Principles Over Patronage: Campaign War Stories | Jeff Kruszyna on the Wesley Donehue Podcast

Why is Republican fundraising down, and why is good old-fashioned mail holding up when digital isn't? Jeff Kruszyna, Founder & CEO of JMK Victory, joins Wesley Donehue of Push Digital for Campaign War Stories on the Wesley Donehue Podcast. They talk about why JMK Victory puts "For His Kingdom" front and center, getting outspent nine to one, why voters don't know our Senate candidates, why direct mail cuts through the clutter of texts and email, expanding the Republican donor base, how 9/11 moved Jeff from computer science into politics, how much of a campaign budget belongs in the mailbox, the first year of JMK Victory and why your first hire should be a bookkeeper, and a war story from New York's 1st Congressional District about principles over patronage. This is the full conversation, recorded in summer 2024 and originally released on the Wesley Donehue Podcast. CHAPTERS 0:00 JMK Victory intro 0:08 Welcome to Campaign War Stories 1:20 For His Kingdom: leading with faith 3:40 The Republican fundraising problem 6:23 Nobody knows our Senate candidates 8:11 Why direct mail cuts through the noise 9:44 Expanding the Republican donor base 13:21 From computer science to politics after 9/11 15:21 Mail, TV and digital: how to split the budget 17:39 The first year of JMK Victory 19:16 Wins, losses and the first hire: a bookkeeper 22:32 War story: New York's 1st Congressional District 25:38 Principles over patronage 27:40 Constituent services and "love your congressman" 29:17 Wrap-up ABOUT THE SHOW The Wesley Donehue Podcast, hosted by Wesley Donehue of Push Digital. Listen to the original episode: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7BgV2Cm5v... Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wesl... ABOUT JEFF Jeff Kruszyna is Founder & CEO of JMK Victory, a KB Partners company. JMK Victory runs direct mail fundraising for Christian conservative ministries, nonprofits, campaigns and patriot-economy brands. Website: https://www.jmkvictory.com Book a call: https://booking.jmkvictory.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kruszyna #CampaignWarStories #DirectMail #PoliticalFundraising