By D’Anne Witkowski, TGP Contributor
If you’re politically engaged at all you no doubt have been urged to run for office. In fact, we at The Guerrilla Politic have been shouting it from the rooftops for years.
But what if you don’t want to? What if the idea of running for office is about as appealing as a root canal? Should you just tune out and disengage? Of course not. In fact, just like a root canal, politics only gets worse when you ignore it. Like it or not, your community, your county, your state, and your country needs you.
The good news is, you don't have to be a candidate to make a difference. Here are some ways you can help elect good people who share your values.
✅ Talk to people. If you don’t know where to start, have conversations with people you trust. A particularly engaged neighbor, a granddaughter at college studying political science, a friend who supports a cause you also care about. Connect with people who inspire you and you’ll likely find yourself with plenty of things you can do.
✅ Join your local Dem club. Michigan has a lot of very active Democratic Clubs throughout the state. There you will meet like-minded people who share your desire to elect people who care about the things you do like global warming, LGBTQ rights, reproductive freedom, gun violence prevention, and voting rights. Not only will you meet people, but Dem clubs are active in volunteering and other activities to elect Democrats up and down the ballot.
✅ Volunteer for a campaign. Volunteers are crucial for successful campaigns. If you have the time to volunteer, please do it. Your best bet is to choose one campaign to dedicate yourself. Can you spread yourself out across multiple candidates and organizations? Sure. But if you have, say, six hours a week to volunteer knocking doors, dedicating those six hours to a single campaign rather than offering an hour here or there helps campaign teams plan effectively. If a field director knows that Yolanda Washington is going to knock on doors every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday from 2-4 p.m. then that’s less time they need to spend trying to fill those shifts. Being a regular volunteer makes you a valued part of the team and an invaluable asset to the campaign.
✅ Donate money. Campaigns need money. Too much money, one could very reasonably argue, but until we have some major campaign finance reform the fact remains that campaigns are very expensive. Especially campaigns that are run well and successful. Campaigns need to hire staff, pay for mailings and yard signs, pay rent for a campaign office, have professional photos taken, maintain a professional looking website and engaging social media accounts. If you have the funds, donating directly to a candidate’s campaign is the most effective way to help that candidate win. You can also donate to a state’s Democratic party, though you won’t know how much, if any, of that money goes to the candidates you’re cheering on.
✅ Contact your represented officials. If there is an issue you care about, your elected officials need to hear from you. Call your State Senator, show up to city council meetings, email your County Commissioner, write a letter to your Congressperson. These people were elected to represent you and listen to your concerns. Granted, some of them aren’t very good at that, but don’t stop trying. And if you’ve got someone who isn’t doing their job well, then get involved in the campaign of whoever is running against them.
✅ Encourage other people to take the above steps. If you’ve been wondering what you can do to make a difference, no doubt other people are wondering the same thing. There are plenty of people who care a lot about certain issues but for whatever reason don’t pay attention to politics. Granted, politics are messy, can get ugly, and are often confusing. But you don’t have to be a political expert to get involved. You just have to care about electing good people. And the good news is that more and more good people are running. They need your support.