Litman does a fantastic job of laying out not only why you should run for something, but gives a primer on how you can do it.
The thing is, a democracy is a government of the people, Its our job to our duty to hold office, Or at least actively help people get there,
And Ms. Litman reminds us over and over and over again, that Yes! We can do this!
Donald Trump is president forget everything you know about politics.
You are qualified to run for office,
Think youre not qualified Let me make something extremely clear, Donald Trump is President of the United States, You can be a state senator or on your city council or on your school board,
Donald trump is president, Forget the rules.
And shes right!
All you need is a willing all you need is a frame and a willingness to work as hard as it takes.
Theres so much in here thats helpful if you want to run, or even if you want to run a campaign.
I love that she identifies as a Democrat but stills takes the Democratic establishment to task,
I was hoping to understand a little better how the national parties are arranged, And even after reading this, Im not really sure,
But Ms. Litman gives us comfort: If youre confused, thats OK, Its a cluster fuck.
And that Chapteris a doozy! Hilarious and scary at the same time,
Best of all, if we want to fix this world that we live in, we need to do something, We can run for something,
And we can say:
Fuck you, Patriarchy! I don't plan on running, but I would definitely recommend this to anyone who does or to anyone who has EVER considered it.
Definitely inspired me to volunteer more and to donate! What an amazing organization, Decisions are made by those who show up, In the wake of theelection there has been a wave of people who have decided they will run for office, Seats previously left uncontested, leaving the incumbent to coast to reelections were challenged, Seats previously held by one party comfortably for years, maybe even decades, were flipped to the other party, In an offyear election, usually there is little interest in running for office, Not this time.
Author Litman is one of the people behind the organization called Run for Something, You may have heard of it as a group that helps recruit young people although it's my understanding you don't have to be young to run for local office.
Litman lays out why people should run, how to do it or at least a blueprint, and an overview of what to expect, There's breaking down of campaign roles, Testimonies from campaign people and candidates/officeholders who won on how and why they did it, There are explanations as to why Litman urges people to run and what both the candidate and the community and even the opponent can gain from running even if the candidate loses to a longterm incumbent.
I don't want to run for office and wasn't convinced by the book to run but I wasn't looking to be so.
And while I've never worked on a campaign I've worked in supporting roles and around campaigns, so much of this was familiar to me.
But I still got a lot out of it by Litman's breakdown of everything, The media tends to focus on "big" races like President, governorships, Congress, etc, Your local school board or state House/Senate probably doesn't get a lot of print or airwaves unless something scandalous breaks, I really appreciated Litman's look at these local races and breaking down how running for your local school board is going to be extremely different than a massive operation like running for president.
There's a very good chance that it'll just be you and a couple of friends one friend who will be helping you and I'm glad Litman was honest about that.
That said, the book is not without its problems that might not be a problem but me being nitpicky, I really wish there had been an appendix or further reading or resources guide at the end, There's a glossary but no index, either, The book is fairly wellorganized and the index wasn't necessary especially with Google but this guide is not and I don't think should be an endall because as Litman says herself she can't break down every single thing in a campaign.
She does urge the reader to Google and to get in touch with local organizations but a resource guide at the end would have been great.
Also, if you're a Republican or conservative or on the right, etc, Litman makes it pretty clear she's a Democrat, despite all the problems with the Democratic Party and its members and gears her book to that audience/aligned people and groups.
So you've been warned. Litman also does occasionally cuss but it's not overbearing, If that's something that really bothers you, though, then you should perhaps put down the book and not run for office because you'll be shocked by the language on a campaign.
I also say that as a starter guide it also doesn't really address what particular issues women, people of color, people with disabilities, LGBT individuals, etc.
may face. Litman does note that certain groups may have particular issues or resources that are geared towards them but beyond stating that people will sometimes be mean and/or unhelpful and not to let it get to you the book the book doesn't really address needs of candidates from groups that might need to adjust or find other resources.
So I'm also not sure if it's true that Litman says you don't need a thick skin to run for local office.
While it's true they're probably not as vicious as a Congressional/Presidential or even Governor's race but in the age of social media sometimes you can find local races even more mean because it's local and there is a chance you know someone or know someone who knows someone, etc.
This might be just me, though, And I appreciate that Litman and others were very honest at how brutal a campaign can be on one personally in terms of health, family, friendships, etc.
As a sidenote: I think that even if you don't want to run, don't want to volunteer for a campaign which Litman urges people to do if they don't want to run or don't want to run right now, the book is enormously helpful in understanding campaign basics.
No, you don't get a convoluted breakdown of campaign finance laws or how various groups work with each other, But I really couldn't help but think of arguments/memes that betrayed a genuine lack of understanding of campaign structures, how they function, etc.
There are a lot of people who would benefit from reading this book, As Litman herself says, this has to go beyond marching and complaining, Change will only come if one runs for office and WINS, And the voters can do their part by not only showing up to vote and helping others vote but by actually understanding what a campaign does and what a candidate and their staff may have to go through.
