If you’ve been looking for tips on how to run a local campaign, a real one, not the theoretical version, Wikipedia would tell you that the first step is to meet your community.
I disagree there.
The first step in running for local political office is not meeting your electorate. It is not even filing your application.
It is research.
Research forms the backbone of your campaign strategy. The findings help you decide which voter segment to target and how.
Naturally, for first-timers, the task at hand could seem overwhelming.
There are, of course, people who would help you with all these activities. You could hire a political consultant or get a veteran in your local political sphere to mentor you.
No election, however, is won if the candidate turns his back on the campaign tasks at hand.
This post can help you get started the right way, whether you’re aiming for city council, school board, or any other local seat. It will walk you through the basics, then show you how to do it and what actually moves the needle on winning.
Research
Learning about the political landscape and the laws that govern that region is crucial in winning the race.
Here, political landscape means the main issues in your area and how the current government responds to them.
You can attend community meetings and learn more about the problems they face. Try speaking with influencers in the political and civic space to get their perspective. You can also attend county events with different issue-based and public organizations.
These people will clarify what your position needs to be to win over the locals.
The objective of this exercise is to understand the community’s concerns. Knowing the issues that resonate with them will help in crafting your campaign message.
Once you understand your community better, it is time to gather some hard numbers. The next phase of your research should tell you:
How many voters are there in your community?
Of the number of voters, who are first-time voters and who have already cast a vote before? You should also know whether any eligible voters have not registered yet. You can get this list from the local census office. Or, you can also get it from the electoral office in your district.
How many votes do you need to win?
Popularly called the “win number,” this gives you a fairly accurate picture of how much campaigning you have to do.
For instance, say your local office needs a clear majority to win. So, of the total of 100 voters in your community, you need at least 51 votes in your favor. Your campaign field strategy should have this number in mind while planning outreach programs.
How many people to canvass?
The voter turnout rate determines who will come to cast their vote on election day. You can base the turnout rate on the previous election.
For instance, if voter turnout is 20%, then roughly that many people will come to vote. So, you should target canvassing twice the size of the electorate so you can win a majority.
Who is your target voter segment?
It is not practical to focus your campaign towards everybody. Instead, you can target your limited resources to only those sections of the electorate with which you can get maximum impact.
For instance, if you plan to improve schooling in your district, targeting families (not millennials) is a good option.
What do you know of the opposition?
Going into the campaign without planning for how your opposition can (and will) impact the election is folly.
You need to know how strong the support for your opposition is, which segment of the electorate supports him, and why. These details will help you strategize your campaign better.
For instance, say your opposition garners the majority of support from baby boomers, but has policies that don’t resonate with Gen X. Then your campaign messaging and outreach strategy can be primarily centered around Gen X.
As you can see, this phase of research is extensive and usually not done alone. You can hire a few experts to help you out (building an entire team for the campaign comes much later).
Once you have a clear picture, you can file the candidate application.
Note the process for entering the ballot and the deadlines for tasks like filing paperwork in your state.
A campaign committee is a legal business entity, and you must register it as such. Also set up a checking account for the campaign. These are important steps, and you may want to consult someone familiar with your state’s specific laws.
Finally, you can collect and file the paperwork to run for office. That is what will officially declare you as a candidate.
I recommend filing after you’ve done your research because, by then, you will have a clear idea of what to do and how to get there.
What should the outcome be?
- Decide on your campaign message
- Decide whom you are going to target, which office to target
- Establish a campaign plan
- File your candidature
Running for city council? Here’s what changes
A city council race is the most common local office people run for, and the rules are different enough that a generic “local office” playbook shortchanges you.
The math is smaller, but the margins are tighter. A mayoral race might need tens of thousands of votes. A city council seat, especially a district or ward seat rather than an at-large one, can turn on a few hundred. That single fact should reorder your priorities: door-to-door canvassing and direct voter contact do more work here than paid media ever will.
