A Losing Campaign!

So many people running for office, yet only a small number of good folks will be elected here in Burlington on October 25th.  Five people are vying for the mayors job, and another 5 on average for the  6 Councillor positions .  This means about 28 people will go home disappointed after election night.

My friends have asked me what it is that makes someone want to seek public office.  My response was that is individual, and there are as many reasons as there are candidates.  Here are some of the reasons that I have seen, and what I instinctively respond to that question with:

- there are people in the community who are passionate about an issue (or two), and want the spotlight on that issue (s),
-there are the altruistic ones - who are doing this for the betterment of the community,
- there are people that simply need a job, and think the pay (  90k or so) makes this an attractive option,
 - there are people who the local political parties would like to see in City Hall, so they mount an orchestrated effort to get a candidate elected municipally,
-some candidates  have specific policy objectives,
- some see this as a stepping stone to another 'level' of politics (provincial, federal),
- there are people that seek recognition, they have that need to see their names on a sign, and,
- there are people that like to enter the race just to shake it up a little, ask some tough questions, cause some discomfort for the incumbents.

Most people that step forward are likely a combination of these, or maybe they have a whole other set of reasons altogether.  Id like to get your input and thoughts on other reasons??

But any way you slice it, putting your name on the brochure, a sign, and getting to the doors asking people to vote for you is not easy, and at times can be downright unpleasant.  Answering endless emails and calls about your stance on a range of issues can be draining. Spending your hard earned money (or others money in the larger campaigns) , only to lose, can feel deflating.   What about the candidate that pretty much knows from the start that they are going to lose - what do they have to gain?

Is it possible for a  losing campaign to have a positive benefit on the community? I say absolutely. I can cite one simple example from my own campaign 4 years ago.  There were a couple candidates talking about citizens forums. As a director at a national ngo with extensive youth engagement history,  I brought a long and deep community engagement background to that campaign, and brought the 'language' of citizen engagement to the discussions and debates in 2006.  I lost my campaign for ward 5, but I am thrilled to see this language and approach all over a number of the candidates brochures and in the citizen engagement work that has been done at City Hall the past few years.  They did the hard work, but it is heartening to see that good ideas can come from all the candidates, not just the winners.  Winning candidates obviously can affect change and policy in a much more real way, but even those candidates that 'lose' on election day can influence what happens at City Hall the next 4 years, and although they still have 16 days to fight hard to win, we all win when their good ideas turn into action in our city.

So, fight hard, campaign cleanly and fairly, but please dont let your good ideas for our city stop in your hands should you be unsuccessful in your bid for City Hall!  Leadership is influence.