23 June 2018 Why Don't You Run For Office?

Why Don’t You Run For Office?

I often ask myself why I don’t run for political office. For me that would be for Congressman.   I have no problem criticizing current politicians but what is stopping me for trying? One of the challenges is the two-party system we have. It effectively prevents on independent from running. That is the only way I would want to run, as an independent.

That might sound like an easy excuse. Here are just a couple of the barriers, in Florida you have to put up $10,000 to even have your name on the ballot. Some states have a nominal fee that is nowhere near this. They want you to raise money through one of the two parties. Raising money has its own legal challenges. You have to keep detailed records of who and how much were given to you. If you are tied to one of the parties, you have to agree to the platform. There are too many issues where I would be in conflict with either party.

In the last National primaries there were multiple Republican candidates who ran for the vacant congressional seat. There was one candidate who would’ve been an outstanding representative for our district. But he did not have the support of the party. The party preferred to go with a guy who was the representative in the Florida legislature.  It didn’t matter who was the better candidate, it was just who had the connections. 

I still think long and hard about trying. I know it is very easy to criticize but difficult to actually get in the ring and compete. This is one of the biggest things I struggle with especially if I don’t try it and I’m on my deathbed and I’m thinking about regrets.