Do your homework
1. Your local elections office or the state secretary of state will have all the information needed to properly file for office. Find out what seats are coming up for election and when. Find out for how long the terms are and when the filing period starts and finishes. There will be a start date when filing opens and an end date when it closes. Its length varies by jurisdiction and state – so be sure to verify these dates so you don’t have to wait possibly years because of an oversight on your end. (Please note: If you are taking on an incumbent then keep in mind your local party organization may not welcome you with "open arms" so to speak.)

Know your Voters
2. Your local elections department should have election result history on their website. Pull up the last election results for the seat you’re running to hold. It should break it down by number then further by voting precinct. It’ll show you how many votes were cast for each candidate on the ballot that year. If you’re in a fast-growing area, then you can factor in a slightly higher number – but at least it will give you a baseline from which to start. For instance, if 15,500 people voted in your race four years ago and it wasn’t uncontested (meaning at least two candidates ran) then you know that you’ll probably need around 8,000 votes to win your election.

You will also need to order and purchase a voter history file. There are a few ways to do this, through your campaign consultant or your local elections/state office. Some lists will have more information than others, so be clear before you order what data is most important to your race. Be sure it includes municipal races, if applicable.

If your race spans multiple counties, you might go directly to the secretary of state. On the basic voter history file, each registered voter will be listed and which elections he or she voted in. The file will probably be in an Excel so you can easily sort the data by whichever elections you deem important. For sure the last race for your election, but normally the past three or four elections will give you a pretty good idea of who your voters are. If you are in a state that registers by party, your job is that much easier because it’s all spelled out. If you’re in a state with no party affiliation, you simply research which primary (Democrat or Republican) and sort from there. This resulting data will be who you focus on until Election Day. Do not waste your time talking with nice folks who don’t vote. In general, they aren’t going to start going to the polls because of one conversation you have.

Get Involved
3. You need to find out which meetings or groups are worth your time and will be a place to meet voters and influencers. Start with your local Republican or Democrat party, meet with the county chair and build a relationship. They will also have a list of local club meetings and locations. Don’t forget chambers, rotaries, Kiwanis and other community-based groups. Try not to not spend too much time attending meetings with the same group of people. If you know you’ve won over a certain group – you’ll touch base with them during GOTV (Get Out The Vote) efforts, but free up the calendar and move on to the next group!

Outreach
4. The reality is that the first interaction most voters will have of you will likely be through your website, social channels, mailers, text or phone calls. It’s generally not possible to meet every single voter. For each of the methods, lay out your most important issues, who you are and why you’re running. Add a donate button to your website that links to your bank (certain donor info will be needed for future finance reports, so be sure to gather what’s necessary from the beginning to avoid last minute hassles before each reporting deadline). It is worth it to get quality photos so think about hiring a local photographer for this. You can use one session to take pictures in lots of different settings and use them throughout the campaign.

Track your Voters for Get Out The Vote (GOTV) Efforts
5. It’s all for not if you don’t have a way to reach your supporters and make sure they get to the polls to vote for you. There are plenty of software programs that will keep track of voters you come into contact with. If nothing else, keep track of them in Excel. Make sure you have a way to tag those you have positively identified your supporters; include their phone, email, physical address and any other notes specific to that voter. Right before the election, you’ll have volunteers phoning, probably do a mailer reminding supporters where and when to vote and send out email blasts. It’s also just as important to track those supporting your opponent. If you see your opponent’s sign in a yard, mark that as hostile and get them off your GOTV list. There’s no reason to remind them to vote!

Show me the Money!
6. No candidate likes to ask for money (OK, there might be a few but it’s rare). The reality is that campaigns run on money and unless you want to fork over possibly thousands of your own dollars – it’s necessary. You should get a donate button on your website so it’s convenient for folks. Yes, you’ll pay a fee, but you want donating to be as easy as possible and most people these days are so used to paying for things online, that it could be a hindrance to write out a check. You also want an address on the website that tells folks where they can mail that check if it’s their preferred method. Block off a certain amount of time on your calendar each week to make fundraising calls. Once you get a few successes under your belt, it won’t be so intimidating. You might also hold one or two fundraiser events. You could rent out a room at a local restaurant, provide a few appetizers and drinks and collect checks there. An event is also a good way to network and solidify supporters. Always have sign-in sheets at events. Make sure to keep track of all donors. As stated earlier, most likely you will need some basic information for your future finance reports.

Know your Costs
7. The cost of a political campaign at any level can quickly spiral out of control without a budget that is followed closely. There will probably be some unforeseen costs and unexpected expenses, but by costing it out early in the process, those unexpected expenditures can be better managed.

Start by breaking the campaign into main categories. For instance:

Personnel: Do you have to pay someone to be your campaign manager or can you find a volunteer? Do NOT try to do it all yourself!

Signs: Yard signs (with frames) and larger (4x4 and 4x8). Get at least three quotes from vendors. And remember, they don’t all have to be local. There are some great companies with lower prices that it might be worth it to pay shipping. Or maybe you can get shipping included. You never know til you try. It’s worth it to ask. Campaigns are big money and they want you as a repeat customer as you move on up the ladder.

Filing Fees: there are usually fees associated with filing to run for office. This information will all be available on your local or state election websites. (Some states allow you to gather signatures instead of a filing fee. Let's say you are running for a local race and if you get 500 signatures you don't have to pay the filing fee. Try to get 1,000 signatures and this will make your opponent "take notice" that you have a lot of support. All signatures will be verified by the elections department so it's always good to get more than what is required. The last thing you want is to come up short because half of your signatures do not have the required info on your petition.)

Outreach: Mailers, text campaigns and calls. Know how many you want to send out, allocating more as Election Day nears.

At the end of the day and as cliché as it might sound, running for office really is an honor. You will meet some amazing people, some who just might become life-long friends. You will directly be a part of bettering your community. Pat yourself on the back for your wiliness to enter the arena!