Welcome. This community is for first-time and returning candidates running for local, state, and judicial office — plus the campaign managers and treasurers in the trenches with them. It works because everyone here treats each other like a colleague, not a competitor.
A few ground rules to keep this place useful:
1. Treat everyone like a grown-up running a tough race. Running for office is hard. Be encouraging, especially with first-timers. Critique the work, not the person.
2. What happens here, stays here. Don't share other people's donor lists, internal numbers, strategy notes, or screenshots outside this community. Real campaigns share real data here — that only works if we all keep it inside.
3. Stay focused on the work. This is a place to plan and run a campaign. Save the hot takes about national politics for somewhere else. We want every post to be something the next candidate could learn from.
4. Use the right space for the right question. We have separate spaces for Planning & Strategy, Fundraising, Field & Volunteers, Digital Operations, and GOTV & Election Day. Posting in the right one means the right people see it. If you're not sure, default to Planning & Strategy or Ask Craig.
5. Share your work in progress. Post drafts. Ask for a sanity check on your win number, your budget, your pitch. The best feedback you'll get is from people running races right alongside yours.
And remember — no candidate goes it alone. Ever. Even at the highest levels of government, there are multiple checks on work before a single word makes it out to the public. The same goes for you in local office. Don't worry about someone stealing your idea or your words. Better to get a gut check and comments back before making an unforced error that could have been avoided with a simple review.
6. No vendor pitches without permission. If you sell software, services, or consulting to campaigns, don't post promos. Reach out to me first — there's almost always a better way.
7. Watch your tone — but don't be precious about it. Cursing in context is fine, we're adults. Personal attacks, harassment, hate speech, or anything inappropriate for a professional setting are not. Same goes for images. I'm the sole decision-maker on what stays and what gets pulled. If you see something off, use the flag button — that's what it's there for. But if you start flagging posts that don't actually violate anything, you'll be the one removed.
8. AI is fine, but verify with humans. Use ChatGPT, Claude, or whatever helps you draft faster. But never trust them on election law, filing deadlines, or compliance — always confirm with your Board of Elections and a human you trust.
Welcome aboard. Let's run good campaigns and win some races.
— Craig