Overall I liked it, I didn't know what to expect and I really just wanted to support her and RFS, I don't think I've read a book quite like this before but I'd say it's a good place to start if you want to run for office and want something that's not online/to keep with you.
Might make an excellent gift for a potential candidate or campaign staffer too,
Decisions are made by those who show up, Good luck in your campaign, I thought this was a good, resourceful book with but as a Republican woman considering a run for office, there was a few too many negative comments that were really insulting and unnecessary.
We should all be supporting each other as woman running for office regardless of party affiliation,
Loved this fastpaced nononsense guide I wish I had found it earlier in my own campaign! Many of the tactics weren't applicable to my small race, but were insightful nonetheless.
Highly recommend this to anyone who's frustrated with our government it has some great rationale around why you should run for a local office, and how it's not as difficult as you think.
You may ask yourself why I, a German, read a guide on how to run for office in the US, Well, I, like the author herself, am a news junkie and huge The West Wing fan, American politics are fascinating, even if it's more like a garbage fire on kerosine right now, Nevertheless, learning more about the process and the different positions in politics was interesting, Plus, now I have something to point to, in case one of my friends in the US may have political aspirations,
The guide is easy to read and features lots of contributions from people who have successfully run for office, It's directed at Democrats and not so much Republicans though I guess the principles will be the same only some of the
resources will vary.
It's very pushy in the best of ways and Litman doesn't shy away from criticising the Democratic Party, which I guess is fair,
All in all, this was pretty interesting and the election process is quite different to that in Germany, The more you know! This guide broke down the overwhelming process of wondering where to even start with running for something into clear concise pieces with lots of specific usable advice.
It also included suggestions for how and what to search on Google to get more into depth, Even if you have no intention of running, it's a quick and clear read that can demystify some of the political process and give you a few hints of other ways to become an engaged and active citizen.
Extraordinarily practical, useful, noBS advice for running for office or running a campaign, Funny and inspiring but most of all: HELPFUL, Basic and insightful I was hoping for an overview on how to get involved in politics, how to make a difference, and learn how the system works.
Instead, this book was a stream of consciousness written far too close to an election loss Hillary Clinton by someone that was too personally invested in that campaign to take an objective view.
This is not well written and falls back on vulgarity and bashing the current administration far too often, There is a good portion of this book where the author tries to motivate and inspire a new generation of progressivesit comes off as a peptalk on the deck of the Titanic as the last lifeboats paddle away.
A good book of this genre would have an author from each side of the aisle and alternate between parties to actually cover how to run for something.
A book like that might actually succeed in motivating and inspiring people to become involved, I am looking for a political book that works to unite and find common ground, This is not it. A savvy political operative would do a far better job of not alienating white men during an unabashed recruiting pitch for females and minoritiesLitman failed in this regard.
I do not recommend this book,starts for the concept alone, A how to guide for someone who wants to create positive change in their community instead of simply complaining, I thought the author spent more time talking down certain political parties and candidates, This made what could have been a timeless book very “, ” She also spends some time speaking about image which I wish she would have taken to heart, As a millennial woman who is also a public servant I would never use the language she used around the people I serve, let alone allow it to be printed.
If you want us to be taken more seriously, help our image in a positive way please, But otherwise so much yes, Yes Yes Yes. More of these books should exist, This is the book that cemented my decision to run for office and the book that will be required reading for anyone who works on my campaign.
It sheds light on the nuts and bolts of the process and details how to run an honest campaign that represents the best of the candidate.
Much of the content seems commonsensical but it's the validating kind that you need to hear from a trusted professional, My best read this year! Fun and informative, I'm not planning on running, but I thought it would be useful for thinking about political organizing, I only did read parts of it that's interesting/relevant to me, but even if you're not interested in running, this is a good book to read even if just portions of it to get a layman's sense of what goes inside running for office and a political campaign, so that as a citizen, voter or just a political observer, you know how our elections and campaigns actually work before you make any assumptions or form opinions on candidates that are running and our election process itself, such as issues on campaign finance and the role the so called "establishment" plays or does not play in picking and supporting candidates to run for office.
This is also a good book to read if you want to work for a political campaign whether as a volunteer or a paid staffer and see where your interests and qualifications best fit within a campaign.
our u might just come out convinced to run for office someday or now, According to this book, written for those ageand under, I am too old to run for something, Thank goodness for that!
Even so, it is a powerful tool for the younger generations to have as they ponder entering the political landscape.
It's brutally honest and full of resources to help any young person who wants to run for office have a good campaign, Or for those who don't like the limelight, volunteer on and support a campaign or candidate,
I bought a copy to give to a young man that I'd like to see run for something,
Overall, worth the time, I hope the movement succeeds in bringing up a crop of inspired, progressive candidates in time forand, .