There were six political postcards mailed to an unknown number of Wheeling residents within a few days in early May, and the mailers concerned the city’s crowded race for mayor and a pair of council contests, too.
Those oversized postcards did not include “Paid For” identification, the P.O. Box listed on the mailers has been found to be fraudulent, and one state lawmaker, Del. Diana Wizernreid (R-4), stated on social media she’s filed a complaint with the Secretary of State Office. Five of the postcards included negative content concerning individual candidates, and one appeared to state positive comments about mayoral candidate Beth Hinebaugh.
“Political mailers come in all shapes and sizes, and right now the oversized postcards on the most popular,” explained John Culler, president of Beyond Marketing in Wheeling. “I’m sure that’s what everyone was inundated with around here because I know we received nearly 100 of them the past couple of months. There were a few days when those postcards filled our mailbox.
“To print and mail those oversized postcards usually costs between a dollar-five and $1.50 each depending on the mailing house the person uses,” he said. “And then the other cost involved with the creation of the postcard depends on what the customer paid for the design, and that usually runs a few hundred dollars. So, it all depends on how many addresses are included on the mailing list that’s purchased.”
The three top candidates in West Virginia’s gubernatorial race – Chris Miller, Moore Capito, and the primary’s winner and state Attorney General, Patrick Morrissey – utilized political mailers as part of their respective campaigns, and the race in the First Senatorial District between incumbent Sen. Ryan Weld (R-1) and former state trooper Scott Adams included the postcards, as well.
“Postcards, of course, have been around for a long time, but I think when the mailing process became so streamlined, using them for political mailers became very popular,” said Culler, who, along with Jim Squibb, founded Beyond Marketing 24 years ago. “And it began with the political action committees because they are far less accountable than the individuals and their campaigns, and that’s been the case for more than a decade.
“The best thing about those mailers is it allows the sender to have direct contact with the voter, and based on the mailing lists that are purchased, you can reach particular voters based on age, gender, income, party affiliation, and even your voting record,” he explained. “So, as far as who receives the mailers depends on whatever group is best for the sender’s cause. Depending on the content of the mailers, they can be a pretty effective when it comes to impacting the voters.”
Some can be very positive in nature while others are misleading and purposely pessimistic, Culler confirmed.
“Campaigns have been using mailers to promote the positives about the candidate, and I know I received a lot of them involving statewide races,” Culler reported. “It’s the independent expenditure groups, the parties, and the third parties that normally make the more aggressive, attack-oriented, and negative postcards.
“I think the timing of the mailing is important, too, because if they’re sent too late, they could get lost with all the other mailers that are sent during the final two week. It happened again this year, so I guess that practice isn’t going away any time soon,” he said. “I think the negative ones that were sent to Wheeling residents got so much attention because no one has ever sunk that low before in a local race, but I don’t believe they had the impact the sender hoped they would.”
The derogatory political postcards pertaining to the municipal races in Wheeling focused on council candidates Ben Seidler and Jerry Sklavounakis, both of whom were victorious in their bids for re-election, and on mayoral candidates J.T. Thomas, Rosemary Ketchum, and Denny Magruder. Magruder will become Wheeling’s next mayor after collecting 2,622 votes on May 14th, or 37 percent in the six-candidate race. Ketchum, who became West Virginia’s first transgender elected official in 2020 after winning the Ward 3 council seat, collected 1,643 ballots, and Thomas finished third with 1,337.
“The results are why I really don’t think the postcards that were sent out about the mayor’s race had much of an impact. I can’t say there was zero impact, but judging from the final results, it didn’t hurt Denny Magruder or Rosemary Ketchum much at all,” Culler said. “Actually, I think those mailers might have helped a couple of candidates.
“Another reason I don’t think the postcards had an impact is because, in a local race, people know each other, and it doesn’t matter if it’s online or you get it in the mail. It doesn’t stick because we know each other in the city of Wheeling,” he said. “If it’s a national campaign against a presidential candidate, it might work because the candidates don’t live down the street or in the next neighborhood, but locally? Not so much.”
