Wiki source for NPATMessages
=====NPAT Messages & NPAT Status=====
Every candidate running for an office we test using the Political Courage Test (Presidential, Congressional, Gubernatorial, State Legislative) will receive a unique message, called an NPAT Message, on the Vote Smart website regarding their PCT completion status. These messages are displayed at the top of candidates’ Positions pages. NPAT Messages use clear, concise language to let users know whether candidates have taken the Political Courage Test. In addition to the NPAT Messages, short messages will also appear on each candidate’s Political Summary page whenever their NPAT Status changes. These messages include a date for the status change.
The NPAT Message is determined by the NPAT Status setting in admin associated with each candidate. The NPAT Status can be found by clicking the NPAT tab for the candidate in admin and selecting the correct election. Each NPAT Status has a corresponding message that will display in a red, yellow, or green box on the Positions page. You can access all the NPAT Status messages from the ‘NPAT Messages’ tab in admin. The Director of Elections or Political Courage Test Administrator should update these messages to display the correct date before administration begins during an election year.
===**Regular Candidates NPAT Messages:**===
Typically, candidates will be tested with a default NPAT Group outlined in the PCT Master Calendar. This is the standard testing procedure every year for the PCT, in which an adequate testing period (4-6 weeks) in scheduled for all offices.
The following table outlines the NPAT messages displayed on the website based on a candidate’s NPAT Status, tested in their scheduled NPAT Group:
||**NPAT Status**||**NPAT Message**||**NPAT Message Color**||**Political Summary Message**||
||Primary - Late||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] submitted the 2018 Political Courage Test after the official deadline.”||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.”||
||Staff Completed||**NO Candidate has this NPAT Status in our database**||||||
||General - Late||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] submitted the 2018 Political Courage Test after the official deadline.”||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Passed||"[CANDIDATE_NAME] has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2018 Political Courage Test."||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Pending||"Candidates who qualify will be invited to take the 2018"||Yellow||No Message||
||Failed||"[CANDIDATE_NAME] has refused to provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2018 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart and voters like you."||Red||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has failed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
===**Courtesy Candidates’ NPAT Messages:**===
The primary use of the Courtesy NPAT group is to ensure these candidates do not receive the standard PCT ‘Failed’ NPAT status and its corresponding message. We avoid the use of this NPAT Status for Courtesy candidates as a way to acknowledge that these candidates were not tested fairly. Changing a Candidate’s NPAT Group to Courtesy alters the way some NPAT Messages will display on the website.
The following table outlines the NPAT messages displayed on the website based on a candidate’s NPAT Status, in the Courtesy NPAT Group:
||**NPAT Status**||**NPAT Message**||**NPAT Message Color**||**Political Summary Message**||
||Primary - Late||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] submitted the 2018 Political Courage Test after the official deadline.”||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.”||
||Staff Completed||**NO Candidate has this NPAT Status in our database**||||||
||General - Late||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] submitted the 2018 Political Courage Test after the official deadline.”||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Passed||"[CANDIDATE_NAME] has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2018 Political Courage Test."||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Pending||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has not completed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||Yellow||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] is being tested for the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Failed||**We want to avoid giving a Courtesy Candidate a Failed Status, as we never set a deadline for PCT Submission. Instead, they will stay in 'Pending' Status** ||||||
The Primary difference in NPAT Messages between Default and Courtesy NPAT Groups is the messages display for NPAT status' of 'Pending' and 'Failed'. This distinction is to acknowledge that Courtesy Candidates were not given an equal and fair testing period, and thus should not be given as harsh of a message regarding the status of completing the Political Courage Test.
===**Angry Candidate Communication:**===
It’s important to note that these NPAT Messages are the focus of many angry candidate communications. Angry candidates frequently ask us to remove or change them. We have strict policies outlining which message should appear, and we cannot remove a candidate’s message simply based on his or her request. It’s important to communicate consistently with these candidates and relay their options in the context of our policies.
If the candidate is concerned about a “failed” message after their deadline but before the election, they may have the option to take the test late (with the Primary-Late or General-Late status). Communicate with the Political Courage Test Administrator and/or the Director of Elections Research about the cut-off for accepting late tests. If the late testing option is available, let them know we will remove the message once we receive their completed test, and give them a new, firm deadline.
If the candidate is concerned about a “failed” message after the election, be clear that we cannot remove the message, but let them know we will re-administer the test for the next election. If they’re up for re-election and pass the test, we’ll replace their “failed” message with a “passed” message. Feel free to use the candidate’s contact log to explain our attempts to contact their campaign. Be prepared to hear from aggravated candidates, and be firm but polite. If you feel uncomfortable in communication with a particular candidate, feel free to pass them along to the Director of Elections.
