All politics is local

Former Speaker of the House Tip O'Neill coined this phrase which encapsulates the principle that a politician's success is directly tied to his ability to understand and influence the issues of his constituents. Politicians must appeal to the the simple, mundane and everyday concerns of those that elect them into office. Those personal matters not big and intangible ideas are often what voters care most about, according to this principle. Politicians often use this against one another as well to hit each other where it hurts most--back at home--rather than on the floor of Congress.

Example

During the 1982 Congressional elections, O'Neill's seat was challenged by Massachusetts lawyer Frank McNamara, who had financed most of his campaign with money from oil interests in Oklahoma and Texas. Voters in Massachusetts, plagued by oil prices and a poor economy for many years, felt no love for McNamara and his oil money and instead mocked him as he announced his candidacy on the steps of the US Capitol.

Later during those elections, O'Neill introduced a $1 billion jobs bill to the table. House Republican Leader Robert H. Michel of Peoria, Illinois opposed the bill, but O'Neill delievered an address broadcasted in Peoria that showed how many infrastructure problems in Peoria would be fixed by the bill. "By hitting his rival where he lived, O'Neill translated a wholesale debate over national economic policy to the local, retail level" (Matthews 53).

References

Matthews, Christopher. Hardball.