Political Campaign Tips and Strategies by Online Candidate

Campaigning During the Holiday Season

This message came to several of our business email accounts yesterday morning:

I’m Running for Congress
My name is [REDACTED], and I’m running to be the next US Congressman for [REDACTED] Congressional District.

And the email went on for another 400 words about the candidate, why he’s running, and then ended with a “Donate Now” button.

Seriously?

Putting aside the fact that our email was harvested for this spam message and that the candidate is not even a client of ours and we are not in the same state, what was the point of that announcement?

If you are running for office in the next year, you are probably excited and full of enthusiasm. You want to get the word out to as many people as you can as soon as possible.

It’s totally understandable, but we have some advice.

Here is what you should NOT do in December: Active campaigning.

During the holiday season, most people are not interested in hearing about politics. They are focusing on family, friends, and other things that are more important to them. Your primary or election day is the furthest thing from their minds right now. At best, soliciting for money or support this time of year is annoying. At worst, it comes across as annoying or disrespectful.

Here is what you SHOULD be doing in December: Preparing to run for office.

Winning candidates lay the groundwork for success long before Election Day. As Sun Tzu said, “Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.”

The most important things you can do early on are prepare your messaging, pull together your campaign team, and start putting together an election-season strategy.
Just hold off on active campaigning during the holidays. This applies to all major holidays throughout the year, including New Year’s Day, Thanksgiving, Independence Day, Memorial Day, Labor Day, Veterans Day, and Super Bowl Sunday.

And the final kicker?

The candidate who spammed us didn’t even have a working campaign website.

The Money Is In The List – Have You Started Yours?

Winning political campaigns lay the groundwork for success long before Election Day.

In traditional marketing, it’s said that the money is in the mailing list. For digital marketing campaigns, that money is in the email list.

If you are running for office, you need a relevant list of active email subscribers that you can call upon for political fundraising. Even if you start small, with enough time and effort, your political email list can grow to become your campaign’s most important asset.

How are you building and maintaining your list?

A small, targeted email list is worth far, far more than an untargeted list. When starting your email list, it will begin with people you know, including relatives and friends.

When you start, use a reliable email marketing vendor, like MailChimp or Aweber. These services have tools for list management, built-in email templates, and analytics, so you can track which emails get opened, what subject lines work best, and what links are clicked within an email.

Grow your list organically and avoid purchasing addresses from outside sources. You can capture email addresses through a variety of sources.

Create an email sign-up form on your campaign website. Make it large and stand out. Your sign-up forms should be visible throughout your site.
Add the ability to sign up for your list through your social media accounts (such as a Facebook tab or by ‘pinning’ a post). Encourage signups on your site through the occasional post or tweet. Target people who follow you on social media but are not yet signed up for emails.
Create online petitions or other forms of communication as a way to request email addresses.
Use offline methods, such as signup forms, at your campaign events. The ‘permission’ requirements for email marketing services can also include offline permission. If you have it, then you can manually add those addresses.

For your welcome email and all subsequent emails, include information on how subscribers can donate to your campaign, volunteer to help, and follow your campaign on social media.

Most email marketing services allow you to create a follow-up series of emails that send out a sequence of messages at a predetermined interval (called autoresponders). Autoresponders provide an easy way to automatically keep in touch with subscribers. Just make sure they are not time-sensitive and that you do not let them run past your Election Day.

Use your email list to keep in touch with the campaign. Don’t do it too often, and don’t make the primary subject of every message a generic beg for money. When the election is over, you can keep subscribers posted on important news and issues.

Need help getting started with MailChimp or Aweber? We offer email marketing setup services for Online Candidate clients.

How the right email list helps your campaign

There are additional benefits to growing your own organic email list.

Targeted lists have better deliverability. When recipients expect your messages, they are less likely to label them as spam. As more recipients interact by clicking links, saving, or forwarding your messages, email services like Gmail will less likely treat your messages as promotions.

A good email (and social media) strategy provides time and opportunity to spread the word about your campaign and the issues.

