One of the advantages of being a legislator and running for higher office–and especially being a legislative leader who runs for higher office–is that you have a network of allies  in far flung corners of the area you help to represent, who can organize on your behalf in their home districts.

In other words, if you are say, the Speaker of the City Council, and you represent (to pick a neighborhood at random) Chelsea, you have 50 allies spread throughout the city, each of whom–since they won election in their own right in their own districts–knows how to collect votes in their neighborhoods. Read More