first time candidates. If you are in business and have business associates that know the value you offer as a candidate and elected official, convince them to back you. If you’ve been involved in the community make a list of people you have worked with. If you are shy asking for money, get someone that is not -- or someone that is respected in your circles that can ask on your behalf.
Jeff: If you are shy, you might want to consider a different line of work. Having said that, we all have different abilities and skills so I agree that you need a good fund raiser for the campaign but that does not excuse a candidate from raising their own cash too. It has always struck me as odd that many Canadian politi-
cians seem skittish to be part of the fundraising effort when on the other side of the 49th, candidates spend a consid- erable amount of their campaign days “dialing for dollars.” If you do not believe strongly enough in your mission to ask for financial support, then you are heading for a disap- pointing election day. You have to mine all of your resources for contacts and make your own money calls too. Get your spouse in on it as well. A word of warning to those who are moving from party
politics to the world of non-partisan municipal politics, they are totally different experiences. You do not have the central platform or partisan affinity to help “close the deal” and you have to drive it on your own merits.
C&E: How do you find that right person to be your Fundraising Chair?
Jeff: Choose somebody who is not shy about asking for money, someone who shares a network with you and can leverage those contacts by using your mutual relationships to successfully get the cheque. As your representative, you need to be absolutely certain that they understand the legislation and contribution rules of your jurisdiction. Furthermore, you need to be on the same page as to who you are person- ally prepared to accept money from.
Stephen: Look for someone that is finishing up being Chair of the Golf Course, The Board of Trade, the local Ro- tary, United Way or your local church. If they have done a good job, have inspired people, built confidence and are likable, then they are a perfect candidate to be your Fund- raising Chair. Calling that person, share your vision and ask for their help.
C&E: Usually these are very busy people that may not want to take on a big new role, so how do you approach them?
Stephen: Be innovative and tell them that they do not have to be part of the central campaign team and attend numer- ous meetings. They can be in charge of only one event it that works. In many cases all it takes is working within their time constraints and managing expectations. It will give them the profile they enjoy and they can do a specific tar-
geted approach with one or two events.
Jeff: I say if you want a job done well, find the busiest person you know. A-Types are rarely idle and usually get the job done. If you are looking for someone who has scads of time perhaps have them install signs. There is usually a reason they are not busy like the rest of us.
C&E: The rules change from municipality to municipality and there seems to be a lot of pressure on candidates to avoid accepting con- tributions from developers, local businesses, unions, etc. How do you deal with that?
Jeff: Never—and I mean never—break, bend or even work
in the grey areas of the finance rules. Aside from the fact that you desire to be a leader in your community and, in that regard a follower of rules, once the campaign is over you can expect that somebody is going to comb through all of your filings and pounce if anything is not 100% legal. There is nothing worse than even the hint of election
finance irregularities. Make sure you get the rules from your local clerk and understand them. Ask questions and be abso- lutely clear that you get it. If you can, get a lawyer to be part of your team and have them go through and make sure you know what is expected of you and what you can expect. One of the most difficult decisions to make is whom you
will accept donations from. There are rules established in legislation and then there are the rules of common sense. To further complicate matters, there are the realities of public perception. Let me break it down this way: The law: Accept donations only from those who can le-
gally donate in your jurisdiction. Make sure the donations are within the limit. Common sense: While legal, just say no to people/com-
panies that make any sort of demands or have expectations of you beyond providing good government and open com- munications. Run very fast from donors who are seeking to- day-- or may actively pursue in the future -- contracts within the jurisdiction where you are seeking election. Avoid taking on OPPs (other people’s problems). Depending on your ju- risdiction, some/all donations must be publically disclosed. Accepting a cheque from someone that has their own skel- etons in the closest will lead to questions and innuendo. Public Perception: Again, even when legal, you have to
make a decision about who you are comfortable taking money from because as a sitting member of Council, some will see conflict of interest if you are called to vote on an is- sue that impacts one of your campaign donors. This is partic- ularly problematic with the development industry as there is a perception that developers get preferential treatment from municipal politicians that have received donations. This is a call that you have to make based on your circumstances. For me, I represent a ward that is in a high growth community and I made a decision in the last election (and the one cur- rently underway) to accept no money from businesses en- gaged in land development or building trades. I would never
June 2010 | Campaigns & Elections 55
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80