The decision to run for office.
We all know the “5Ws & an H”: Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How. When it comes to deciding to run for office, this phrase needs a fruit basket upset.
Chronologically, we recommend the following: Why, Where, What, Who, When, and How. For those who know me well, they know there’s always a backstory, or more context to most advice I give. As I was writing a single blog on the 5W-H topic, it was clear W-H needed its own space to breathe, so I’m turning it into a series. I sense a theme here (check out the blog for the series on Best Practices in Public Service: Pandemic Positives)…
Hat-Tip to Caitlyn Huxley at Huxley Strategies: We must have ESP because she published this great visual as I was finalizing this for posting. Click on the graphic to see its full glory:
So you want to run? Why?
DOs:
If you’re reading this, you’ve likely already skipped to “What – are you running for”, but I would encourage you to step back and reflect on your Why.
- Which issues excite you, or can use your professional or personal expertise
- Did you enjoy working closely with teachers and administrators at your kid’s school? Does your child have a special need?
- You might consider your local school board. We recommend serving on a school PTA or district advisory board first.
- You DO NOT need education experience for this! In fact, EVERY board needs people who are experts in finance and the law.
- Do you love parks? Libraries? Zoning and architecture?
- You should consider city council.
- If you have a passion for public education and spent time on your school board, you might consider going for the legislature, which is primarily responsible for education funding in each state. As well as state highways and roads, prisons and the Highway Patrol, etc.
- The state legislature
DON’Ts
After 20 years of working or volunteering on campaigns, lobbying, running, serving, and coordinating campaign work, we at VoteSharp have some definite ideas on this. There are two large pitfalls:
- Resume builder or “The Glamorous Life”: If you’re just looking for another plank on your resume, you should look elsewhere.
- If you’ve seen Hamilton, you likely recall the scene where Alexander Hamilton teases Aaron Burr for campaign door-to-door for president and he says “Honestly, it’s kind of draining”. Public campaigning may have been seen as faux pas in the 1700s, but it’s now a way of campaign life at every level.
- It’s sweaty. You get yelled at sometimes, avoided most other times. One perk – it can be a great way to lose weight.
- Upside – if done with an attitude of service, it’s one of the most personally and professionally fulfilling “jobs” you can ever have.
- That’s in quotes because unless you’re running for Congress, the pay is often low to non-existent. And if you think you want to run for Congress because that’s all you’ve paid attention to and think the other roles don’t measure up to your skills and talent, keep reading, this one’s for you.
- Pro-Tip: The offices which get the least attention are the most important to our daily lives. Think of your water and sewer boards, your city council’s role in road maintenance and snow plowing, your school board’s role in decisions about teacher hiring and pay, not to mention active shooter drills. If your first community engagement is running for Congress, you’re likely being laughed at behind your back – and sometimes to your face.
- I’ve always wanted to run for office, I just don’t know what to run for: If you don’t have any issues which are important enough to you to have paid attention to a particular elected body other than what you see on the news, and you “just wanna run for something” – click the “close” button on this browser tab. Get offa this page and don’t waste our time! This is called public service for a reason!
- [Steps off soapbox]: I see I went on a bit of a tangent. You get the idea:)
The next question we will address is a matter of practical geography – where do you live? More to come!