As you establish a greater level of trust with your subscribers, it becomes much easier to ask for additional help from them, including financial support by way of donation requests.

In reality, the money is really in the relationships that you build with your list, not the list itself.

Your best bet is to start early. The more time spent growing a strong email list, the more it will help you when election season rolls around.

Post-election engagement is vital. Your email list remains invaluable, and it keeps you connected your with constituents. Use email to keep them updated on news, policies, and community projects. Constituent engagement is an ongoing commitment when you are elected. Even if you do not win, your list will be a valuable tool for your next race!

This article was originally posted on OnlineCandidateResources.com, which provides online marketing articles tools and resources. Access is free for all Online Candidate political website clients.

Why Are You Running For Office? Simple Question, Tough Answer.

Whether you are aiming for city council, Congress, or even President of the United States, one of the first questions that any candidate is asked is, “Why are you running for office?”

It’s not an easy question.

Believe it or not, many political candidates can’t provide a good reason for why they are running for elected office. A large factor in the success of any campaign is messaging. Without being able to articulate a reason for your candidacy, you’ll struggle to gain strong supporters to help your campaign.

After all, if you can’t explain why you are running, then what reason would voters have to elect you?

I am running for office because…

There are many motivations for political candidates, ranging from the benevolent to the selfish. Some people run for office because they may have personal animosity toward the incumbent or their local government at large. They feel the best way to solve the problem is to do the job themselves – and stick it to the opposition at the same time.

Others run because there is a particular issue that they care about. It may be a large or small issue. And if they can tie that passion to a large block of voters, it can help form a base of broad support.

Consider the best answer to ‘Why am I running for office?” What are you passionate about? What do you want to achieve?

Generic reasons like, “I want to give back to the community” or “I want to make a difference” are bland and will not generate voter interest.
“I was asked to be a candidate by the party.” This is a terrible explanation and only signals that you are a put-up candidate just to fill an open slot on the ballot.
“I am making a run for elected office because I want to make a difference in the lives of the people that need help.” That’s better, but it lacks specifics.

Try to tie who you are with what you want to achieve, along with how your efforts will make a positive difference if you win.

For example, “I am running for town board because I’ve lived here all my life. As a homeowner and parent, I want to keep this town a great place to raise a family. I have the experience in finance and community service necessary to be an effective town board member. I will work hard and make sure your voice is heard.”

This statement ties into who you are, what ties you to the community, and why a voter should support you.

Putting together a longer explanation that incorporates your unique experiences can be used to write out your candidate biography. In this, you can go more into depth about yourself, your reasons for seeking office, and the personal perspectives that you bring to the table.

What do you want to do if you win the election?

This is a slightly different question, but it ties in closely with the first. Why you seek office is only part of the story. The consequences of winning an election are the other half.

Voters want to know what’s in it for them. If you have a specific policy or goal you want to achieve once you are elected, you should be prepared to talk about it.

If you can combine your goals and ideas with why you are seeking office, you’ll have a good basis for putting together a quick elevator speech.

Work on your elevator pitch

A candidate’s elevator pitch is longer than a slogan but shorter than a full personal biography. You should prepare a brief statement that articulates your reasons for running. This statement should be concise enough to remember and share on the spot.

You can base your elevator pitch on your candidate bio. Simply strip it down and rewrite it in just a few sentences.

Once you have it created, memorize your pitch and have it ready to repeat when you need it. As you get more comfortable, you’ll be able to tell your story easily and succinctly.

In conclusion

There are bad reasons to run and good reasons to get into politics. Not only have local candidates been tripped up when answering why they want to be elected, but so has at least one presidential candidate.

If you can’t come up with a solid answer of what you hope to accomplish in office, then perhaps you should reconsider running at all.

With our affordable political website packages, why wait? Your domain, hosting, and content platform are all included so you can focus on what you do best – connecting with voters.

So You Want To Run For State Legislature? Here’s How To Get Started

Running for state legislature is not easy for political newcomers. There are many steps to take before you can start a campaign. You need to build support, raise funds, and gain endorsements before you even think about stepping into the political arena.