Multi-seat races aren’t head-to-head, either. Many city councils elect several members at once (“top 5 win,” “top 7 win”). If that’s your race, your target isn’t beating one specific opponent; it’s finishing inside the winning number. Check with your city clerk’s office on how your specific seats are structured before you build your vote goal.
Quick tips if city council is your race:
- Map your district first. Know which neighborhoods, precincts, and turnout patterns make up your seat before you write a single talking point.
- Go hyper-local in your messaging. National issues don’t win city council races. Potholes, zoning, and school funding do.
- Calculate your real win number. Pull turnout data for the last two or three elections for your specific seat, not the citywide number.
- Confirm eligibility and filing deadlines with your city clerk. These vary by city in ways state-level guides won’t cover.
Everything else in this guide- your team, your message, your budget- applies whether you’re running for city council or another local seat. Think of this section as the adjustment layer on top.
Building your team
Once you have a sense of the work involved, you can start building your team. They can help you with the campaigning efforts needed. Start with your friends and family (and their network).
Since running for local office requires a relatively small campaign, you won’t need to hire many people. However, they still need to be extremely skilled and know the local community.
Their skills and experience will shape how they handle the responsibilities of the role. So discuss with your team and delegate tasks that play to their strengths.
Here are a few roles you need to hire for: Campaign manager, Event (or fundraising) coordinator, chief volunteer (who can coordinate others), and treasurer (or finance director).
It would be a good idea to see if local celebrities would be willing to be part of your campaign. If yes, then they would be best used for your outreach/communication strategies.
You should recruit volunteers for fieldwork and for tasks at headquarters. Volunteers build up motivation within the campaign. Take care not to wear them out at the start of the campaign.
Part of building your team is also ensuring they have the right tools to handle the workload. So, you may want to invest in digital technology (complete political campaign software like CallHub). Here is a complete list of political campaign tools that can come in handy.
Getting people to actually say yes
Knowing you need volunteers and getting them to show up are two different problems. A few things that consistently work:
- Tell them why their help specifically matters. People commit harder when they believe the campaign genuinely needs them, not when they’re offered a vague, low-stakes task.
- Share what your existing volunteers are doing. A social post about a volunteer’s canvassing shift does double duty: it thanks that person and shows the next recruit what’s possible.
- Give people more than one way in. Not everyone can knock doors. Some can make calls, some can only help remotely, some have an hour a week. A tool like CallHub’s phone banking software lets a volunteer with twenty minutes between meetings log in and make calls from wherever they are, with no headquarters visit required.
- Have an actual onboarding plan. A volunteer who shows up for a first shift with no idea what to do won’t come back for a second.
What should the outcome be?
- Decide on roles and responsibilities
- Recruit volunteers
- Establish technology to help in campaigning
Design campaign material
Even though this seems unimportant, good campaign material is a powerful asset.
Once your campaign is on the ground, you’ll have little time to decide poster designs and the text on literature. That is why you should decide these details once your team is ready.
Having someone with a strong design sense on board is always useful. Choose the design and layout for yard signs, mailers, and brochures, and create forms for donors and volunteers.
What should the outcome be?
- Campaign collateral (brochures and signboards)
- Slogans, yard signs, and billboards (at least a few)
Announce your candidature
A big plus in running a local political campaign is that word of mouth is quite powerful.
By the time you start assembling your team, it is safe to assume some people in your community already know you are running for local office.
While that is great for creating buzz around your campaign, you still need a formal event to launch it.
Pick a central location (like the local park) with high traffic and frequent visits from your supporters. Turn the announcement into a high-profile press event, with many supporters attending.
Invite the local press and also see if you can get an existing office bearer to speak on your behalf.
Despite all this preparation, your campaign message can make or break the whole event. Review the message a few times (if needed, with the local political party as well) and be sure it is motivating.
After the big announcement, here are a few more ways to let your electorate know about your run for office.
