How to Build a Winning Political Campaign Team

Putting together an effective political campaign team is one of the most important steps a candidate can take. It doesn’t matter if you’re running for city council or Congress—no one runs a successful campaign alone.

A solid campaign team allows for division of labor and delegation of key responsibilities. This frees up the candidate to focus on voter outreach, fundraising, and refining the campaign message. Meanwhile, others can manage operations, logistics, and strategy behind the scenes.

Put together key political staff positions

Recruiting key staff members is important when running for office. Each member should be selected based on their skill set, campaign experience, and ability to operate under pressure. Here’s who to look for:

Campaign manager – a critical member of the team

The role of the campaign manager is critical to success, as they take charge of all campaign-related activities. They serve as the main point of contact between the candidate, staff, volunteers, and outside consultants. In smaller campaigns, they may be the only paid staff member. Finding the right person for this role is critical.

Note: Candidates should NOT act as their own campaign manager. We’ve seen it happen too often when a candidate takes on too many roles and becomes overwhelmed. In the end, they are not left with enough time to do the activities that a candidate should perform, such as voter outreach, personal contact with donors, etc.

Campaign treasurer

This is the person in charge of the campaign’s financial and accounting operations. The job involves approving expenditures, creating and maintaining a budget, tracking contributions, and making sure that the campaign operates within the bounds of election laws and regulations. Ideally, this person has a background in accounting or finance and is familiar with state and federal election laws. Most jurisdictions legally require naming a campaign treasurer before accepting or spending funds.

Field director

A field director is responsible for overseeing and managing the direct voter outreach. This includes organizing door-to-door canvassing, managing phone banks, and coordinating voter registration drives. They also play a crucial role in the final Get Out the Vote (GOTV) operations, making sure that voters are motivated to head to the polls on election day. A field director should have experience organizing and managing volunteer teams, as well as a deep understanding of the political landscape and voting demographics.

Communications director

The communications director handles media relations, messaging, and public appearances. This includes press releases, speech prep, media bookings, and social media coordination. Strong writing and speaking skills are essential, along with the ability to control the campaign’s public narrative.

Fundraising director

A fundraising director is responsible for overseeing fundraising efforts. They identify and contact donors, plan fundraising events, and ensure financial compliance. This person plays a crucial role in raising donations. Strong networking skills, organizational skills and an understanding of the political landscape are needed. This person should be highly organized, have strong networking skills, and understand both the legal rules and the realities of political fundraising.

Political director

A political director oversees the campaign’s political operations, including building relationships with key stakeholders, and developing and executing a political strategy. Your political director should have a deep understanding of the political landscape and experience building and maintaining various relationships. They must also keep on top of identifying key trends and issues, and to help develop effective tactics for the candidate to deal with them.

Digital director

The digital director manages the campaign’s online presence. They oversee the website, email marketing, online ads, online fundraising tools, texting campaigns, and social media platforms. Even small campaigns should have someone focused on digital outreach.

Note: Make sure that more than one person is able to maintain your digital presence. We’ve seen candidates lose their social media expert in the middle of the campaign and be unable to access Facebook or Twitter accounts.

Volunteer coordinators

These people manage volunteers and ensures their activities run smoothly. They often work under and answer to the field director. Volunteer coordinators should be able to work well with others and keep individuals and groups well organized. Volunteers perform all sorts of tasks. They include neighborhood canvassing, operating phone banks, putting up signs and posters, working at events and more.

If you’re running for a larger or more competitive office, such as district attorney, county executive, or state representative, it may make sense to bring on professional consultants or experienced volunteer coordinators early in the campaign. Paid consultants are typically used in larger campaigns for specific tasks. These include political strategy, advertising efforts, managing field operations, and more.

A campaign team is only as good as the people who staff it.

Where to find your team members

For smaller offices like town council or school board, you might start with a few key people and scale up. Larger campaigns for offices like mayor, sheriff, or state senate will need more specialized staff from the beginning. If you’re wondering where to find qualified team members, start with these sources:

• Personal Network: Campaign team members can often be found among the people you know. This includes friends, family, acquaintances, and former colleagues.
• Professional Organizations: Professional organizations such as the American Association of Political Consultants are great places to search.
• Online Job Boards: Online job boards such as LinkedIn, Indeed, and even Monster can be great resources for finding qualified staff.
• Political Parties: Political parties are often a great source of campaign staff. Reach out to your local political party or organization and see if they have any recommendations or connections.
• Campaign Training Programs: Campaign training programs, such as the Campaign School at Yale University and Dare to Run, can be great places to find experienced campaign staff.
• Your Volunteer Pool: Starting with volunteers can be a great way to find dedicated and passionate campaign staff. Many successful team members begin as volunteers and work their way up to become key staff members.

Recruiting and Managing Campaign Volunteers

A successful campaign needs more than staff—it needs committed volunteers.  Start by reaching out to your existing supporters via email, social media, and events. Make it easy for people to sign up and get involved. Once they do, follow up quickly and plug them into meaningful tasks.

Tips for Managing Campaign Volunteers:

• Assign a volunteer coordinator early in the process.
• Provide basic training for tasks like canvassing, phone banking, or event setup.
• Set expectations for hours, responsibilities, and behavior.
• Keep in touch through a clear communication plan—email, phone, or group chat.

Give volunteers regular updates, thank them often, and remind them that their efforts matter.

Onboarding New Team Members

An effective onboarding process is a key factor in having a well-managed team. This process should include introducing new team members to each other. It should provide an overview of the campaign platform and behavior expectations. And when they start, everyone should have the resources they need to do their jobs.

Onboarding should also be tailored to the individual’s specific needs. For example, a new field organizer may require more extensive training on voter outreach and mobilization. A new data analyst may need in-depth training on the campaign’s data analysis tools.

By taking the time to properly train and onboard your volunteers, it will help ensure that everyone is properly prepared for their roles.

Develop a clear division of responsibilities

To develop a clear division of responsibilities, the campaign manager or team leader should take the following steps:

• Assess strengths and weaknesses: Assess the skills and experience of each team member and determine what tasks and responsibilities would be a good fit for each person.
• Create a task list: A comprehensive list of tasks and responsibilities should be created for each position.
• Assign tasks and responsibilities: Each member should be assigned specific tasks and responsibilities based on their strengths and experience.
• Communicate the division of responsibilities: Each team member should know what is expected of them and of others, so there is no confusion in their role or position.

We’ve worked in campaigns where a team manager did not communicate effectively with the candidate and volunteers. This led to misunderstandings that caused volunteers to quit. Once this happened just before a yard sign delivery run, and it delayed putting out signage by several days.

When everyone knows what they are to do, they can focus on their specified tasks. This can help prevent burnout and ensure that everyone stays on track with their short- and long-term goals.

Conclusion

Building your political campaign team is one of the most important steps you’ll take as a candidate. Choose people who are capable, trustworthy, and committed to the cause. Give them the tools and guidance they need—and let them do their jobs.

You don’t have to do this alone—and you shouldn’t.

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Start strong and stay organized—your team (and your voters) will thank you.