State legislatures are the representative bodies of each state. Legislatures have the power to affect the health, economy and lives of all state residents.

Legislators are members of the state legislative branch of government. They are elected by the public to work for the state government. The legislative branch also has other responsibilities: to govern by proposing bills, holding votes, passing laws, and to represent the interests of the state in which they serve.

This article is about how to run as a state representative or state senate candidate. You’ll need to learn about eligibility requirements, establishing an effective campaign team, and the process for getting on the ballot.

Let’s start with the basics.

How state legislatures are structured
Why do you want to run for state legislature?
Who can be a candidate for state legislature?
Where can you get help starting your campaign?
How much money will you need raise for a state race?
Creating a campaign committee
Filing your documents and nominating petition
Conclusion

How state legislatures are structured

State legislatures are the law-making branch of government in the United States. The legislature has two houses – the Senate and the House or Assembly. Basically, each state legislature acts like a miniature Congress, in that they have a lot in common in terms of the legislative process and a lot of power. Even though each state legislature in the United States is unique, they tend to work the same way:

Most legislatures are bicameral, which means that they have two separate chambers. The “lower” house, called the House or Assembly, has a larger number of members that represent smaller geographical areas. The “upper” house, called the state Senate, has fewer members that represent larger geographical areas.

Note: Nebraska is the only state with a single legislative chamber that is made up of one house called the Unicameral. The 49 representatives of the Unicameral are called senators.

There are responsibilities associated with becoming elected a state representative or state senator. You must adhere to and abide by state campaign laws and regulations.

State election regulations include:

How you can run for office.
How and when you can raise money.
How campaign contributions can be spent.
Advertising regulations.
Everything in between.

Finally, becoming elected a state legislator requires convincing the majority of voters to elect you. If this is your first election, it can be overwhelming how things work. However, you will find the process easier to understand by starting with the basics.

“A legislature cannot be effective while suffering from public scorn.” – John Bercow

Why do you want to run for state legislator?

The job of a state legislator is incredibly complex. It requires a vast knowledge of policy, experience with politics, and the ability to work on many different fronts at once.

It’s not surprising that it can be difficult to find people who want to run for this position. However, if you’re thinking about running for a state legislator office, there are some things you should keep in mind before you jump in with both feet.

Before you start campaigning for an elected state position, you should have clear goals in mind. What are some of the challenges facing your constituents? How would your policies help them? If you want to be an effective and true representative of your constituents, you’ll need to show that you are a better choice than your opponent.

According to FiscalNote, these are the top policy issues facing state legislators:

Budget/Finances
Education
Healthcare
Police Reform
Systemic Racism
Redistricting
Cybersecurity/Ransomware
Genetic Data Privacy
Occupational Licensing Reform

One or more of these issues could be the basis of your candidacy. Learn the issues and how they affect taxpayers and residents of your district. Your campaign will be able to cover both the issues and your positions on them.

Running for state office requires putting together a coalition of voters based on age, household income, education level, ethnicity, and political affiliation. Identify these voters to target your get out the vote efforts.

Research previous campaigns. How did those candidates conduct their campaigns? What issues did they run on? What success have they achieved?

With this information, you can begin to design a robust campaign strategy as you run for state senate or state representative.

As a candidate, your people skills, ability to speak and debate, along with a network of volunteers and support from civic and community leaders will help you stand out from other candidates.

Your people skills will be an important part of your campaign. Your speaking, debating, and networking abilities will also help you stand out from your opponents.

Running for office? Get free tips for starting and running our digital campaign. Sign up here.

Who can be a candidate for state senate or representative?

To run for a state legislative seat, potential candidates must meet certain qualifications. States define the age and residency requirements for anyone who can run for and serve in the legislature.

Before you begin your campaign, you should be familiar with the common requirements for state legislative candidates:

Age requirements

Generally, to become a legislator, a person needs to be at least 21 years of age. Most states require that House candidates be 21 years or older, and Senate candidates be 25 years or older.

