If you are interested in helping your community concretely, a great way is to run for local elections. A local authority generally covers an area of no more than 80 kilometers from your home in all directions. The extent of the provinces may vary from region to region, but "local" in this case means close to home. A potential candidate needs to know the most important aspects of conducting an election campaign. The following tips will help you increase your chances of winning a local election.
Steps
Step 1. Decide which political office is best for you
Step 2. Evaluate your skills, experience and interests
This will help you understand which are the position and the entity (Province, City, Region, State) where your skills can be most useful to the community.
Step 3. Determine if you have access to the funds needed to conduct an election campaign
Running an election campaign can be quite expensive. Alternatively, you can support your application through the support of ordinary people, as a way to keep your campaign budget.
Step 4. Gather the views of those closest to you, people in the community, and local organizations about the decision to run for that position to get an initial idea of the support you have in your community
Step 5. Read up on your community, it is very important to also look beyond what you feel needs change
Actively involve your community to understand what people feel needs improvement.
Step 6. Make a list of respected and trusted characters in the community
Visit these people for advice and to ask them if they will publicly endorse your application.
Step 7. After visiting the community and its prominent people, draw up a program that you believe will bring the greatest benefit to the community
Then you need to think about your speech, in which you will need to highlight the reasons why you are a great candidate, explain how you intend to improve the community and, most importantly, ask for the support of the voters.
Step 8. Depending on the organization you are applying for, you may consider hiring a campaign manager or recruiting an experienced community leader who will volunteer to help you coordinate your campaign
A good campaign manager needs to be bright, motivated, organized, and eager to work just as hard as you are. This figure takes care of your calendar, appointments and other minor details.
Step 9. Be aware of your limitations, both mental and physical
Being a candidate for a certain position can be exhausting, no matter which local authority you are applying to. An election campaign takes up 24 hours a day, it doesn't end until voting closes on election day. A good tip is to think of it as a marathon, not a sprint, which means finding the right pace that you can maintain throughout your campaign.
Step 10. At this point, your community engagement action will have inspired volunteers who will want to support your application
It is up to you to motivate the volunteers, and it will be up to the campaign manager (if you have one) to manage them. Proper organization is key to ensuring these volunteers are exploited effectively. Make sure you take proper care of the volunteers, after all they work many hours for you for free.
Step 11. A successful campaign very often also involves door-to-door promotion that allows the candidate to meet more citizens of the community, and engage them to understand what they feel needs improvement
It also gives the candidate the opportunity to ask for permission to put up a sign to support their candidacy. Such signs are a great way to show people the support you have in the community. People really appreciate seeing the candidate in person, and they welcome the fact that you asked him to vote for you. Especially when they go to the polling station on election day!
Step 12. Create flyers, banners, stickers, pins and signs to distribute door to door, at community events, in parks, in all those places where there are people that you and your volunteers should not leave behind
Consider sending out letters with information about your campaign to reach frequent voters. Note: It is important to comply with local campaign legislation.
Step 13. Organize events that allow people from the community to meet the candidate
These events don't have to be big or excessive. They are just for the opportunity to share your program, and to show why you are the best person to serve the community. Again, the most important part of your speeches is asking people for their vote. These events are also a great way to get the press to write something about your run for that position. In many cities it's difficult, but not impossible, to get adequate press coverage for local elections, but that doesn't mean you don't even have to try.
Step 14. You can issue press releases for local media during your campaign, but don't rely on them continuing to write about your election
Buying advertisements in local newspapers or airing advertisements on local radio can give you a strategic advantage, but all of these come with costs. Consult with your campaign manager, or if you don't have one, consider the effectiveness of this effort. You should know if in your community they read newspapers or which radio stations are the most popular. If you can't answer these questions, you need to work harder. Point. If you don't know what your community likes, how can you expect them to elect you to represent their interests?
Step 15. Fundraisers can be large or small, no matter the number of attendees, no matter the size of the donations
Depending on the position you are applying for or how you, as a candidate, have decided to run your campaign in the early stages, all of this will affect fundraising. Have you decided to spend, spend, spend, or have you chosen a more "popular" approach through the support of the people? The victories have come with both methods, it is a decision that is up to you. Consider the views of the community when determining your campaign budget. You need to know if they think a massive and massive election campaign is impressive or if they prefer a candidate who works hard among the people. Often in a local election, it is the number of people you involve, rather than the amount spent, that matters most. Note: Campaign funding laws are very strict, and it is important to have someone who can manage the funds properly.
Step 16. There is no safe and easy way to win any election, but if you follow the advice above, you will increase your chances of winning
You may have noticed that there has never been any talk of opponents, because as a candidate, the only application you should be interested in is yours. Don't waste your time talking about your opponent, that time may be better used to show that you are the best candidate.
Step 17. In local elections the most important factor is personal contact with the voters
There are so many people today who will make you believe you need to build a public image, or spend a lot of money to impress potential voters. Wrong! Most of the time, the candidate who walks more miles, shakes hands with more people, and rings more bells almost always wins. In a local election, you have to put the people first, and do your best to meet the frequent voters of the area.
Advice
- Make a plan you believe in. You will repeat this many times during the election period, and if you don't believe in your program, your constituents won't believe it either.
- If possible announce your application early, to discourage others who want to participate in the race.
- Campaigns are won through diligence and hard work, and a lot of success can come from surrounding yourself with great people. Recruit people you trust, and always take care of your volunteers.
- Have fun! Applying for a certain position is serious business, but you should appreciate meeting new people, going to new places and fighting for what you believe in!
- Consult with your family, because, like it or not, they will become a part of your political aspirations, and they too will have to go through the ups and downs of the situation. It is best to prepare them in time for what can happen. In politics, be it national or local, anything that remains legally can happen.
Warnings
- Research the legal requirements for the position you are applying for to make sure you meet them.
- Make sure you are familiar with all the rules governing local elections in the area in which you intend to run.
- Being elected causes your past to become public. Before applying, think about whether something from your past would be considered embarrassing or whether you want it to remain private. This also includes your family, politics is often played dirty, and some might think that nothing or no one is off limits.
- Politics causes premature aging and worsening health conditions. Do not you believe it? Search Google for photos of the last four Presidents before their election, and then compare them with those at the end of their term. This is said a bit as a joke, but he wants to prove a point. You may not be a candidate, but politics, at all levels, is a source of stress.
