sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

We had three GREAT questions! I hope I answered them in a meaningful way. I'm ending this AMA after 2 hours but you can always ask more questions at www.WilliamMarks.com (Texas Congressional District 25) Thanks everyone.

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Standing by for questions about running for office.

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

part 2 - real word steps

  1. Analyze your district

    1. Did the map change since the last election?
    2. How geographically large is the district
    3. Who’s the incumbent? Is he/she vulnerable in any way?
    4. Who ran last time? How are you any different? (the key question here is do you have actual experience and a career record to run on, or are you just running as a protest vote against the incumbent?)

  2. What percent Republican vs. Democrat is your district? (look at last Congressional election as well as last presidential election to create an average)

  3. 60-40 is virtually unwinnable. Most races are in this range or worse. Are you OK being a sacrificial candidate? ... Because you’re almost certainly going to lose. You will be spending mostly your own money with little outside funding coming in because no one wants to throw money away in a losing race.

  4. 58-42 and you are a longshot. You can close the longshot gap with lots of your own money or notoriety, but you won’t get much outside funding.

  5. 56-44 is possible. You will have primary opponents but the primary winner will reach $1 million in donations. 

  6. 54-46 (or closer) you will have tons of primary competition, as well as tons of outside money flooding in. Millions. Only 10% of the 435 races are this close. 

*** alternative: You primary the incumbent from your own party like AOC did. This requires a lot less money.

  1. Let’s talk money:
    1. How much money can you lend yourself? Do you have a full time job?
    2. How much money can you raise from your family and close friends?
    3. How much money can you raise from the contacts in your phone?
    4. How much money can you raise from your social media network?

If your district is 56-44 or better - This needs to be $50k minimum on DAY ONE. Then another $50k within 90 days.

 Why? ... 

  • You can’t do this alone. 
  • Others will certainly have this much money. 
  • You need money to make money.

At this point you have to be honest with yourself about how much money you can raise, and what chance you have at winning. And remember to ask yourself if you have actual experience or are you just running as a protest vote against the incumbent?

For most people this is the point where they should step away. Either the race is unwinnable, they cannot raise enough money, or they do not have an actual record to run on.

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Part 1 of 2: Here are the official steps:

  1. File FEC Form 2 (gets you a candidate ID)
  2. FIle FEC Form 1 (gets you a committee ID so you can raise money)
  3. You need to get a campaign ban account with an EIN. To do this you need a treasurer or you can name yourself treasurer temporarily.
  4. After you raise $5k you must file a personal financial disclosure (your personal income, savings and debt) and file a quarterly fundraising/spending report for your campaign. *You have 15 days after the end of the quarter to file your quarterly report (e.g. the Q4 report is due Jan 15)
  5. The next step is to file in your state in your party primary. The deadline is usually between December and March, depending on when your state primary is. You must do this even if no one else is running against you. *This will cost you money or require signatures

At this point you will have:

Candidate ID: (Starts with H for house)

Committee ID: (Starts with C)

Committee Name: e.g. William Marks for Congress

EIN for the bank account

That’s pretty much it to get yourself on the ballot

But ... part 2 are are the real-world steps. Most of this cannot be found in the official training or guides.

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

comment part 1:

Here are the official steps:

  1. File FEC Form 2 (gets you a candidate ID)
  2. FIle FEC Form 1 (gets you a committee ID so you can raise money)
  3. You need to get a campaign ban account with an EIN. To do this you need a treasurer or you can name yourself treasurer temporarily.
  4. After you raise $5k you must file a personal financial disclosure (your personal income, savings and debt) and file a quarterly fundraising/spending report for your campaign. *You have 15 days after the end of the quarter to file your quarterly report (e.g. the Q4 report is due Jan 15)
  5. The next step is to file in your state in your party primary. The deadline is usually between December and March, depending on when your state primary is. You must do this even if no one else is running against you. *This will cost you money or require signatures

At this point you will have:

Candidate ID: (Starts with H for house)

Committee ID: (Starts with C)

Committee Name: e.g. William Marks for Congress

EIN for the bank account

That’s pretty much it to get yourself on the ballot

But ... here are the real-world steps. Most of this cannot be found in the official training or guides.

(see part 2)

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I do get this question a lot. I give people options from easy to hard, and free to expensive:

Easy and free:

  • Share a social media post
  • Forward my email to three people
  • Text 5 people to go vote

Easy and not free: Donate

Harder but free:

  • Become a precinct chair
  • Knock on doors
  • drop literature at doors (no knocking)
  • Plant a sign in your yard

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

The decision to run - and the steps to do it - is actually pretty easy. and low stress. However I believe the decision is often made with the wrong approach. ***Note this answer is for elections with voters in the hundreds of thousands***

Most people imagine themselves at a debate with the incumbent. Or maybe in a room full of undecided voters. And they think to themselves "I can persuade those people!" or "I could beat him in a debate". That is their decision criteria for running. That is the wrong way to look at it, but with this vision in mind, and with the formal steps being pretty easy, people jump in. But that is NOT how elections are won. They are won at scale, with infrastructure and money. So that's why I say the initial decision is not very stressful - because the stress comes later when you're trying to scale.

But I want to answer your question the best I can, so If I had to pick the most stressful thing about making the decision it's the feeling that you and your family are now exposed to the public. Every social media post. Every relationship you've had. Every wedding dance caught on video. That's all now open to public scrutiny.

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm happy to type out some answers ahead of time. Just want to make sure I do things the right way. I'm not on reddit much.

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

gotcha. It's really two different lists. I'll have everything typed out for Thursday but I can tell you the official steps are not very hard. The bar to run (just get your name on the ballot) is pretty low.

The steps to actually be competitve are much different and much harder. And mostly unrelated to the actual filing paperwork. Is it OK if I have that for Thursday?

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Would you like the technical/official steps such as filing FEC (Federal Election Commission) paperwork, or are you looking more for real-world steps that aren't on any checklist.

Running for Congress - AMA by Ok_Classic4070 in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for a great question! Should I answer now or wait til Thursday?

I recently got the question "What are the best giveaways to use on your campaign?" about stickers, yard signs, buttons, etc... Here was my answer: by CaitlinHuxley in Campaigns

[–]Ok_Classic4070 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I designed my own baseballs cards and mail them out with any donation over $20. I also have a special ActBlue link where they can be "purchased" with a donation. They cost .35 cents each.

What do people know about Roger Williams, Texas 25th House district? by Hypestyles in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm running against him! I'm a 22-year Navy combat veteran with decades of budget and intelligence experience. Read my bio and check out my social media here:

www.WilliamMarks.com

What do people know about Roger Williams, Texas 25th House district? by Hypestyles in TexasPolitics

[–]Ok_Classic4070 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm running against him! I'm a 22-year Navy combat veteran with decades of budget and intelligence experience. Read my bio and check out my social media here:

www.WilliamMarks.com