By Justin Walker
Communications Specialist
Running for public office can be intimidating. It’s more than just throwing your name in the hat and delivering a few speeches.
To help prepare potential candidates for the journey, Texas Farm Bureau (TFB) will host a campaign seminar Sept. 25-26 at the TFB Conference and Training Center in Waco. Candidates, their spouses and others interested or involved in campaigns are invited to attend.
The seminar, hosted once every two years, is designed to help those interested in public office better understand and prepare for the campaign process, Billy Howe, TFB associate director of Government Affairs, said.
“This seminar is an opportunity to learn about the campaign process step by step,” Howe said. “The program covers everything from how to raise money to how to organize a staff and even the candidate’s electability.”
Howe and other TFB Government Affairs staff will lead the two-day course, which will feature six sessions important to running a successful campaign.
The course outlines how to evaluate the candidate and the electorate, raise money, build a campaign structure, create coalitions, enlist allies and get voter attention.
“There is more than 20 years of campaign experience on our team, and some have previously worked on state and national campaigns,” he said. “Our knowledge and experience are a resource we can share with these candidates.”
The seminar has a successful history, Howe noted. It helped current State Reps. Ernest Bailes (R-Shepherd), DeWayne Burns (R-Cleburne) and Kyle Kacal (R-College Station) with their elections and equipped others in their campaigns for commissioner’s court, school board positions and more.
Burns will also serve as a special guest speaker during this year’s course.
The deadline to register for the seminar is Aug. 30. The application can be found here.
For more information, contact Howe at 254-751-2208 or bhwoe@txfb.org.