There are some exceptions:

Louisiana, Massachusetts, Montana, and Wisconsin allow state legislators to be only 18 years or older for both house and senate candidates.
Kentucky, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Missouri require state senators to be at least 30 years old.
North Dakota, Ohio, and Vermont state legislatures do not have age requirements.

State and district residency requirements

Most cities require that candidates should be residents of the state for at least one to three years. Some outliers include Kentucky (6 years for Senate), Massachusetts (5 years for Senate), Mississippi (4 years), New Hampshire (6 years for Senate) and New York (5 years). Only Kansas simply requires state residency.

Besides residing the state, a candidate must be a resident of the district that they intend to represent. Most states require district residency of only a year or more. Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and West Virginia require less time.

New Hampshire and Wisconsin simply require residency as of the election date.

U.S. Citizenship. Most states require U.S. citizenship, except Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Vermont, and West Virginia.

Voter registration status. Surprisingly, only about half of the states require that a state legislative candidate be a registered voter.

Criminal history. Some states don’t prohibit candidates with certain convictions from serving. Some that do require the candidate to disclose this information before they file.

The requirement information listed above is not a comprehensive guide. Please consult your state election officials and state election regulation authority to determine your own qualifications.

Where to get help on starting your campaign?

The state board of elections is the government agency that administers voting and elections, registers voters, and collects campaign finance information. The board can help you start your campaign or get more information about the process.

You can start by looking at the list on your state board’s website for offices in your area. These offices provide both general information about starting a campaign and specific guidance such as how to register your candidacy with them.

“What matters is voting for where you live: Who’s your state legislator, who’s your police chief, who represents you, your city council, your judges. That matters that you vote.” – Joe Walsh

How much money does a state race cost?

In the United States, elections are largely a state-run affair. To fund elections, all states set their own rules and regulations on campaigning and fundraising actives.

The expense of state office campaigns has seen a huge surge in recent years.

If you’re running for state office, it is important to budget for your campaign. The amount of money you can raise will depend on what type of campaign you want to run and when you want to start this process.

Many political campaign teams have seen the benefits in using digital fundraising platforms, which allow them to reach a wider audience, avoid the costs of postage and printing, and engage supporters in a more modern way.

Early donors will be some of your most important backers. Even small online contributions allow candidates to raise more funds, which can help them gain more money and support from their home districts. Start a website as soon as you can to accept donations from online donors.

In addition, many candidates running for state seats today are relying on a larger pool of out-of-state donors who give in smaller amounts.

Research previous state elections

Election costs vary from state to state and district to district. Before you plan for fundraising, you should calculate the amount needed for your election. The state board of elections have financial campaign disclosures.

Many factors can affect the costs of a campaign. For example, if you are running against an entrenched incumbent, then you will need a bigger budget. Research the amount raised and spent from other recent state candidates to get an idea of your budgetary needs.

Public election financing in various states

Five states provide state legislative offices with some form of public financing option. They are Arizona, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maine, and Minnesota. Public financing plans allow candidates to accept public money in exchange for a promise to limit both their spending on the election and how much in donations they receive from any single group or individual.

“The legislature are a little more difficult to educate than the governor is.” – Judy Martz

Creating a campaign committee

Before you actively run, you will need to establish a campaign committee, designate a campaign treasurer, and have a campaign bank account.

A treasurer is one of the most important positions. You will need one in place before the making any expenditures or accepting any funds for the campaign.

The treasurer is responsible for:

Signing and filing of committee reports and statements
Expense budgeting
Ensuring contributions fall within legal amounts
Authorization of spending

This position is sensitive and comes with significant responsibilities, and so you must have a trusted individual for the job. The treasurer should develop a campaign budget that includes sources of money and expenditures for the entire campaign period.

Other members of your campaign team include:

Chairperson
Communications director
Campaign manager
Volunteer coordinator

A campaign committee is a legal business entity. You will need to establish one before you declare your candidacy.

Filing your documents and nominating petition

There are a several to take before becoming a candidate for a state seat. All candidates must meet the requirements to be eligible. In the process of seeking office, they will have to file documentation that they intend to run before their candidacy can be considered.

