It's time for resolutions and goals for the new year. Are you putting the same ones at the top of this year's list as you did last year? Lose weight. Stop smoking/drinking/pick-your-poison. Exercise more. Get a new/better/more interesting job. All worthy pursuits.
But what about scratching that itch that never seems to go away for us politically plugged in types? What about really getting involved and making things happen locally?
I'm talking about running for local office. And I'm looking at every single one of you and asking you to seriously consider it this year.
This is the time of year that people are deciding whether they will run for re-election to local offices. What is a local office?
City Council
County Commission
School Board
Water Board
Etc......
They may go by different names in your community, and they have different terms (2-4 years is the norm). Most of these elections happen in May or November, and you can learn more by visiting the websites of your local city, county and Secretary of State's office. Look for the Elections page and that should lead you in the right direction. Pay close attention to the filing deadlines and the requirements- petitions, signatures, fees, and the cost to get into your voter's pamphlet are all things you'll need to know.
Running for local office isn't as complex as you think it is. More people will be willing to support you than you think- you just need to start talking to people about what they think needs to happen locally. Believe me, everyone has an opinion and will tell you without hesitation. People are tired of seeing the same people running every year. They're tired of the same boring claptrap, tired of local officials failing to listen to their local constituents. They want to vote for a candidate who will listen to them- YOU!
Start going to your local Democratic Party meetings, introduce yourself to people and get contact info. These people will be able to hook you up with the electronic voter files in your area which has a wealth of info on the doors you should be knocking on.
Reach out to organizations like:
The Candidate Project - they've got great info to get you started
Democracy For America - has quite possibly the best campaign training I've attended (and believe me, I've been to a LOT of them!). And they have Campaign Night School!
Emerge America - WOMEN!! Go here to see if your state has an Emerge chapter yet. Excellent training and wonderful networking opportunities await! We need to get more progressive women elected nationwide, because the conversation changes when women are at the table. And ladies, don't say "P'shaw, I could never do something like that!", because I can tell you that thought never crosses the mind of your male opponent. You absolutely can do this. If I can do it, anyone can.
These are just a few of the resources available to you to make your run for local office a success.
Remember, these local positions help feed the pipeline to higher office- those state legislative positions that so desperately need more progressives! Not to mention the big fish- federal level. But one step at a time folks.
It all starts right in your own community. Make a difference right in your hometown.
Make the decision to run for local office! Or at least start recruiting great people who should run! With all these resources, you can become the local expert in helping good people get elected locally, if you can't run yourself.
Your community will thank you!