Anthony S. Diecidue, O.D., M.S.
POA Past President
The time was right. I had just sold my practice, my oldest child had already graduated college and my youngest was a sophomore. I was entertaining thoughts of retirement when redistricting created a new legislative district in my home town. So, knowing full-well how optometry is a legislated profession, and how advantageous it would be to have an OD in the legislature, I thought that this was the right time for me to run for the State House of Representatives here in Pennsylvania.
Unfortunately, my run was not successful. But I, and those involved, learned some valuable lessons that I would like to pass on so that any other OD that decides to step up and take a shot at a House or even a Senate seat can be more efficacious.
Know the playing field before you get in – Knowing when to run is critical. The ducks may be in a row for you personally, but check out your competition and assess your chances of winning prior to getting in the race. Gauge your competition’s strengths. Do they know the issues and have solutions? Do they have a connection to the people? Are they influential? Do they have support and a good team behind them? You may find that this is not the best time to run and delaying your campaign for another election year with less competition or better conditions may be a better way to go.
Volunteers – There are two types of people in the world: those that DO and those that DON’T. To run an effective campaign, you will need help and lots of it. In any political party there are going to be those individuals who do the work and those who sit idly by. If you have competition in a primary election, you will be running against someone from your own party and will have to compete for the “doers” in the party. Too many people in the same party running for the same seat will simply dilute the pool of helpers and make it more difficult for everyone.
These folks are going to be the ones that help you make phone calls, knock on doors, put out yard signs, get your printed materials, manage your schedule, plan your strategy and spread the good word about your campaign. They’re also going to be the ones having meet-n-greets and fundraisers for you, so your helpers should have lots of friends and influence in the community.
It’s expensive – Although the cost of running for an office is highly variable, you can count on it costing some money, and on the local level, the expenses can be pretty reasonable. Undertaking a run for the state or federal level ups the ante considerably.
State Representative campaigns can cost anywhere from $20,000 to $80,000, or even up to $100,000. A Senate seat can be anywhere between $200,000 to $800,000 and more! Having a plan on how to get that money before you throw your hat in the ring is one of the most important things you can do. Be prepared to spend some of your own money, too. A percentage of your total budget, 10-25%, will come out of your personal funds.
In the beginning of any campaign the expenses will be light because you will be concentrating on building your war chest for what is to come. This will involve getting out to see people by going to spaghetti dinners and pancake breakfasts, asking for contributions and having fundraisers.
At the end of the campaign, the expenses will mount up exponentially with increased advertising, mailers, TV, radio, newspaper and whatever other media you deem appropriate to get the populace to vote for you in the election.
Time – You’ll need plenty of this. As a matter of fact, when running for a state-level office, plan to take a lot of time away from your practice. Timing is important here. When you announce your candidacy and start your campaign is critical, and the earlier you announce the more volunteers you will be able to get. That also means that you will start campaigning earlier, too. So, the dinners, breakfasts, civic meetings and more will begin early also.
Getting volunteers to help with your campaign is crucial but, in the end, the voters want to hear from you. That means you will need to make phone calls, go door-to-door and ask for contributions. More and more of your time will be in demand as the campaign continues.
Campaign manager vs. campaign advisor – Nothing is more important than having a good, experienced, well-connected campaign manager (CM). Dr. Doug Clark, an OD from Alabama, is running for his State House and has managed to procure the former Alabama Speaker of the House as his campaign manager. You can’t ask for a better CM than that!
One of the main jobs of the CM is to rally the troops for you. That person needs to coerce, cajole and otherwise twist the arms of every person he or she can to support you in one way or another. The CM will organize your meet-n-greets, fundraisers and House parties. They will also manage your schedule so that you attend the important civic meetings like school board meetings, town councils, debates, etcetera. He or she will also coordinate with your “team” to divvy up the jobs needed to promote your campaign and get as many volunteers as possible. Choose your CM wisely as he or she can make or break your run for office.
There are companies and organizations that will act as campaign advisors. For novice candidates, these organizations can be a valuable resource. They generally provide advice along with marketing suggestions. But beware, they can be expensive and can chew through your budget pretty quickly if you let them.
Connecting to the people – In the end it’s all about getting votes, and you get votes by connecting with the people in your community. That will mean going to plenty of affairs, but it also means calling folks and asking for their vote even though they probably don’t know you. It means knocking on strangers’ doors and introducing yourself as their candidate. At the same time, you’ll probably be asking them for money or support in some fashion and in return they’ll get a button or a pen.
Having an OD in the legislature would be a win for optometry and I hope I’m not the last person to make a run for the House or Senate. I also hope this information will be useful to the next person who gives it a try. I was extremely fortunate in having the support of the POA and its members to help fund my campaign and I can’t thank those who contributed and those who volunteered enough. There are too many to mention here, but you know who you are and I thank you from the bottom of my heart!