Collect signatures for your petition

While every state allows candidates to collect signatures for a nominating petition to get on the ballot, 38 states require it. Petitions are filed when candidates submit their candidate qualification paperwork.

The exact number of petition signatures will vary. Some states require a certain number of signatures, while others only require a certain percentage of the population. You may need to recruit canvassers and volunteers to help get the required signatures. Once your organization has collected the required number of signatures, the next task is filing the candidate’s affidavit and any other required election documents.

Pay your filing fees to become a candidate

What would anything having to do with the state be without some sort of fee? For state candidates, the “filing fees” for state candidates are either set by the state’s government or its political parties.

In most states, the state determines the filing fees. Only Alabama, Arkansas, and Delaware allow the political parties to set the filing fees.

The fees vary between State Senator and State Representative seats and if the candidate is independent or belongs as Democrat, Republican or other major party. They range from nothing in Arizona to $7,500 for Republicans if you are running for Senate in Arkansas. There are exceptions for indigent candidates.

“All anyone needs to enjoy the state legislature is a strong stomach and a complete insensitivity to the needs of the people. As long as you don’t think about what that peculiar body should be doing and what it actually is doing to the quality of life in Texas, then it’s all marvelous fun.” – Molly Ivins

Conclusion: It’s a lot of work

The qualification process of becoming an elected official can be long and tedious. Research, numerous forms, personal outreach, and more are required before you can officially start your campaign.

Start with your state board of elections and reach out to others who have run or been involved in the campaigning process. They can provide valuable information and insights as to what steps you need to take. There are also a number of training programs to help with all aspects of the political process, from fundraising to making speeches.

If you are looking to jump into the race, start early. Time on the trail goes by quickly!

Featuring an affordable political website builder, tools, and marketing services, start your campaign with Online Candidate.

A List of Our Best Mayor Campaign Slogans

As a candidate running for town or city mayor, you’ll want to make an impression on voters. A great political campaign slogan can help to accomplish this. They give voters a reason to remember your name rather than your opponents’.

Your mayoral election slogan will be an indication of your priorities and major issues during campaigning. It is important to show that you are committed to your town, city or village, so be sure use your tagline in all your print and web promotion.

Here are mayor slogans that are catchy, fresh, and memorable:

Your City, Your Government
Serving You
It’s Time for a Change
Getting Results for [Location]
Proven [Leadership/Tax Cutter]
Keep [City] Moving Forward
Let’s Make a Difference!
Make Your Voice Heard
Leadership, Experience, Integrity
Vote for a Brighter Tomorrow
Working Together, For Change
Fighting for [Location]’s Taxpayers
For Effective Government
Your Vote, Your Voice
Keep the Progress
Sensible Growth, Continued Progress
A Fresh Start
Restore our City
A Mayor for the People
Your Voice for Positive Change
Protecting Taxpayers
A Better Place to Live
Safe Streets, Safe Town
Right Time, Right Choice.
New Leadership for a Better [Location]
Fighting for Open Government
Vote for a Better Tomorrow
Standing Up For What’s Right

It is often hard to get people to come out for small elections, such as town and city council elections. This is because most people focus on national and state races. But local elections and the candidates running for office are, in many ways, just as important.

Online Candidate offers multiple website packages to help you launch fast and look professional. Find out which one fits your campaign.

State Election and Voting Information Links

Below is a list of the voting and state election board information for all fifty states, including the District of Columbia. You’ll find links to each state’s filing requirements, candidate lists, campaign finance information, registration deadlines, filing deadlines and more.

If you want to know your local election schedule registration, start with the state election information listed here. These sites also provide links to voter registration, poll site lookups, absentee and military voting information and district maps. If you’re running for a local position, check your county board of elections website.

Local municipalities also have voting and election information online. Try a search for “Your County + Board of Elections”. To help voters and supporters, be sure to link to local voting registration information from your campaign website. Also, most local board of election sites post final election results by precinct and district breakdown. They often do this within hours of the polls closing. (But you probably knew that already.)

New voter or haven’t voted in a while? You’ll want to check your voter registration rules to make sure you are still eligible.

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