New research challenges conventional wisdom about political campaigns. By synthesizing evidence from both meta-analysis and nine original field experiments, this paper demonstrates that campaign contact has little persuasive effect on voters' candidate choices during general elections. Most studies find no impact at all - the average effect is effectively zero across 49 total field experiments. The exceptions to this pattern occur only under very specific circumstances: when candidates hold unusually unpopular positions or campaigns make extraordinary efforts targeting persuadable voters, and even then early persuasion fades over time unless measured immediately before elections. This finding contributes significantly to ongoing debates about democratic accountability by suggesting political elites' attempts to influence voters may be less effective than commonly believed.