Door-to-door canvassing
Meet your voters face to face and share the big news. Your campaign plan should already map out the best doors to knock on. Since your time is limited, talk to only those supporters who would love to see you win.
Paid media/traditional media
Radio ads, TV spot ads, billboards, and newspaper ads still carry a lot of weight. Make sure your campaign announcement is well positioned across these channels and reaches your electorate.
Do not leave out local magazines and newspapers. These readers are prime targets for your campaign.
Social media
“Snapchat or it didn’t happen” – well, even if it doesn’t apply to your campaign, you cannot ignore having a social media presence. Have your communications manager manage your campaign’s Facebook page and Twitter account.
You can share details of future events, the kind of changes you will implement, and why the electorate should choose you.
Using your personal social media handle to share your story (why you decided to run for office) is a great idea too. It adds a layer of authenticity that can go a long way.
Text messages
Reaching the electorate via their mobile phones is an extremely powerful communication strategy. It can drastically improve voter engagement. Ask your supporters to opt in to SMS updates from you.
Text them info about the latest events you hold and encourage participation. You can also use it to identify supporters and mobilize volunteers. Invest in a robust SMS marketing software to streamline text communication.
Influencer backing
Your local political campaign can get off the ground faster with the right people backing you.
These people include local decision-makers, influencers, party officials, and people with a history of contributing to campaigns.
This communication lays a strong foundation and should be continued throughout the campaign. Connect with past candidates and see if they are interested in backing you.
What should the outcome be?
- An increasing list of supporters
- Sound knowledge of your party and your stance by the electorate
Raise candidate profile
As a local candidate, you have an inherent advantage. Your electorate already has more trust in you and your office, when compared to that of any federal candidate.
It just means raising your profile in the electorate’s mind gets a little easier (but it’s still just as important). So you should still talk to your electorate to win their trust.
You should step forward to introduce yourself to the electorate. The candidate profile lets voters form an opinion of you and helps you build a supporter base. Doing this early on is vital.
Your opponent will also be spreading their own messages and may present you as an unworthy candidate if their message reaches voters first. Get a campaign website and official social media accounts.
Reach out to new voters through common acquaintances, or use traditional approaches like newspaper and TV ads.
Making sure people actually see you
- Show up before you’re officially running. Town halls, civic meetings, community boards: visibility that starts before your campaign announcement reads as authentic in a way that campaign-season visibility never quite does.
- Host something, don’t just attend things. A small community event under your own name builds recognition more than being one more face at someone else’s.
- Ask supporters for warm introductions. A personal introduction from someone a voter already trusts outperforms almost any ad you could buy.
- Get a local influencer or community leader in your corner. Their supporters inherit some of that trust by association.
- Don’t rely on one channel. Yard signs and mailers still work in local races precisely because national campaigns have trained voters to tune out digital ads.
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Fundraising
“I will pay for the entire campaign” is not a sound strategy. Running for a local political campaign is highly resource-intensive.
If the initial research phase did not give you enough idea about how much it would cost, then this post on political campaign budgeting can get you started.
Simply put: you cannot ignore fundraising for your campaign. Start as soon as possible.
Even if you have enough resources to back you up at the beginning, you may find yourself skimping and shaving toward the end of the run, which can hurt your campaign.
Of course, you’ll need a fundraising plan that aligns with the rest of your campaign strategy. Instead of waiting to finish a fundraising plan, start asking within your circle.
This includes friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues. If you have little experience asking for donations, this will help you gain practice in making a personal ask.
Knowing that your local political campaign is raising money and is backed by the bellwethers in your community gives it a huge credibility boost.
Here are a few ways you can raise funds for your local political campaign. Remember that the amount you raise should also cover the overhead and organizing costs for that event.
- Events
- Texts
- Website buttons
- Peer-to-peer fundraising
What should the outcome be?
- A steady stream of funds from supporters
- Large one-time donations from your political backers
- Good marketing for your campaign (at the very least)
Create a campaign plan
This is the backbone for scaling the campaign. A campaign plan gives you the roadmap for the run-up until election day.
