5W-H: Where?

Waldo? Bueller? Welcome to the second in our 6-part series on the 5Ws & an H of running for office. We’ve jumbled up the typical “Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How” into the chronology of how those questions should play out in politics: Why, Where, What, Who, When, and How. Welcome to our Where… Where do you live? The Why now …

5W-H: Why?

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 …

Newsletters before they were 😎…

Work(s) in Progress Welcome to the new format/platform/evolution of the Sharp Record/Sharp Connector (VoteSharp Vibe?)?? This is my launch on Substack, so I’ll go back to the basics with a refresher of how we got here, then lay out where we’re going. In my early 20s, I wrote correspondence on foreign affairs, defense, international trade, and agriculture in the US …

Best Practices in Public Service: Pandemic Positives — Text Messaging

Text Messaging – We the advances in P2P (peer-to-peer) texting for campaign (and most effectively) for official purposes. What a great way to keep voters updated and engaged in an informal, easily-accessible way! Ahead are some tangible ideas for using text messaging effectively (and not annoyingly). Don’t get overwhelmed by these ideas, we can help (info at the end). Heads …

Best Practices in Public Service: Pandemic Positives – The Town Hall Meeting

The Town Hall Meeting  – The staple of public service – the Town Hall Meeting – got a much-needed makeover and resurgence when elected officials simply couldn’t meet with constituents in-person. Candidates and incumbents planned video events for educational, fundraising, and GOTV purposes, appealing to constituents’ desire to interact with literally anyone outside their home! The most impactful examples saw …

Best Practices in Public Service: Pandemic Positives – Expert Panels

Expert Panels – Another twist on the Virtual Town Hall which gained a lot of popularity during the pandemic, is the Expert Panel. Hosting local, state, and national experts on a complex topic is a great way to be a resource to your constituents, maximize exposure on an issue, and enhance your own credibility by convening people who might not …

Stephanie’s “Why”…

In 1998-2000, I was a grad student in foreign affairs and writing constituent correspondence in the U.S. Senate. Back then, every letter was logged in a database, so you knew which voters received which responses and when. From 2000-2002, I recruited and trained advocacy volunteers for the American Cancer Society and started a newsletter for patients, caregivers, and advocates, explaining …

No Primary Colors

This isn’t about registering to vote. If you have to be convinced of that, this note won’t do it. This is for the millions of registered voters who only vote when there’s a big presidential election, or possibly a highly publicized even-year midterm (I’m looking at you, unaffiliated voters). Why? Even year November elections are easy. There’s a lot of …