Do Your Homework

In this continuing series, we explore the results of a survey conducted among more than 50 state and local new leaders asking for any voluntary advice they might give to new or inexperienced new leaders seeking elected office.  Part 7 can be found here.

Think back to when you were in high school. This might mean a time before the Internet, computers, mobile phones and cars that went faster than 50 mph. Did you enjoy spending your precious time doing schoolwork for classes that you haven’t used since? Did you think it was a waste of time? Thankfully, the homework that you put in your campaign can pay off — big time. One of the most common questions a new candidate often has is “Where can I find willing financial donors?” This is where your homework comes in.

Every donation to a campaign has to be reported and made available for public perusal. Most people never take the time to look into them unless they are reporters looking for a story or an inspector making sure all your records are in order. These records must be stored for several years even after the election is over. Because of this, former candidates (especially successful ones) will have lists of donors that they might be willing to share with you. This makes it tremendously easy to have a list of possible contributors with almost no work. Find out what candidate ran for your position in the previous election cycle: Odds are most of those same donors have not moved or changed their political views since then.

In case you are unable to locate this information, talk to your local political party office. Donors will often contribute through a party headquarters or the party might maintain copies of the financial records of previous candidates’ contributors. If the party does have these records, the odds are they will want to share them with you. Remember: They have something to gain from you getting elected, too.

Finally, look into the kinds of organizations that you support, especially if you are a member. Many will give to a campaign if asked. These contributions can come in many shapes: They will sometimes send out questionnaires (whether you ask for them or not) which they will use in their publications for promotional endorsements. Other times they will invite you to a dinner or roundtable discussion where you will have the opportunity to make a lasting impression on possible donors. Always remember to seize upon every promising opportunity that presents itself.