One thing we've never been able to figure out is when and how politicians started using direct mail. Some sources say it was during the 1960s, when large donor and voter lists became available.
And that may be true of political fundraising. But research shows that candidates have been using the mails to get the vote out for more than a century.
Take New York Mayor Seth Low. In 1903, he sent a postcard reminding people to vote. It featured a picture of the Statue of Liberty and the headline: “Vote under This Emblem.”
The card informed readers that:
“Every Good Citizen Must REGISTER
Last Days
To-Day and To-Morrow
Friday and Saturday, October 16th and 17th
Your Polling Place Is __________.”
Did it work? Not well enough. Low, a Republican, lost to George B. McClellan Jr.
Then there was a fold-out postcard sent for 1928 White House hopeful Al Smith.
Citizens who opened the card were treated to a very advanced direct mail piece for that time. On the left, the reader saw the headline “Our First President” and a picture of George Washington.
The headline on the right said, “Our Next President,” and there was a die-cut with Smith's face peering through, surrounded by Washington's hair. When you lifted up the flap, the Democratic candidate was identified and shown in full.
Strangely, there was no call to action. And the piece could have used one. Smith, the first Catholic to run for the presidency, was trounced by Herbert Hoover.
