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One year ago, the B.C. Liberals pulled off a miracle with an election victory that few saw coming. Premier Christy Clarks disciplined message around job creation, delivered in her signature hard hat throughout the 28-day campaign, was a strategic coup that caught the overconfident New Democrats off guard.

But as much as the Liberals ran a strong campaign, Ms. Clark should take a moment as she marks the anniversary of that win on Tuesday to say thanks for small details.

It really was an accidental strategy on the hard hats, the Liberals 2013 campaign director, Mike McDonald, said in a recent interview.

The Liberals planned to launch their campaign by sending Ms. Clark to tour natural gas plants in the northeast corner of the province. The concept was for her to deliver a message mostly to urban voters about her ambitions for a liquefied natural gas industry.

We were lining up tour events and it became apparent to us it would be easier for the Premier to go to those events with her own [safety] gear. We went as far as getting a little Christy patch sewn on her full-length coveralls, we got them sized up properly so she was completely comfortable in them.

After the first week of the campaign, it seemed so natural, we kept going with it.

The result was a memorable image that stuck with voters: Ms. Clark had an upbeat message about jobs. In contrast, New Democrat Leader Adrian Dix spent the campaign in a suit and tie, laying out a detailed and cautious platform that studiously avoided overpromising anything to anyone.

Mr. McDonald says he always believed his party could win despite the huge lead that the New Democrats appeared to have going into the campaign. I didnt think we were dead. We had the wind in our sails.

In the days before the vote, however, many still doubted him. I was getting supportive calls from people saying, Dont worry no matter what happens, we still love you. He often had to play the role of cheerleader for Liberals who were convinced their cause was doomed.

Just hours before the polls closed, he sent out an e-mail to party members begging them not to give up. Dig deep. Phone and visit potential voters. Its full-on battle stations, he wrote.

Read more here:
How the accidental hard-hat strategy paid off for B.C. Liberals