When Should You Begin Campaigning For Your Election?

If you are planning to run for office, you should start campaigning as soon as you can. That’s all. End of post.

No, not really. It’s a little more complicated than that.

Much of your campaigning will happen close to Election Day, but there is much you can do to lay the groundwork for starting your political career much sooner.

Planning, prioritizing, and building early support are crucial in order to take the first step towards starting a future in politics. This includes forming a robust campaign committee, developing a clear and resonant campaign message, and establishing a solid campaign infrastructure.

Start with the campaign basics

If you are a new or first-time candidate, one of the first things you’ll want to do is to start a political campaign committee. This committee is essential for legal fundraising and managing campaign finances. It’s also crucial for voter targeting strategies and volunteer coordination. You’ll need a committee in place in order to legally accept donations or even spend money on your campaign. The rules and requirements on establishing a committee differ somewhat from state to state.

Once you have a campaign committee in place, along with designated treasurer, you will have to open a bank account. A bank account is an important tool for any candidate, charity, or non-profit. This account is basically a separate checking account that can be used for all of your campaign and organization expenses. It will help you keep track of how much money you have and where it’s going. It’s also helpful because it will isolate your personal spending from your campaign finances.

You may not know exactly what you need when you to start running for office, but your local Board of Elections is the place to go. They’re the ones who will tell you what paperwork you need to create a campaign committee. This will include a Statement of Candidacy, a Filing Fee, and Statement of Organization.

Crafting a Clear, Compelling Campaign Message

Just as you start laying the groundwork for your campaign, you’ll need to develop a clear, compelling message. What do you stand for? What are your key campaign goals? Can you explain them in a speech, a brochure, and in a single talking point? Your message will need to be tailored to your the specific voter audience you want to reach.

Build your online support network

These days, technology is crucial to all aspects of political campaigns. As a candidate, you will want influence over what people see, hear and read about you online. To do that, you need an online identity and to create a personal brand for yourself. This means creating personal accounts on social networks and professional websites. Only provide information that you are comfortable sharing. Keep in mind, of course, that if you are running for public office, eventually there won’t be much information about you that won’t be made public.

Local #political candidates need an online identity to create a personal brand. via @onlinecandidate Click To Tweet

The value in building a personal online network is that you can begin slowly and grow your connections and influence with others. These connections can help build relationships and make yourself better known. The purpose of engaging others online is to get people to know, like, and trust you. The earlier you start this, the longer you have to build support.

Eventually, you’ll create social media accounts and a website to promote your political campaign. You’ll want to build out your online presence as early as you can. Eventually, you’ll ask your personal connections to follow your political campaign accounts and engage with them.

Build even more support offline

Of course, as much as we deal with the online realm, it’s the boots-on-the-ground work in the real world that wins elections. You’ll want a balance between your online activities (like social media and website interactions) and offline efforts (such as community meetings and door-to-door canvassing). Both sides complement each other. And when combined, they’ll maximize your campaign’s reach and impact.

We see examples of this with clients using brochures with QR codes that lead to their websites and social media profiles. This strategy guides voters from a tangible brochure to the campaign’s online presence, enhancing overall engagement and reach.

Build relationships with supporters long before you ask them for help. http://ow.ly/JWDl30gBiyb Click To Tweet

It’s important to build relationships with potential donors and supporters before you ever ask them for money or ask them to do work. Get supporters on the ground floor of your campaign. Give them the opportunity to help you shape your campaign plan.

Ultimately, you will ask these people to act on your behalf. Individuals with whom you have built relationships and have an investment in your election victory will become your most important supporters and volunteers.

Secure your endorsements early

Early endorsements from influential individuals and organizations can lend credibility from the outset. Start identifying and reaching out to potential endorsers early in your campaign. Securing an endorsement can take time, so start these conversations early.

Not sure about running for office? Consider ‘testing the waters’

You may even want to ‘test the waters’ before deciding to campaign for office”. As a potential candidate, particularly for Federal office, may want to conduct polling or travel your district or state to see if there is enough potential voter support for your candidacy.

Some candidates are even using crowdfunding before they make the decision to run. That way they can secure seed money donations before they start campaigning.

While others are recovering from #ElectionDay, smart candidates are already hard at work. via @onlinecandidate Click To Tweet

Smart campaign managers and candidates are already looking ahead to the next election even before the current one is over. While others are still recovering from Election Day, the next cycle has already begun. Forward-thinking candidates are already hard at work.

Wait at your own risk

A local village candidate in a March election passed up an interview with a local newspaper a month or so before the election because he “didn’t want to tip his hat” about his candidacy. Be the time he made his formal announcement a few weeks before voting, it was too late. He didn’t have the time or budget to get the word out.

Not coincidentally, he lost the election.

In conclusion

Some people may feel that they are too young or not sufficiently prepared to be a political candidate. Others wait until they have achieved more in life. Either way, the best time to start campaigning is an open-ended question with no easy answer.

But when you do decide to run, you’ll be in a much better position than your opposition if you start taking the steps to prepare as early as you can.