york region government liaison program presentation

Get your skin in the game: Running a successful campaign for political office

Howard BrownPresident

Brown & Cohen Communications & Public Affairs

York Region Government Liaison ProgramDecember 3, 2009

PEO Government Liaison Program

Six engineers in the House of Commons

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Pierre Lemieux, MPGlengarry-Prescott-Russell, ON

Conservative

Robert Carrier, MPAlfred-Pellan, QCBloc Quebecois

2Thierry St-Cyr, MPJeanne-Le Ber, QC

Bloc Quebecois

2

Marc Garneau, MPWestmount-Ville-Marie, QC

Liberal


Only two engineers in the Ontario Legislature

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• Successes to date▫ Regular consultation with over 80 MPP meetings in four

years▫ Three annual Queen’s Park Days ▫ Presentations to numerous legislative committees▫ Town hall meetings, campaign colleges, training

sessions, lunch and learns, chapter meetings and weekly updates to PEO members.

▫ Candidate colleges to seek engineers for public office including most recently on October 14.

▫ The GLP Journal appears in every edition of Engineering Dimensions as a voice for the Government Liaison Program

The PEO Government Liaison Program:Celebrating Success

• The GLP was established in 2005 after the Ontario government brought in changes to the Building Code legislation that overrode the Professional Engineers Act.


• Run for the right reasons

• Raise an issue you specifically concerned about,

• You want to make a difference

• Chance to get your point-of-view across

• You have a certain valuable expertise

• You have been encouraged by friends and family

• You like politics

• You think we need better people in government

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Why should you run?


• Money

• You want recognition/notoriety

• Because you think, “Why not?”

• Because you think it will be easy (it’s not)

• Because you need a job

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“If you can’t get 10 people in a room to volunteer for your campaign, you can’t win”

Peter Tabuns, MPP, 2009 Candidate College

Why should you NOT run?

PEO Government Liaison Program 7

The facts

Role Salary

The Premier $202,788

Cabinet Minister with Portfolio $160,941

Cabinet Minister without Portfolio

$134,815

Parliamentary Assistants $129,273

MPPs $113,100


Do you have an interest in public policy?

Are you interested in specific issues?

Do you follow the news and read the paper?

Are you involved in the community?

Do you have a supportive network that can help you:

◦ Personal - Family, friends,

◦ Professional - colleagues, business

◦ Political - Member of political party, advocacy groups

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Are you made for politics?


Case study #1:Dr. Eric Hoskins – A new MPP

Spent more than a decade doing humanitarian work as a doctor in war-torn regions.

Later advised then-Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy on human rights, the landmines ban, child soldiers, peacekeeping, and Africa.

Eric co-founded the international charity War Child Canada to help children in war-affected regions.

Returned to his family practice at a downtown health clinic in the community.

Elected as an MPP for St. Paul’s in 2009 by-election

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Case Study #2Bonnie Crombie - How did she do it?

Bonnie has an MBA, solid business and entrepreneurial experience, and ran her own consulting business in Mississauga.

Had commitment to the community as a key fundraiser for Credit Valley Hospital and the Brain Injury Association of Canada, as well as the Vice Chair of the Mayor's Task Force on the Arts in Mississauga. She is also a long-term community volunteer.

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PEO Government Liaison Program 11

The Steps


• Once your ideas are on paper you can begin to understand which party is closely aligned to your own ideals/issues/concerns and which level of government is responsible for them

Federal and Provincial• If you’re running federally and provincially, your issue

could bubble up from the party’s central campaign.

Municipally:• If you’re running locally, it’s important to know what the

local issues are. i.e. Waste management, snow clearance, traffic, development.

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Get your ideas on paper


Federal

Provincial Municipal

School Board

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What level to run?


FEDERAL• defence, • criminal law, • employment insurance, • postal service, • census, • copyrights, • trade regulation, • external relations, • money and banking, • transportation, (airports, customs, etc)• citizenship, and • Indian affairs.

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Federal responsibilities


PROVINCIAL MUNICIPAL• property and civil rights, • administration of justice, • natural resources and

the environment, • education, • health, and • welfare.

• water • sewage, • waste collection, • public transit, • land use planning, • libraries, • emergency services, • animal control, and • economic development.

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Provincial and municipal responsibilities


• Does one party speak for you?

▫ Find a party by following the issues, volunteering, looking at philosophy etc.

• Take an interest in an issue and act on it.

▫ Affordable housing, the economy, poverty, environment, education and health.

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Choose your party


• Within your profession

• In the community

• On the issues you believe in (status quo vs. change, with the party in power or without)

• Write an article on the Journal of Policy Engagement

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Raise your profile


Community support - Volunteero PEO chapters & councils, charity, community

organizations, school associations, rate payer groups

● Attend public eventso These meetings are the access point to introductions to

government leaders and members of the community

Raise your voiceo Write opinion pieces. Write for papers, journals, etc. Let

your opinions be known

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How to raise your profile?


Develop campaign committee and army of volunteers:

◦ Campaign management◦ Canvassers - knock on

doors and work phones◦ Office management◦ Collecting donations◦ Fundraisers◦ Communications and

media◦ Create a website

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Build a team


• Where do you live?

• Where do you work?

• Where do you have profile?

• Where is there an issue that you can make a difference?

• Is there an incumbent?

• Is he/she in your party?

• Is he/she likely to retire?

• Is he/she with the governing party?

• Is he/she likely to win?

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Selecting the riding


• How much are you willing to put in yourself?

• A campaign for a federal or provincial nomination can start anywhere from $40,000.

• Municipal campaign will cost a minimum of $25,000

• You would need 50 friends to donate $500 and up to run for municipal office.

• Do you have 20- to 40 friends you can count on for $1000 for a federal or provincial run?

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Funding a campaign


Federal - only individual contributions• no more than $1,100 a year to a political party • no more than $1,100* a year to riding associations

Provincial – individual or corporate• No more than $9,300 to a provincial party• No more than $1,240 to a constituency association• No more than $6,200 total to various constituency

associations• No more than $1,240 to a candidate during an election

year

Municipal (York Region) – individual or corporate• No more than $750 to a candidate

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Funding a campaign


• Building a winning team

▫ you’ll need over 100 volunteers

• Barack Obama had over 500,000 volunteers

• Are you prepared to start donating to other campaigns?

• Are your volunteers prepared to come out 2-3 times per week for the duration of the campaign? Are they prepared to ask for, and donate money?

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Winning an election


Any questions?

For more information or to become involved, contact:

Howard BrownBrown & Cohen Communications & Public Affairs

321 Brooke Avenue, Toronto ON. M5M [email protected]

416-844-1180

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york region government liaison program presentation

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