The Campaign Workshop Blog

A political campaign training can help first time candidates decide if running for office is right for them 

Political campaign training- here is the scoop: There are lots of decisions candidates need to make before they start a run for public office and a political campaign training can help provide some clarity for first time candidates. In our opinion, attending a political candidate and campaign training is a must for any potential candidate. Whether it is how to decide the best opportunity to pursue or how to create a contrast between you and your opponent, most folks need help to make smart choices early in their political careers. We have found that political campaign trainings can help them make the best choices. Lucky for you many groups provide these trainings in-person, virtually, and some are even for free! Keep reading for a list of organizations to check out. 

Running for office is not for the faint of heart: Having a clear understanding of what you’re getting yourself into will only help set you up for a successful run. Understanding the commitment, energy, and time it will take to run for public office will allow you to make a more informed decision before jumping into a race you may not be prepared for. This will ensure that when you start asking friends, family, and strangers to volunteer, give you money, or vote for you, it is for a race you can win. At a political campaign training you can learn: 

• Campaign Messaging: Developing a contrastive and focused message is key to making sure that a candidate and a campaign will resonate with voters. Using a Tully Message box is a helpful tool for creating a good campaign message. 
• Fundraising: Creating a clear and effective fundraising pitch is an integral part of any candidate campaign. A fundraising session will walk candidates through different successful fundraising methods, analyze the return that can be expected from each method and show candidates how to utilize each to its full effect.
• Campaign Budgeting: Just like a business, every campaign should have a full budget that can be used to make strategic decisions about expenses and spending. A well-designed budget ensures that the campaign is maximizing its impact and using its resources effectively.
• Field and Canvassing: In any campaign, having a strong grassroots and field strategy is an integral way to communicate with voters. Campaigns should know how to train their volunteers and utilize a voter file to focus their efforts on a targeted audience. 
• Earned Media: While this doesn’t always pertain to all size campaigns, if you’re running for a larger race (e.g. U.S or state senate), you are going to need to interact with the press frequently. Refining the campaign-press relationship, developing a press and earned media plan, and working to master the art of pivoting are critical elements of any successful campaign. 

A great networking opportunity: As you’ll learn in any training, relationships are key when running for office. You need then to find staff, recruit volunteers, outreach to donors, and get votes! A campaign training is a great place to build relationships with like minded folks who also want to run for office. It’s a rare breed of person who find running for office a fun opportunity, so having other you can turn to for advice can be a huge asset. 

So if you are thinking of running for office, even if this is years in the future, make sure to sign up for a political campaign training now, it will help you decide whether running for office is right for you. 

Our team helps run political campaigns trainings across the country for candidates and campaign staff, but there are a lot of other good options out there to check out. We have trained thousands of candidates and always encourage any potential candidates to go through a political campaign training before they decide to run. Look for organizations that train Democrats and progressive candidates to run for office.   

We want to give a huge shout out to the LGBTQ Victory Institute for being dedicated to training and building a catalyst for LGBTQ leaders for over two decades. As their lead trainers, we’ve seen first-hand the results of candidates getting a thorough training before running. Our team has helped thousands of openly LGBTQ candidates and campaign managers run successful campaigns, and on occasion, make history. The LGBTQ Victory Institute has been running a consistent annual training program with great success. When it was founded in 1992, there were only a couple dozen openly LGBTQ elected officials and very few openly LGBTQ candidates running across the country. Due to support and training provided by the LGBTQ Victory Institute, fast forward to this year, and there are hundreds of openly LGBTQ people serving in public office and a rainbow wave of candidates running across the country for all levels of office. So, go out there and get trained! 

Find a training near you: check out our list of progressive groups and organizations running political campaign trainings across the country. 

If you have campaign training opportunities you think we should add, feel free to drop us a line.
Have questions about attending a campaign training? Ask them here.