Every candidate running for an office we test using the Political Courage Test (Presidential, Congressional, Gubernatorial, State Legislative) will receive a unique message, called an NPAT Message, on the Vote Smart website regarding their PCT completion status. These messages are displayed at the top of candidates’ Positions pages. NPAT Messages use clear, concise language to let users know whether candidates have taken the Political Courage Test. In addition to the NPAT Messages, short messages will also appear on each candidate’s Political Summary page whenever their NPAT Status changes. These messages include a date for the status change.
The NPAT Message is determined by the NPAT Status setting in admin associated with each candidate. The NPAT Status can be found by clicking the NPAT tab for the candidate in admin and selecting the correct election. Each NPAT Status has a corresponding message that will display in a red, yellow, or green box on the Positions page. You can access all the NPAT Status messages from the ‘NPAT Messages’ tab in admin. The Director of Elections or Political Courage Test Administrator should update these messages to display the correct date before administration begins during an election year.
===**Regular Candidates NPAT Messages:**===
Typically, candidates will be tested with a default NPAT Group outlined in the PCT Master Calendar. This is the standard testing procedure every year for the PCT, in which an adequate testing period (4-6 weeks) in scheduled for all offices.
The following table outlines the NPAT messages displayed on the website based on a candidate’s NPAT Status, tested in their scheduled NPAT Group:
||**NPAT Status**||**NPAT Message**||**NPAT Message Color**||**Political Summary Message**||
||Primary - Late||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] submitted the 2018 Political Courage Test after the official deadline.”||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.”||
||Staff Completed||**NO Candidate has this NPAT Status in our database**||||||
||General - Late||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] submitted the 2018 Political Courage Test after the official deadline.”||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Passed||"[CANDIDATE_NAME] has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2018 Political Courage Test."||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Pending||"Candidates who qualify will be invited to take the 2018"||Yellow||No Message||
||Failed||"[CANDIDATE_NAME] has refused to provide voters with positions on key issues covered by the 2018 Political Courage Test, despite repeated requests from Vote Smart and voters like you."||Red||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has failed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
===**Courtesy Candidates’ NPAT Messages:**===
The primary use of the Courtesy NPAT group is to ensure these candidates do not receive the standard PCT ‘Failed’ NPAT status and its corresponding message. We avoid the use of this NPAT Status for Courtesy candidates as a way to acknowledge that these candidates were not tested fairly. Changing a Candidate’s NPAT Group to Courtesy alters the way some NPAT Messages will display on the website.
The following table outlines the NPAT messages displayed on the website based on a candidate’s NPAT Status, in the Courtesy NPAT Group:
||**NPAT Status**||**NPAT Message**||**NPAT Message Color**||**Political Summary Message**||
||Primary - Late||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] submitted the 2018 Political Courage Test after the official deadline.”||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.”||
||Staff Completed||**NO Candidate has this NPAT Status in our database**||||||
||General - Late||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] submitted the 2018 Political Courage Test after the official deadline.”||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Passed||"[CANDIDATE_NAME] has provided voters with clear stances on key issues by responding to the 2018 Political Courage Test."||Green||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has passed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Pending||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] has not completed the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||Yellow||“[CANDIDATE_NAME] is being tested for the 2018 Political Courage Test.” ||
||Failed||**We want to avoid giving a Courtesy Candidate a Failed Status, as we never set a deadline for PCT Submission. Instead, they will stay in 'Pending' Status** ||||||
The Primary difference in NPAT Messages between Default and Courtesy NPAT Groups is the messages display for NPAT status' of 'Pending' and 'Failed'. This distinction is to acknowledge that Courtesy Candidates were not given an equal and fair testing period, and thus should not be given as harsh of a message regarding the status of completing the Political Courage Test.
===**Angry Candidate Communication:**===
It’s important to note that these NPAT Messages are the focus of many angry candidate communications. Angry candidates frequently ask us to remove or change them. We have strict policies outlining which message should appear, and we cannot remove a candidate’s message simply based on his or her request. It’s important to communicate consistently with these candidates and relay their options in the context of our policies.
If the candidate is concerned about a “failed” message after their deadline but before the election, they may have the option to take the test late (with the Primary-Late or General-Late status). Communicate with the Political Courage Test Administrator and/or the Director of Elections Research about the cut-off for accepting late tests. If the late testing option is available, let them know we will remove the message once we receive their completed test, and give them a new, firm deadline.
If the candidate is concerned about a “failed” message after the election, be clear that we cannot remove the message, but let them know we will re-administer the test for the next election. If they’re up for re-election and pass the test, we’ll replace their “failed” message with a “passed” message. Feel free to use the candidate’s contact log to explain our attempts to contact their campaign. Be prepared to hear from aggravated candidates, and be firm but polite. If you feel uncomfortable in communication with a particular candidate, feel free to pass them along to the Director of Elections.
