Cary School Board Member Urges People to Run for Office

Cary School District 26 board member Chris Jenner is encouraging other taxpayers to run for public office next spring. Here is his pitch, complete with his email, if you have questions.

Run for local office!!

The process for local office elections (village, school, park, library, fire, etc. boards) begins soon. It’s a great way to get involved in the electoral process, and you actually stand a reasonable chance of becoming an elected official. Many of these races, especially in towns under 25,000 or so, go uncontested (read: you need minimal campaign funds).

The races are all nonpartisan. You don’t have to be anointed by a party. Most voters won’t base their decisions on the party you’re affiliated with (if any). Ballot access isn’t an issue. And considering there are roughly 7,000 governing bodies in Illinois, with an average number of seven board seats each, there are plenty of opportunities.

There are few requirements beyond having a pulse. Generally, you need to be 18 and have lived within the district for a year or two. You don’t need intimate knowledge of the organization for which you seek a board seat. More important is understanding what ails government — corruption, patronage, waste, lack of transparency and accountability, etc. Thick skin is also useful.

Local governing boards are starting to offer “candidate packets” for interested candidates. If they haven’t announced availability of these packets by late October, they should be available from each local governing body.

The key dates are:

  • Tuesday, Oct 28, 2008 – First day to start circulating nominating petitions (for most of these races, you need a whole 50 signatures, but get 100 to be challenge-proof).
  • Monday Jan 19, 2009 – Monday Jan 26, 2009 – Petition filing with the local government body (you’re more likely to find a nice weekend in November to get your signatures than in December or January). There are various strategies regarding when, during this period, to file your papers.
  • Monday Feb 2, 2009 – Last day for filing objections to nominating petitions.
  • Feb – Mar, 2009 – If you’re in a contested race, campaign – we’ll help. If you’re uncontested, learn about your board, learn a little about Roberts’ Rules, and set your goals for your tenure on the board.
  • Tuesday, April 7, 2009 – Election Day — you’re an elected official!

Pick a board or two, and pick up a candidate packet or two. Village and school boards have a larger influence over the tax base than the others, and will give you a better view of the Illinois state government cabal. If your time is already tight, park, library, fire, etc. boards won’t add too much of a burden.

Full Candidate’s Guide from the Illinois State Board of Elections is here.

There are a number of us who were elected in 2005 and 2007 that will be happy to help you get elected, and help you with what to do once you’re elected. If you’d like more information, please contact me — cjenner01@yahoo.com.

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You can see Chris Jenner fighting for his school district against the Downtown Cary Route 14 Tax Increment Financing District. You can tell the photo was pre-digital and taken in the bad light of the Cary Village Hall.


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