Elected officials are invariably interested in their
career. Because they are always working
to get re-elected, they are the most sensitive to the community’s wants,
because ultimately the community decides the official’s future. When dealing with elected officials, there
are three basic things to keep in mind:
·
Because of concern about
their career, they are easily threatened by large numbers of people who do not
agree with them. It is important to
exploit this fact to its fullest.
·
Each area government has
tactics that have, in the past, worked best against them. The same applies to
each individual official. Talk to
people or organizations who have been successful in the past, as it is quite often
the case that these tactics will work for you as well.
·
Find out each official’s base
of political power. What area of the
community had the highest percent of supporters? Who were the big campaign
contributors? What are their pet issues? All of this information is necessary
for planning your specific approach.
In
general, the most important factor is to appeal directly to an official’s self
interest. Find out what affects that
official the most, and exploit that in your favor. In any given government, there will be at least one powerful
official whose pet issue is the same or similar to yours. Address your appeals
to that person or that committee first.
Then, if that does not work, diversify to other politicians and committees.
Appointed
officials are an interesting case, and can be frustrating for citizens to work
with. Appointed officials, like elected
officials, are concerned about their career.
Because their career often relies on an elected official staying in
office, they are also concerned with public sentiment, and can be threatened by
numbers. However, it is often the job
of these elected official to deflect or absorb pressure applied on the elected
official who appointed them. When
trying to contact an elected official, it is not uncommon to have to first get
through an elected official’s political shield. With work, however, you can use the appointed officials
connections to elected officials to your advantage.
Appointed
officials generally have more specialized knowledge on a particular issue,
case, or subject. Find the official
that knows the most about your issue, and work with that person as much as
possible. It is always helpful to have someone
within the administration on your side, and their issue specific knowledge
often leaves them more vulnerable to outside influence or pressure from your
organization. If you present a solid
case to the appointed official—showing flaws in the government’s position, the
appointed official may turn around and sway the actions of the elected
official. Because appointed officials
often serve as advisors, the elected officials pay attention to them. Use this
to your advantage. But, be wary,
appointed officials have a strong loyalty to the people who appointed them, and
they are often challenging to work with.
Staff
Staff
members generally have very little invested interest in the positions of the
elected officials. As long as they
perform their assigned tasks, they are in little or no danger of losing their
job. This job security has several implications. First, the staff members are the people whom you will likely
encounter first. Therefore treat them with respect.
Also,
staff members generally have the most specific knowledge. Because they have little interest in
supporting the elected officials, their knowledge can be used as a resource for
your organization. Run your ideas past
the staff members first, see if they feel if your ideas are feasible, and
listen to the suggestions that you might have.
If you can bring staff members over to your side, you have a better
chance of influencing the appointed and elected officials.
Generally,
when dealing with the government always keep in mind that there is significant
overlap between the different sections.
In Kalamazoo County, the most common governmental entity is the
committee. The responsibilities of
various committees always overlap, so use this to your advantage. If one committee is not listening to you,
then contact another. Cycle through the
relevant committees until you find the one that is willing to listen. Similarly, if the person whose stance you
are trying to change does not want to listen, see if the people that he or she
does listen to will meet with you. If you can’t get in through the front door
use the side, if the side is not open, use the back. Be persistent and use all of your
options. In any government, there will
be someone who is willing to listen to you.
Use this person as a supportive foundation to build support from.