The holiday season has begun.
With Thanksgiving behind us and Christmas approaching, most are preparing for celebrations with family and friends. For political operatives and 2020 candidates, it’s filing season as well.
Filing for 2020 contests began Monday at noon. Filing ends Dec. 20 at noon. Fees are generally 1% of base salary for the elected position. A candidate filing to compete in a party primary must have been affiliated with that party for at least 90 days prior to filing.
According to the State Board of Elections, voters will be required to provide photo identification when voting in 2020 with more than 130 types of ID that will be accepted. On Dec. 12 there is a public hearing in Raleigh at the Dobbs Building to discuss the methods that are being proposed to ensure absentee ballots comply with the new photo ID requirement.
Locally, there will be contested seats from county commissioner and school board to N.C. House seats. There is even word that area judicial seats will be highly contested. It will be an interesting election season.
Whether you are a Democrat or Republican seeking office, it’s always a good idea to contact the local party organization before filing. Party officials typically have an insight of how the candidate field is shaping up and can provide the best view for any potential candidate. It’s their job to recruit candidates.
Politics is a hard business. Though everyone says they hate politics, politics is a necessary part of a free society. You may not have an interest in politics. But politics has an interest in you.
And while moderation and diplomacy are political virtues, those virtues seem to be disappearing in politics. Candidates should understand how they fit into this chaotic business. There are a few things potential candidates should consider.
First, have realistic goals. There were a lot of things for Republicans not to like about Obamacare, for example. But demanding outright defunding before it even got started may have been a bit premature. Democrats are overreaching with the president prematurely as well. Impeachment talk started the day after his inauguration. Many elected officials fail to understand achievable goals to some extent.
Voters want politicians to fight problems, not each other. Having realistic goals that you can solve as an elected official will appeal to a broad base of voters. Delivering lofty promises is both unreasonable and disingenuous.
Second, be rational. Have you seen the interviews where a journalist asks presumably a Democrat voter on the street what they think of a particular Democrat policy or quote? But the policy or quote is actually from a Republican. The citizen being interviewed agrees how great the idea sounds when they think a fellow Democrat said it. But when they learn it was Republican legislation they are surprised they agree with it. Calm analysis of ideas achieves better results rather than blindly following labels.
Third, understand principled leadership. Though we approach political campaigns like war, most Americans understand politics is ultimately the management of disagreement as opposed to utter destruction. Sure, there are differences that should be too wide to negotiate. Slavery was such an issue. Late-term abortion should be another. But there are many things elected officials pretend are non-negotiable that simply aren’t. Pick your battles.
Overall, a good candidate with American values will protect individual freedom. A good candidate will understand the battles he can win and the ones he can’t. Being a rational leader with reasonable goals who protects freedom is a good candidate.
Republicans don’t hold the monopoly on protecting American values and personal freedom. But the hope is voters will look closely at the Republican 2020 candidates as they begin to take shape.
The idea is simply to get good candidates who are willing to debate ideas then work together toward a common goal. Those types of candidates are sometimes in short supply.
