THE POLITICS GUY TM
CAMPAIGN TIPS
JUNE 2009

So you’re considering a run for legislature, city or town council or school board. Now is the time for financial, physical and mental conditioning. Your stamina over the 18 months leading to Nov. 2, 2010 can make or break the campaign.

Financial planning comes first. You CANNOT legally use campaign funds for personal expenses. So put in that overtime or close those extra commission sales over the next few months. Beef up your savings so that you can cover necessary personal expenses like mortgage or rent, utilities, car payments and food during the final months of the election cycle when you might be taking time off from work without pay.

Take the family on a nice vacation this summer because you won’t be able to take one or have as much quality time with the family next year. You’ll be spending the summer of 2010 campaigning every weekend at community picnics, the local Fourth of July Parade, the county fair and other events where large groups of voters gather. Save up your paid vacation days because you’ll need them between September and Election Day next year for heavy duty campaigning and get-out-the-vote.

If you have the opportunity to choose a shift, think about asking your boss in 2010 for a 6 a.m.p-3 p.m. or 7 a.m.-4 p.m. shift. That’s ideal to miss a minimal amount of work time so you don’t take an earnings hit. And it gets you out early enough in the day that you can drive straight from work to a neighborhood to do door-to-door campaigning every day until dusk. You‘ll finish the door knocking in time to make an evening town meeting or Republican Club event.

Physical condition must begin right now. Join a gym or health club and work out religiously. It’s a crucial campaign component. It’s a long road to Election Day and you’ll need stamina. Train for the Nov. 2, 2010 finish line just as a runner trains year around for a specific Olympic run or Marathon date.

Without physical conditioning, fatigue will set in right at crunch time before the election. You’ll be too tired to go that extra block of door knocking there there are dozens of voters or you’ll be so exhausted you won’t do out on a day when your opponent has canvassed an entire neighborhood.

And fatigue affects you mentally. You might not feel so sharp and it will come across at a crucial candidate night speech. Or, you’ll say things you’ll regret the moment they leave your lips.

Part of campaign conditioning includes diet. Your eating habits will change. You’ll miss meals with the family and munch in the car while driving to campaign appearances or door-to-door neighborhoods. You’ll have to be a good guest when a kind supporter throws a living room campaign coffee and she offers her special cake or pie or cookies which, she’ll insist, are “the best you’ve ever tasted.”

A special word on alcohol. Do NOT drink at fundraisers or political cocktail parties, even if you’re being a good sport buying a round for others. Stick to ginger ale or club soda with a twist. Fatigue and booze are a deadly mixture. That combination can cause regrettable comments to come out of your mouth. And even one drink might be an impairment when you’re fatigued. You’d hate to have rumors spread that the candidate was stopped by an officer for driving under the influence. If you enjoy an adult beverage to relax, wait until you get home at the end of the night.

Putting your financial, physical and mental house in order now will pay big dividends on Election Day.

The Politics Guy Campaign Tips will be published periodically at RLC.org to help pro-liberty candidates get elected.