Consult with advisors, staffers, and past candidates who can help you create the plan. Some things to take into account here include:
- Political environment – Which side do your voters traditionally lean toward? What are the opponents’ issues and policies?
- Targeting and Demographics – The areas you would focus on based on gender, age, occupation, religion, ethnicity, and ideology of the voters living there. How would you target them?
- Campaign message and issues – What is the core message of your campaign? How does it relate to the issues you focus on?
- Communication plan – The campaign paraphernalia, direct mail, and paid media to spend on. How do you plan to get press coverage?
- Grassroots plan – How do you plan your ground outreach using volunteers? Plan GOTV, absentee ballot, and Election Day activities in advance.
- Campaign budget – What would be the budget for every task?
- Fundraising plan – What methods would you use? Events and major donors needed to meet fundraising goals, etc.
- Campaign timeline – The deadlines for each team and activity
- Staffing – The key roles like Campaign Manager, Treasurer, and Field Director, along with responsibilities for every important member
This is the part that actually decides the race
Everything above serves this one section. Your message, your team, your voter file: none of it matters if your supporters don’t actually vote.
Research on GOTV canvassing found that contact with volunteers increased turnout by roughly 9 percentage points in one widely cited study. Volunteer-led phone banks specifically have been shown to lift turnout by around 3.8 percentage points, compared to less than 1 point for commercial, paid, non-volunteer phone banks.
What does this mean for you? The gap isn’t phone banking versus no phone banking. It’s volunteer phone banking versus paid phone banking. People who already believe in your campaign outperform a vendor every time, which is exactly the argument for investing in the recruitment work in the “building your team” section rather than shortcutting it.
A few ways campaigns run GOTV in the final stretch:
- Door-to-door, one more time. The same canvassing approach from earlier in the campaign, but now it’s exclusively about turnout, not persuasion.
- Phone banking with your volunteer list, prioritized by supporters you’ve already identified rather than cold outreach. This is where a predictive dialer earns its keep: it keeps your volunteers talking to voters instead of sitting through dead air and busy signals in the last, most time-pressured week of the race.
- Texting, which reaches people who won’t answer a call but will read a text, is especially useful for reminders closer to Election Day.
- A firm final push: a dedicated GOTV week, plus a last reminder on voting day itself.
Voter file for communication
Before talking to your voters, you need a dedicated voter file to track communication. The voter file you collect may be from a past candidate or from the County Election Office.
Review all available options for selecting a voter file, then use it to build a dedicated list for your campaign.
You can also check if the census list can be made available to help in building your voter file.
Update and use every communication with a voter to strengthen the relationship. This way, your local political campaign can personalize outreach and build a larger supporter base.
FAQ
How do you run a local campaign?
Start with research: understanding your electorate and the local issues before you file to run. From there, build a small, trusted team, create your campaign material, announce formally, raise your profile, fund the campaign, and build a voter contact plan you follow through Election Day.
How do I win a city council election specifically?
The fundamentals are the same as any local race, but city council races usually turn on smaller vote margins and hyper-local issues. Direct voter contact, door-to-door canvassing especially, tends to matter more here than paid media.
What’s different about running for city council versus another local office?
Mainly the math and the messaging. City council races are often decided by a few hundred votes and are frequently multi-seat (“top N win”), which changes how you calculate your target. The issues that move voters are also more block-by-block than citywide.
How much does it cost to run a local political campaign?
It varies enormously by seat and city, from a few thousand dollars for a school board race to much more for a contested city council seat. Your local board of elections can usually share past campaign finance filings for your specific race as a benchmark.
What’s next?
Now that you have a bunch of ideas and a solid plan, let me help you get started with your local political campaign.
You can check how the electorate responds to your candidacy (or your campaign). Set up an opt-in campaign and reach those who show interest.
It will give you a taste of what to expect during your campaign and help you plan better.
