Author: Keith Royster

In today’s fast-paced political landscape, effective communication is crucial for candidates and organizations to succeed. As a seasoned political communications consultant, I have honed my skills over the years, working on diverse campaigns and platforms. My work, showcased on this website, reflects the trust I have earned from clients and the successes we have achieved together. This blog provides an overview of my career, highlighting key positions and experiences that have shaped my expertise in crafting powerful campaign messages and mobilizing audiences.

Gaining Access
Since September 2018, I have served as a Senior Content Creator at Access Marketing Services in Washington, D.C. Here, my focus has been on developing data-driven and highly-targeted campaigns utilizing multiple channels, including mail, TV, robocalls, radio, and digital media. By leveraging polling, analytics, and other key insights, I have amplified candidate messaging and mobilized audiences in support of critical issues.

Hardball 2020
As a Freelance Writer at Resonance Campaigns in Washington, D.C., I had the opportunity to conceptualize persuasive copy for top-tier print and digital campaigns. Notable projects included my involvement in the Joe Biden for President, Maxine Waters for Congress, and Mark Kelly for Senate races. Through strategic messaging, I played a vital role in these high-stakes efforts to drive engagement and influence target audiences.

The Mayor’s Messenger
As the Director of Communications for the City of Orange Township, NJ, from July 2012 to September 2018, my responsibilities revolved around crafting and disseminating powerful public relations messages. I developed a comprehensive communications plan to effectively convey the administration’s key goals and objectives. Utilizing my copywriting and graphic design abilities, I ensured the seamless distribution of these messages across various platforms to maximize their impact and resonance with target audiences.

For Special Services
During my freelance tenure as a Creative Campaign Consultant from December 2010 to June 2012, I collaborated with advertising agencies and corporate clients. I created impactful print and online marketing campaigns rooted in strategic concept development. Offering a turnkey creative solution, I ensured seamless and integrated communications campaigns, maximizing the delivery of clients’ messaging to achieve optimum impact and reach.

From Brick City to Washington
From March to November 2010, I worked as a Senior Concept Writer at MSHC Partners in Washington, D.C. This contract role involved creating hundreds of concepts for numerous campaigns during the 2010 mid-term elections. This exciting opportunity allowed me to contribute to high-profile campaigns like the Washington D.C. mayoral race, as well as gubernatorial and state senate races in Texas, Indiana, Delaware, Minnesota, and Pennsylvania.

When Senator Booker Was Councilman Booker
Throughout different periods between 2002 and 2010, I served as a Senior Campaign Consultant for the Booker Team in Newark. During my time with Cory Booker and his slate, I played a vital role in creating campaign materials with a consistent, high-quality brand look and identity for Booker’s run for Mayor of Newark in 2002 and 2006. Collaboration with candidates and senior staff to discuss strategies and present creative concepts for approval was a crucial part of my responsibility. Moreover, I produced impactful direct mail pieces and ensured their timely completion through vendor coordination.

No endgame
In a politically uncertain climate, the need for skilled and experienced campaign professionals is more significant than ever. My career as a political communications consultant is not just a list of past positions but a testament to the trust I have earned from clients and the outcomes we have achieved together. The ability to create powerful messages under pressure sets me apart from my peers, and I have experience working at municipal, congressional, and gubernatorial levels. I am always prepared, continuously learning and adapting to emerging media best practices and campaign strategies. With mastery of the Adobe creative suite and a commitment to meeting deadlines with integrity, I am confident in my ability to deliver impactful communication campaigns for my clients.

If you are in need of a skilled political communications consultant, please feel free to contact me at 201-965-2709. I would be delighted to discuss how I can serve and support your campaign or organization.

Years ago, a fellow churchgoer and I were chatting after Sunday service. The conversation took a hard turn when he asked me, “What do you do for a living”?

“I work on political campaigns”, I replied. “I create ads for candidates”.

You would have thought I told him I worked for Al Qaeda. “That’s disgusting”, he said, walking off to speak with someone not destined to spend eternity roasting in Hell.

As a member of a fraternity of professionals who help candidates achieve public office, part of my job is to draw a bright line between what my client stands for and what his opponents represent. Anything less is to do a disservice to my client — and the public.

Network anchors will announce that candidate A has launched an “attack ad” against candidate B. Talking heads denounce the ad as “mudslinging”, “polluting the political discourse”, etc. So why do folks in my business keep cranking out messaging that the public finds so…disturbing? One reason is that negative campaign ads work, and people DO watch them. But there is a more significant reason why negative political ads are utilized.
In a perfect world, men and women running for public office would tell voters everything they need to know about themselves, so those voters can make an informed decision on election day. In democracies, elections are held to decide who sits on the school board, who fixes the potholes, and who gets the nuclear launch codes. With so much at stake, elections can get…competitive. Campaign budgets often employ opposition research to discover how imperfect a political rival is. Political pundits call this process “digging up dirt” on opponents. The reality is that this research is information that can be found in the public domain, like tax records, court documents, and voting records. The result of this research finds its way into the hands of consultants, who use the information to convince voters why a candidate does not deserve to lead his community.

Candidates will not reveal Information about themselves that may lead voters to elect someone else. The press isn’t the public watchdog it used to be. Countless online news outlets, bloggers, and a narrow public attention span make it hard for the most diligent reporter to investigate every rumor and allegation. The checks and balances of our political system are frayed. But I believe a tax cheat should not become a county assessor. A racist should not be attorney general. And a pathological liar and thief should not be elected to the US Congress (looking at you, George Santos). Negative campaigning can be a public service — with guardrails, such as:
• Not lying. 
• Keeping the message relevant.
• Avoiding personal smears that target “civilians” — an opponent’s spouse or friends.

If you have read this far, thanks for your time. If you disagree with me or have a different take, let’s talk. I welcome any dialogue that raises our political I.Q., and some of us may be less inclined to consign campaign staffers to eternal damnation.