"They" never get the message, and some tactics can backfire.

Term limitation is one of these things. In many places there are now limits on elected offices, allowing only two or three terms of service by any individual. The idea was that when a seat gets comfy it is tough to oust an incumbent due to the settling in of influencing organizations and money they bring as well as name recognition among otherwise-uninformed voters.

The downside are things like a short term view, which has lead to many ills. A growing trend is "carpet bagger politicians" who roam among political jurisdictions in search of another round of serving their true lords and masters. Many of these people are just suits fronting for a coalition of special interests and the political corporation, er... party, they belong to.