Anyone on their local city council?

Various people in my city have begged me to run for a city council seat over the years. This year I'm thinking about it. I'm probably going to grab a beer with one of our current councilmen to see just what the job entails. I don't want to be a career politician, I just think my talents may serve to improve the city. It is a paid gig, which is nice, but I'm fairly sure the time commitment would be close to having another full time job.

I'm running for a seat in 2020 as my councilman is running for Mayor. I have endored him for Mayor and he plans on endorsing me prior to the election. 

I was for about 4-years in our old hometown in IL of about 1300-people. I definitely learned a few things:

• Yes, our old mayor was corrupt like people had been stating for years.
• Having some type of legal background/knowledge is really helpful. 
• Everyone working for the city hates dealing with the elected officials, sometimes to the point of sabotage. 
• There’s no IQ test required to get put on the ballot, but there really should be. 

Based on those 4 years and what I experienced in our tiny microcosm I can only imagine how bad it gets as you climb the different levels of government. Feel free to message me & I can give you more details & anecdotes that I’d rather not post. 

I ran but unfortunately did not win. I would advise that you look closely at the campaign contribution rules and make sure you have a committee that includes people that have previously run a campaign. I spent more time going door to door then attending events. I enjoyed campaigning, but demographics were against me 30% vs 70%. I ran because I truly believed I could make a difference. Unfortunately I do not have much advice when you are in office, but I can give you advice on what I learned when I campaigned. 

I didn't even think about the campaign finance stuff, or a committee. I'd hate to mess that up and end up in the news.

Most of our town likes the mayor and council, but man there are some REALLY shiny happy people who don't, and make it known loudly. The vitriol level is insane and I'm not sure how I'd handle it once I inevitably anger the lynch mob. They have really cooled off my interest in running over the last year of their antics. Unfortunately two of the lynch mob members are ex-councilmen who are still seething at being voted out, and intend to run again. I'm not sure running for office just to freeze one of them out is a good reason to jump in front of a firing squad.

If you don't really want the job, you are unfortunately likely the best person for the job...

My mom did 8 years on our city council, ~35000 people. Definitely some stressful decisions, and you'll probably end up on council with at least one shiny happy person. Lots to learn. She didn't work a normal full-time job, but she still dedicated probably 20-30 hours a week at least (when she was working other jobs) to the cause. Lots of nights/weekends, lots of events, but a lot of satisfaction from the impact you can make on your city and the people in it.

Here's my cynical take on public office...

The job in itself is not wroth the pay so you must find the "fulfillment" from the job in other ways. 

• Sure, this could be a desire to "serve the community."  My guess is this desire wears off quickly (one term) though some people have it. 
• The Power.  Lots of people get drunk on power, even small power like HOA President.
• The pocket lining/corruption.  Once people feel they are owed more for the work they do, they will often find a way to "get paid!"
• The perpetuation.  Once the "juggling of all the balls" begins then there is a need for re-election to keep all the balls in the air.  See career politician.  

Also be ready to eat a lot of turd sandwiches.  Remember that on most of your decisions 49% of the people will be against you.   

aircooled said:

If you don't really want the job, you are unfortunately likely he best person for the job...

Sadly this usually defines my times in leadership positions. I joke that I'm the "Dark Knight" of leadership. I'm not the person you want, but I'm the person you deserve. I usually anger people for making decisions based on facts and research rather than gut feelings or emotions. I'm not here to make friends, I'm here to make decisions and keep things moving forward. Doesn't always endear people to me.

John Welsh said:

Here's my cynical take on public office...

The job in itself is not wroth the pay so you must find the "fulfillment" from the job in other ways. 

• Sure, this could be a desire to "serve the community."  My guess is this desire wears off quickly (one term) though some people have it. 
• The Power.  Lots of people get drunk on power, even small power like HOA President.
• The pocket lining/corruption.  Once people feel they are owed more for the work they do, they will often find a way to "get paid!"
• The perpetuation.  Once the "juggling of all the balls" begins then there is a need for re-election to keep all the balls in the air.  See career politician.  

Also be ready to eat a lot of turd sandwiches.  Remember that on most of your decisions 49% of the people will be against you.   

In my sideline experience, you don't see perpetuation/"career politicians" at the city council level as much. Many of the people who stay on the council do so because they genuinely enjoy what they're doing. Many of these jobs (non-major cities) are sub $20k/year, so while it's paid it's not the strong financial pull that you see at state/federal levels.

There are always going to be people who get carried away with any authority, but the point/goal of a council (depending on the structure - our city's was a weak mayor system), is that there should always be enough voices of reason to outweigh the one or two who may have lost their reason in favor of believing they are correct.

If you base your decisions on fact, and speak to it, most people will at least respect you, even when they don't like you. There will always be shiny happy people, too.

I had a buddy and former co-worker who ran for supervisor of a large municipality at 35 years old. He had plenty of political experience, and ran the gauntlet a few times as a county employee. He's successfully retained his seat through two subsequent relections. 

He had a good approach: find all your opponents and ask them for coffee. If you have a constituent who always complains about taxes, ask him how he thinks the budget should be spent, or what services they believe are necessary. 

Barring a threat to your physical well-being, most people will have a hard time berating you once they've had some conversation with you. 

I say go for it, you will be better than most politicians. Maybe you may even inspire others to run as well.

Got talked into running and got elected. Had thoughts of doing good things for the community making it a better place to live for my grandkids - WRONG.   Served out my term and didn’t run for re-election.  Tired of idiots yelling at me and calling me a liar.   Fighting with older members of council who were in it for the power, get their friends and families jobs  This was a small community, hate to see what it’s like in bigger towns.  Sorry for the negativity but that was my experience.  Got so fed up with politics I have to force myself to get out and vote

In reply to elramaed :

Pretty much what I experienced too in our small town.