Getting Your Campaign Started - Paperwork
Once you’ve decided to run for office, you will need to organize your paperwork and file to run before launching your campaign. While the specific documents vary by state, the fundamentals remain the same. You will need to find the requirements in your locality, submit the paperwork, open a bank account, and then prepare your campaign plan and launch.
- Navigate to your board of elections and note the requirements and paperwork you will need to run.
- In most cases, the board of elections will have a guide to help you. Additionally, you can reach out to those who have experience in political campaigns in your area for additional clarification. You can find your board of elections here
- Record all relevant campaign deadlines.
- Write down the dates/deadlines for your campaign paperwork, for each financial disclosure, and any other ongoing reports required by your locality. Keep tabs on ongoing changes in financial disclosures and election deadlines.
- Submit the election paperwork
- You will need to have a public facing address throughout the campaign whether that is a PO Box or a physical campaign location. This can be used as a mailing address within the candidate paperwork.
- Submit the statement of candidacy and all other documents required by your locality. In some cases, you will first need to open a bank account for some of the paperwork.
- Open a bank account
- Navigate to the IRS website and obtain an EIN number. You can do so here
- Find a bank and open an account. Since political committees are organized differently than regular businesses, it is best to contact your bank directly and/or visit in-person.
- Build a campaign plan and prepare for launch
- Build a campaign plan with a money goal and a vote goal
- Prepare your campaign branding, materials, website, and digital content for launch
Have any more questions on setting up your political campaign? If interested in learning more and getting involved by running, contact us at: roosevelt.tech
March 28, 2023
Updated June 13, 2023
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