How to Run for Local Office

Turned down again by the zoning board? Outraged that your town has
approved a cell tower? Many people--even political neophytes--
declare their candidacy so that they can effect change directly. A campaign
is time-consuming and expensive--financially and personally.
So before you make the leap, carefully weigh all of your commitments.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Research elected positions that will be vacant at the next election such as trustee, councilperson or mayor, and determine which one you are best suited for--and have a chance to win. It helps to know whom you'll be running against.

2. Do your homework. Research your city's history, demographics, current events and the actions of your predecessors. You'll want to be prepared for formal and informal debates.

3. Attend government and school board meetings, read the paper and talk to locals before establishing your campaign platform. Find out what issues and concerns really matter to a wide range of residents.

4. Understand that you'll be living in the limelight and be clear on the ramifications of that reality. Consult all family members when making your decision. Their lives will be radically altered along with yours.

5. Practice speaking before large, challenging and even potentially hostile groups. Re-evaluate your wardrobe and grooming habits. Hire a voice coach if necessary, and a PR consultant if you will be speaking in front of the cameras. Cultivate an image of professional competence.

6. Develop a thick skin. At the same time be open to constructive criticism. More than one candidate has discovered that hubris isn't the best characteristic to bring to a campaign.

7. Make sure you and your spouse have an impeccable record-- personally, professionally, financially and legally. Have a professional handler vet you before members of the opposition do. And they will.

8. Introduce yourself to your possible constituency. You'll have to sell a lot of people on your ability to effect change. How will you stand out? What do you have that another candidate doesn't?

9. Ask people to volunteer their time on your behalf during the campaign stage. Divide the town into precincts and appoint a captain for each. Choose block captains to coordinate door-to-door canvassing to ask folks to vote for you. Commit to personally walking critical precincts. Read 373 Plan an Organizational Meeting.

10. Submit a petition with enough signatures, if required to get your name on the ballot. Some jurisdictions simply request that you file a form with the city clerk.

11. Read 372 Publicize an Event. Develop collateral materials to mail or hand out while canvassing neighborhoods. Create an effective Web presence (such as MoveOn.org) and use it to discuss the issues and present your platform, particularly to your younger constituents.

12. Campaign door to door, at public transportation stations, in front of the post office or other locations with lots of foot traffic.

13. Hold a fund-raising event to raise both money and awareness of your campaign. See 381 Plan a Fund-Raising Event.

14. Create lawn and window signs for supporters to display.

15. Rally your volunteers to call voters the night before and the day of the election to remind them to get out and vote.

Tips & Warnings

• Get endorsements from influential political figures and other local heavyweights as early as possible.
• Be proactive with the media. Give them your bio and platform early on. Call when there's a story that you can contribute a quote to.
• Get the address list of voters from your county board of elections (about $20).
• Hire a writer to help you craft your bio and position statement; there's nothing worse than a candidate, especially a school board candidate, whose handouts contain grammatical errors.
• Surround yourself with brilliant, well-educated advisers who have sterling characters and background. Make sure none of them has any connections to nefarious business practices. After you ask them, do a Better Business Bureau (bbb.org) search to confirm.
• Take care not to run as a one-issue candidate, or you'll risk being bored or overwhelmed by the number and complexity of issues you'll face once in office.
• Don't ever take the efforts of your volunteers for granted.

[OnlineCandidate]

on 12/10/2007 Great breakdown of the steps. Having a good small core of advisers is a must! Campaign websites are becoming important, too. Even on a local level. Check us out at: http://www.onlinecandidate.com

[Flyboy1111]

on 8/14/2007 This is great information!! I plan on running for office to get some common sense flowing once again. This will ultimatly help me become a better people helper once i run for president of the united states.