Your first steps in running for office - the basics of what you need to know

 

The First Steps in Running for Office: What You Must Know

Deciding to run for office is a big step, but before you announce your candidacy, there are some critical things you need to do. Whether you’re running for city council, state legislature, or Congress, these first steps will set the foundation for your campaign.

1. Know the Legal Requirements

  • Before anything else, make sure you meet the legal qualifications to run. Check:
  • Age and residency requirements
  • Filing deadlines and paperwork
  • Campaign finance laws (even small campaigns have reporting requirements)
  • Professional qualifications for the position (i.e. judges usually have to have a certain level of legal experience and a license to practice law)

Your local election office or Secretary of State’s website is a great place to start.

The Campaignguy.com web site has a great resource page that directs you to a listing of Secretary of State web sites by state as well as links to help you get a federal campaign started if you are running for Congress, Senate or President of the United States.

2. Define Your “Why”

In the last blog post, we discussed knowing the reason you want to run for office.  Your private reasons may not be the reason you wish to express publicly.  Therefore, you will need to define your message.  We will discuss message development in a future post, but knowing your message will help you answer the “why” question.

Voters support candidates who have a clear reason for running. Ask yourself:

  • Why am I running for this office?
  • What do I hope to accomplish?
  • What makes me different from my opponents?
  • What issues do voters care about?
  • Do I care about any of the issues that voters care about?

If you can’t answer these questions clearly, you’re not ready to run.

 The Political Campaign Desk Reference is a great resource for candidates who need to define their message and develop their “why” statement.  In fact, the companion workbook to The Political Campaign Desk Reference will baby step you through the process of developing your message and your why statement.  This blog will help you, but the text and the workbook will help you crytalize your message – and make it a message that resonates with voters!

But if a reporter or voter asks you, “why are you running for office?”, your answer should not be, “because I want to get a public employee retirement.”  Your answer should be a value proposition for the voters.  This means that you need to demonstrate that you offer value to the voters you want to vote for you.  If you cannot articulate an answer to the “why” question that makes the voter’s life better in some regard, then you have failed as a candidate before you have begun your political campaign.

3. Assess Your Base of Support

Every campaign needs a strong foundation of supporters. You should look to those closest to you first.  Ask yourself:

  • Do I have friends, family, and colleagues who will back me?
  • Can I find early volunteers and donors?
  • Are there organizations or groups that align with my platform?

 Make a list of these potential supporters.  Take them out for coffee and bounce your thoughts regarding local politics and the idea of you possibly running for office.  Some of these friends may be willing to bring their friends and family on board for you as well, and then you have yourself a team!

 Winning is much easier when you have a team.  I have seen candidates “go it alone” and win, but their path is typically much more difficult and expensive if they have an opponent.

 The Political Campaign Desk Reference helps to identify different roles that people can fill on your campaign and how to best utilize their expertise.

4. Start Fundraising Early

Even a small campaign requires some funding. You’re probably asking yourself, “How do I raise money for my political campaign?”

Start by making a list of potential donors—family, friends, community leaders—and start reaching out early.

What I typically tell a candidate who has hired me as a consultant is: “Make a list of every individual who has benefited from your existence on this earth.”

Do not hold back when making this list.  You probably have a family doctor, dentist, eye doctor, insurance broker, financial advisor, bookkeeper/accountant for taxes, car mechanic, and other people with whom you have built a relationship through your life.  You might be surprised how these folks would love to support one of their customers/clients.  Don’t forget about professional colleagues with whom you work. 

Have you ever helped someone out of a bind or done a favor for another person?  They may want to help you in turn.  I will caution, however, to never look at your relationships as transactional.  A “you did this for me, so I’ll do this for you” approach will not be a good attitude for a politician.  Help people out whenever you can, and do not ask for something in return.  When the time comes for you to need a favor, those whom you have helped will hopefully rise to the occasion – not as a payback, but as a mutual investment in each other.  Investments are something that you nurture, and they grow over time and bear fruit when you need it most.  Transactions cost you something for what you get, and there is no guarantee or obligation for a future transaction to benefit you.  So invest in people, help them, and hope they will invest in you as well.

The PoliticalCampaign Desk Reference and the companion workbook provide a wealth of information on how to raise money, scripts for making calls for money, instruction on how to conduct a successful fundraising event and other fundraising resources.

5. Research Your Opponent(s), and research yourself

Knowing who you’re running against helps you position yourself effectively. Research:

  • Their policy positions
  • Their voting record (if they’re an incumbent)
  • Their strengths and weaknesses
  • Property and tax records where they own property
  • Any financial records or ethics disclosures they are required to make
  • Their campaign finance reports – who gives them money, and how much
  • Court records for criminal, traffic, divorce, civil suits and other useful information

The Political Campaign Desk Reference suggests many items to research and how to find them.

Whatever research you conduct on any opponent, you should also conduct on yourself.  You need to know what others know about you.  Will they use the fact that you own an expensive vacation home against you?  Will that citation for driving under the influence when you were a teenager show up and be an issue?  Will the fact that you changed parties be something you will have to answer?  It is as important to know yourself as it is to know your opponent.

Final Thoughts

The earlier you start preparing, the stronger your campaign will be. Get organized, do your research, and build a solid foundation before you announce.  Leave no stone unturned when building your team as well as when you do your opposition (and self) research.

Additional Reading:

The PoliticalCampaign Desk Reference

Workbook: Companion to The Political Campaign Desk Reference

CampaignguyResources Page for Elections

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