidate filing period immediately precedes Christmas-New Year holidays, it’ll be difficult to accomplish much. People don’t get back into the groove of their normal schedule until after the second week in January (usually after January 10th). With that in mind, it’s best to file early as a challenger candidate so to get a jump on fundraising efforts.

If the Primary is such where there are more candidates than seats available, this election needs to be treated just as an important election as the General Election. Why? Because if the candidate does not get through this election, they are done. The following is a suggested weekly schedule for a North Carolina primary.

The following is a suggested weekly schedule for a North Carolina primary.

Week 2-3 (early December)

Begin scheduling/coordinating the first set of fundraisers. Immediately hold an official “Campaign Launch” meet-and-great as soon as possible after filing. Start curating the campaign’s volunteer/donor spreadsheet.

Week 4-6 (week of xmas to 31st)

Recovery time. Continue to prep/formulate ideas for stump speech.

Week 7 (around Jan 10th)

Develop modular stump speech with issue positions, FAQs. Begin recruiting efforts for a Volunteer coordinator. Ensure a coordinator is onboarded by this week in January. Build media contact list (local papers, TV, radio). Campaign up-tempo begins. Candidates needs to start participating in 2 to 5 meet-and-greets, fundraisers, media spots per week. Schedule at least 4 phone/text banking events by election day. This is critical during early voting and days leading up to primary.

Start securing endorsements from local leaders and organizations. Build precinct targets; start volunteer recruitment. Often, campaigns can recruit volunteers from endorsed organizations. Also, try to recruit volunteers that would otherwise work for the Party. Have a pitch ready for these individuals if they ever mention that they’re wondering where they should allocate their volunteer hours. Get these individuals on the campaign’s Donor/Volunteer list.

In North Carolina, 30 days before voting begins, candidates are allowed to put out signage in state-owned public right-of-ways. For for rules on municipal right-of-ways. In my county, New Hanover County, local right-of-ways mimic state rules. At this point, the campaign should have over 100 individuals on their volunteer list. Call on a handful of them to help place signs around the county, and then later, collecting them back.

Week 8-9

Debate, forum, or townhall prep (oppo research, practice). When more candidates are running than there are seats available, these kinds of events are usually organized—and they may take different formats or go by different names, such as townhalls, forums, or traditional debates. Often multiple events are scheduled. These typically begin in early February (in NC). Candidates should prepare thoroughly for likely questions and begin deep dive prep at this stage.

 

Week 10

Weekly tasks that include: text banking, door-to-door canvassing. First phase of yard signs go up in high traffic areas. Have forum/debate points nailed down.

Early Voting Begins

Week 11

Early Voting begins in North Carolina. Have at least 5 signs at the approved areas at every polling locations up 36 hours before voting begins. Candidate and volunteers canvass at polling stations with the highest voting traffic. First and last day of early voting typically the have heaviest traffic voters.

 

Primary Election Day

Week 14 (Primary Election Day)

First Tuesday in March for North Carolina. GOTV push. 48 hours before election day, have final wave of signs up, dominating highest trafficked roads. 72 hours to election day, finalize media hits and push text canvassing as hard as you can. Cover as many friendly high-traffic polling stations as possible.

Dedicate one or two volunteers to budget and plan for an election night watch party.

Important Day After Primary Election Tasks

Collect all yard signs from public right-of-ways

Retrieving all yard signs is important because the campaign does not, the competing campaign will — and they’ll dispose of them. Campaigns should expect to lose up to 50% of their signs during each election cycle. The campaign will want to minimize those loss as much as possible.

After Action Review

Compose in writing an after action review that covers what worked, what didn’t, and how things can be improved for the General Election. Get input from the leaders of the campaign; and be sure to create this document immediately after election day while the information is still fresh in everyone’s memory. This is probably the most important document as the campaign moves into the General Election period.

Between Primary & General (June – August)

Week 14: Analyze primary results and reassess the vote goal. Review how the candidate performed in each precinct and determine why certain areas were lost. If there is a runoff, prepare accordingly and shore up swing precincts. Replicate the schedule above for a runoff campaign.

Weeks 15–27 (March to around June 1): Expand fundraising and meet-and-greet events significantly. Plan to attend weekly or semi-weekly fundraisers. Coordinate joint fundraisers with other candidates and encourage supporters to host fundraising events on the candidate’s behalf. Re-engage previous donors and broaden fundraising appeals in the stump speech. Target three to four meetings or fundraising events per week. Meet once after Memorial Day weekend to tie up any loose ends and prepare for a two-week break from campaigning.

Weeks 27–29: The entire campaign team and candidate take a two-week sabbatical. Only work when absolutely necessary; i.e. meeting deadlines, last minute interviews, etc. This is mandatory downtime to decompress and recharge.

Week 30: Focus on coalition building—reach out to supporters of defeated opponents. Strengthen ties with the Party, civic groups, neighborhood organizations, and similar stakeholders. Continue pressing for donations and planning donor events. Fill schedule gaps with meetings at festivals, civic events, and community gatherings.

Weeks 31–39: Refine messaging against the general election opponent by emphasizing clear differences. Continue hosting donor events and invite previous contributors to new gatherings. Reach out to donors never met in person and invite them to upcoming events. Prioritize summer outreach (festivals, civic events, door-to-door in swing precincts). At this stage, 80–90% of the campaign’s time should be devoted to fundraising.

General Election Campaign Home Stretch

The push in the final stretch of should be harder than in the Primary Election. At this point in the game, the campaign’s donor and volunteer list should be near or at 300 individuals. Leverage as many of the volunteers at the polling stations as possible.

September

Week 40-42

Campaign slowly transitions to marketing from fundraising events. Never completely stop fundraising.

Finalize media strategy (text, signs, mail, digital, radio, local TV).

Ramp up canvassing in new precincts;, recruit and curate volunteer base. Host a volunteer kickoff to season in beginning of Sept.

Debate preparation; rapid response and counterattack training.

Week 43

Prep staffing schedule for early voting sites with volunteers and sign drops. Meet with volunteers and staffers for final push rally. Earned media push—letters to editor, op-eds.

Candidate appearances at churches, civic groups, clubs.

Week 44

Debate prep—rapid response and counterattack training.

Sustained field operations (door-to-door, phone texting). Do not burn out volunteers.

Plan set up for GOTV: go over After-Action Review from Primary and adjust accordingly.

Train volunteers for GOTV at polling stations. Compose schedule for polling stations.

Early Voting & Election Day (October – November)

Week 45: Early voting begins this week. Ensure signage coverage at polling stations, and staff are at early voting polling stations.

Week 46: Track Early Voting numbers. Make adjustments to candidate appearance schedule based on voter participation at polling stations.

Week 47: In North Carolina, this week in mid-Sept. will mark 30 days before voting begins and signage may be placed in rights-of-way on state roads.

Week 48-49 (Final 10 Days):

• Contact donors to shore up any outstanding invoices.
• Text, email every target voter twice.
• Recruit donors/volunteers to plan Election night Watch party.
• Call every Donor and Volunteer on campaign list to ensure they have voted or are voting — Leave voicemail and text.

 

Election Day:

• Deploy poll observers. Have 2 to 4 mobile fill-in volunteers covering for staff breaks, unexpected no-shows, and
• Operate voter hotline.
• Have a rapid response team ready for misinformation.
• Monitor turnout precinct by precinct. Shift poll canvassers if necessary.

Victory Night: Watch party logistics and secure communications.

Post-Election (November – December)

Week 50: File final campaign finance reports.

Week 51: Thank volunteers, donors, coalition partners.

Week 52: Archive campaign materials for future runs.