POA Past President
The time was right. I had just sold my practice, my oldest child had already graduated college and my youngest was a sophomore. I was entertaining thoughts of retirement when redistricting created a new legislative district in my home town. So, knowing full-well how optometry is a legislated profession, and how advantageous it would be to have an OD in the legislature, I thought that this was the right time for me to run for the State House of Representatives here in Pennsylvania.
Unfortunately, my run was not successful. But I, and those involved, learned some valuable lessons that I would like to pass on so that any other OD that decides to step up and take a shot at a House or even a Senate seat can be more efficacious.
Know the playing field before you get in – Knowing when to run is critical. The ducks may be in a row for you personally, but check out your competition and assess your chances of winning prior to getting in the race. Gauge your competition’s strengths. Do they know the issues and have solutions? Do they have a connection to the people? Are they influential? Do they have support and a good team behind them? You may find that this is not the best time to run and delaying your campaign for another election year with less competition or better conditions may be a better way to go.
Volunteers – There are two types of people in the world: those that DO and those that DON’T. To run an effective campaign, you will need help and lots of it. In any political party there are going to be those individuals who do the work and those who sit idly by. If you have competition in a primary election, you will be running against someone from your own party and will have to compete for the “doers” in the party. Too many people in the same party running for the same seat will simply dilute the pool of helpers and make it more difficult for everyone.
These folks are going to be the ones that help you make phone calls, knock on doors, put out yard signs, get your printed materials, manage your schedule, plan your strategy and spread the good word about your campaign. They’re also going to be the ones having meet-n-greets and fundraisers for you, so your helpers should have lots of friends and influence in the community.
It’s expensive – Although the cost of running for an office is highly variable, you can count on it costing some money, and on the local level, the expenses can be pretty reasonable. Undertaking a run for the state or federal level ups the ante considerably.
State Representative campaigns can cost anywhere from $20,000 to $80,000, or even up to $100,000. A Senate seat can be anywhere between $200,000 to $800,000 and more! Having a plan on how to get that money before you throw your hat in the ring is one of the most important things you can do. Be prepared to spend some of your own money, too. A percentage of your total budget, 10-25%, will come out of your personal funds.
In the beginning of any campaign the expenses will be light because you will be concentrating on building your war chest for what is to come. This will involve getting out to see people by going to spaghetti dinners and pancake breakfasts, asking for contributions and having fundraisers.
At the end of the campaign, the expenses will mount up exponentially with increased advertising, mailers, TV, radio, newspaper and whatever other media you deem appropriate to get the populace to vote for you in the election.
Time – You’ll need plenty of this. As a matter of fact, when running for a state-level office, plan to take a lot of time away from your practice. Timing is important here. When you announce your candidacy and start your campaign is critical, and the earlier you announce the more volunteers you will be able to get. That also means that you will start campaigning earlier, too. So, the dinners, breakfasts, civic meetings and more will begin early also.
Getting volunteers to help with your campaign is crucial but, in the end, the voters want to hear from you. That means you will need to make phone calls, go door-to-door and ask for contributions. More and more of your time will be in demand as the campaign continues.
Campaign manager vs. campaign advisor – Nothing is more important than having a good, experienced, well-connected campaign manager (CM). Dr. Doug Clark, an OD from Alabama, is running for his State House and has managed to procure the former Alabama Speaker of the House as his campaign manager. You can’t ask for a better CM than that!
One of the main jobs of the CM is to rally the troops for you. That person needs to coerce, cajole and otherwise twist the arms of every person he or she can to support you in one way or another. The CM will organize your meet-n-greets, fundraisers and House parties. They will also manage your schedule so that you attend the important civic meetings like school board meetings, town councils, debates, etcetera. He or she will also coordinate with your “team” to divvy up the jobs needed to promote your campaign and get as many volunteers as possible. Choose your CM wisely as he or she can make or break your run for office.
There are companies and organizations that will act as campaign advisors. For novice candidates, these organizations can be a valuable resource. They generally provide advice along with marketing suggestions. But beware, they can be expensive and can chew through your budget pretty quickly if you let them.
Connecting to the people – In the end it’s all about getting votes, and you get votes by connecting with the people in your community. That will mean going to plenty of affairs, but it also means calling folks and asking for their vote even though they probably don’t know you. It means knocking on strangers’ doors and introducing yourself as their candidate. At the same time, you’ll probably be asking them for money or support in some fashion and in return they’ll get a button or a pen.
Having an OD in the legislature would be a win for optometry and I hope I’m not the last person to make a run for the House or Senate. I also hope this information will be useful to the next person who gives it a try. I was extremely fortunate in having the support of the POA and its members to help fund my campaign and I can’t thank those who contributed and those who volunteered enough. There are too many to mention here, but you know who you are and I thank you from the bottom of my heart!
