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Showing posts with the label How to win an election

What book or books can help me run a political campaign?

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  When I ran my first political campaign in 1995, I did not know what I was doing. I was a 20 year-old college student at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.  I had excellent organizational skills, I was a former boy scout, I was in Navy ROTC, and I was in College Republicans.  I was also a lifeguard at the university's aquatic center.  None of these things prepared me for running a countywide race. I did not even think of looking for a book about how to run a political campaign.  I thought that type of text would not exist. So everything I began learning about how to run a political campaign, I had to learn organically - either by creating my own system or learning from others who had run campaigns, before. Fortunately, I was able to work with a campaign professional who had run federal and state political races.  I took classes about campaigning that were offered in my state, and I began to learn how campaigns were structured and how successful people won t...

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

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  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 campaig...