I speak today of the upcoming mid-term elections.

Republicans are behind in the generic vote. Many Republican seats are in play in districts Trump won. Even more Republican seats are in play in districts Hillary Clinton won.

If the Republicans keep their majority in Congress this year it will be because they figured out a way to win when they are losing.

There are ways to do that, which I’ll cover today.

1. Change the Subject. The President’s name may not be on the ballot, but right now the mid-term elections are a referendum on his demeanor and personality. That is not a verdict Republicans can win.

They can change the subject by convincing the President to silence his twitter toy until after the election, and having his speeches carefully scripted by the White House staff. Not an easy task, but it would give Republicans room to talk about something more helpful than the President’s latest tweet or verbal miscue.

2. Change the Agenda. It is a tactic that works in the right circumstance. Major news events, or a colossal mistake by the opposing party sometimes offers an opportunity to redefine the election. In an election year, there is always something predictable about the month of October. The unexpected will happen. The unexpected is where opportunity is often found.

3. Attack your opponent. Force your opponent to play defense. It is a time honored political tactic. The term for it is winning ugly.

When voters are unhappy with an unpopular candidate or mad at their party, their only option is to make their opponent even more objectionable than they are. We are already seeing a lot of that. If you live in a jurisdiction with a competitive race you’ll be hearing a lot of trash talk and seeing a lot of negative ads.

These are time honored ways to survive a tough campaign.

If you’d like some help in your campaign, please watch this video.