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Madden

Three Months Prior

Looking outside my parents’ dining room window, I hear birds chirping as a light breeze blows petals off of my Mom’s Bradford Pear tree. The serene scene is a stark contrast from where I’m standing. My eyes move from the window and back to the dining room where my entire campaign team is meeting for the first time.

Since my apartment isn’t big enough to host this many people, my parents let us use their house for the meeting. They own a large home in the College Hill area of Wichita, Kansas. Their dining room is large and open, with bay windows and a massive table. The walls are painted a deep red, which looks very regal alongside the cherry wood table and matching chairs. And the fireplace makes the room feel cozy and inviting.

It’s exhilarating to finally have everyone together in the same room. Looking around, I see papers scattered all over the table as everyone talks at once, sharing ideas and making notes. My cheeks are beginning to hurt because I can't stop grinning.

My team is made up of amazing people. There’s my campaign manager, Paul Newhouse, whom I was fortunate enough to meet during my volunteer work. He’s tall and slim with steel-grey hair and deep, brown eyes. He looks like he’s all business. And he is. There’s also my brother, David, who’s a certified public accountant, who agreed to be my secretary. Along with Paul and my brother, there are a dozen others at our meeting: campaign strategists, graphic designers, and my public relations team. It’s chaotic, but I can feel my soul coming alive. I can tell we will all work well together. Taking a deep breath, I try to soak up this moment. I’m honored that these people will be the ones standing behind me during this process.

As the meeting wraps up and everyone begins gathering their papers and laptops, I stand to address my team. “Before you all leave, I’d like to say a few words.” The room quiets down.

“The dream team is finally together!” I grin and everyone chuckles. We have to add some humor and fun into this campaign or it will kill our souls. “This next year will be extremely busy and require a lot of hard work, but I’m confident that we can take on the challenge! I know tonight’s meeting has been grueling since we are in the thick of finalizing my campaign strategy and confirming endorsements, but I’m beyond grateful to have you all here.”

Everyone smiles and shakes my hand before leaving.

My excitement turns into dread as soon as I look over and notice Paul still sitting at the opposite end of the table. He always looks pretty serious, but he has been unusually quiet this evening. He looks up and meets my gaze as the last of our campaign team trickles out of the room. Once it’s just David and I left, he finally speaks.

“Can I talk with you privately, Madden?”

I’m taken aback for a moment and glance at David. Paul knows I trust my brother implicitly. But, according to the sweat forming on his brow, he has horrible news to share. My stomach tightens.

I have dreamt of becoming a Congressman since I was in high school. That goal propelled me into law school and countless hours of volunteer work on political campaigns over the years since then. If this fails, it will devastate me. I’ll have to continue working as a lawyer, which was never my long-term career plan.

Paul, David, and I stare at each other awkwardly for a few seconds before David stands from his chair and begins to exit the room to give us some privacy.

“Wait. No disrespect, Paul, but my brother is someone I confide everything in. Anything you need to say to me, you can say in front of David as well.” I nervously run my hand through my wavy blonde hair.

“Very well.”

Paul walks ahead of us, toward the armchairs by the fireplace. Once he’s out of earshot, David whispers mockingly, “Somebody’s in trouble.” I try to give him a nonchalant smile, but I feel queasy.

“Have a seat, I’ll try to make this as straightforward as possible.” Paul motions to the two chairs in front of the fireplace and David and I lower ourselves into them a little uneasily. Paul is only looking at me now. I wish my parents hadn’t lit the fire, because I can already feel sweat trickling down my back.

“Madden, you hired me because I’m good at what I do. You’ve watched me help several politicians get elected into office, and that’s my hope for you as well. To prepare for our first meeting tonight, I’ve been studying past congressional representatives who served in Kansas. After scouring over the data these past few weeks, I have a few concerns.”

Paul takes a deep breath. “If I didn’t know how important this congressional campaign is to you, I might not even mention such a seemingly trivial issue, but…”

David and I look at each other nervously. I make a circling motion with my hand, urging Paul to continue.

“Kansas is a conservative, Republican state. Since you’re running as a libertarian, you already have the odds against you. My research shows that every state representative before you was not only married, but had children as well. My point being, in contrast to congressmen before you, voters may see you as uncommitted and immature. Especially because you’re much younger than anyone who has represented this state. I’m afraid they won’t see you as someone who takes the needs of their families seriously.”

He pauses and clears his throat, contemplating his words. “To put it bluntly, married individuals are much more likely to win the conservative vote. Kansas’s voters want to see a family man who exudes strong morals and family values. I know you have the drive to serve your constituents, but I’m not confident that voters will see that.”

Once Paul finishes, the room is eerily quiet. Even David’s good humor has vanished, and his skin looks pale. None of us know what to say.

After a few seconds of processing, I’m able to take a deep breath and form words again. “But have there been any single men who have ran before? Most candidates are older and therefore happen to be married. But is it really a prerequisite?”

“There have been single men who have run before.” Paul clears his throat. “They didn’t win.”

I cross my arms over my chest. “How do you know it was their relationship status that lost them the vote, though? Couldn’t it have been a lack of supporters or a botched campaign?”

“Exit polls. A majority of voters who chose the married opponent reported they based their choice on his family situation.”

I blink. “You’re joking.”

“Unfortunately, no, which proves my point: you’ll look like a much stronger candidate if you have a supportive wife by your side. Especially since whoever runs against you will likely be much older and married with kids. Which will give them a leg up.” Paul states with confidence.