How to Expand Your Qualifications Before Running for Office
You've done your homework. Now it's time to start building the experience, relationships, and community connections that will help you when you're ready to run.
You've figured out when you can officially declare your candidacy. Maybe that's a few weeks away. Maybe it's a few months. Maybe you've got years before you'll be able to put your name on the ballot.
Whatever your timeline, there's plenty you can do before you announce your campaign.
In fact, some of the most valuable work you'll do as a future candidate happens long before you ever put up a campaign sign.
Start by Building Your Leadership Experience
Name recognition matters in elections, particularly in municipal elections. But being known in your community isn't just about having your name recognized—it’s about having people understand who you are, what you care about, and how you show up for your community.
Ask yourself: Are you considered a leader in your community?
If the answer is yes, great. If the answer is no—or you're not sure—that's okay. Leadership isn't something you have to be born with, and you certainly don't need a fancy title to start building it.
Look for opportunities to get involved in the places and causes that matter to you.
You could:
Join a local board of directors.
Join a community committee.
Get involved with a neighbourhood or community action group.
Apply to serve on an advisory panel.
Look for opportunities to serve on a public or legislative appointment.
Volunteer with a local charity or cause you care about.
Organize a local fundraiser, community event, or initiative.
Join your child's school council or parent group.
Get involved with a local service, cultural, recreational, or community organization.
You don't need to do all of these. Pick something you genuinely care about.
The goal isn't to collect impressive-sounding positions for your résumé. It's to find meaningful ways to contribute to your community while building skills that will serve you as a candidate—and eventually, if you're elected, as a public official.
Get Some Governance Experience
If you think you might eventually run for municipal office, getting some experience with governance can be incredibly valuable.
Serving on a board or committee gives you a chance to learn how meetings work, how decisions get made, how organizations set priorities, and what it means to work with people who don't always agree with you.
You also get to see the less glamorous side of leadership: reading reports, asking questions, reviewing budgets, making decisions, and following through on them.
That's good preparation for elected office.
But there's another benefit that can be even more important: you start building relationships with people in your community.
You get to know other volunteers, community leaders, organizations, and residents. They get to know you. And over time, you're building the kind of genuine community relationships that can become incredibly valuable when you eventually decide to run.
Get Out and Listen
Here's something you can start doing right now, whether you're volunteering on a board or simply walking around your neighbourhood:
Talk to people.
Ask what's happening in their community. Find out what they're excited about. Ask what's frustrating them. Listen to what they think could be better.
You don't need to turn every conversation into a campaign conversation. In fact, you shouldn't.
You're not campaigning yet. You're learning.
Pay attention to the issues that keep coming up. Notice where people's concerns align with your own values and where they challenge your assumptions. Learn about the organizations already doing work in your community.
This kind of listening is valuable preparation for a future campaign because you're building your understanding of the community before you're asking people to vote for you.
Don't Treat This Like a Résumé-Building Exercise
It's tempting to look at a list like this and think, Okay, so I need to join three boards, volunteer for two charities, get an appointment somewhere, and then I'll be qualified to run.
Nope.
There is no magic checklist of community involvement that makes someone “qualified” to run for office.
And you don't need to spend the next five years collecting titles before you're allowed to consider yourself a candidate.
Instead, think about where you can contribute meaningfully and grow as a leader.
Maybe you're passionate about accessibility and join an advisory committee. Maybe you care deeply about your local library and volunteer with a friends-of-the-library group. Maybe your child's school needs someone to step up for school council. Maybe there's a community organization doing work you've wanted to support for years.
Start there.
Your experience will grow, your network will grow, and your understanding of your community will grow along with it.
Think About What You Want to Learn
As you're choosing where to get involved, consider the skills you'll eventually need as an elected official.
Do you want more experience with:
public speaking?
facilitating meetings?
reading budgets and financial reports?
working with volunteers?
building partnerships?
advocating for an issue?
resolving conflict?
communicating with the public?
understanding how local organizations and institutions work?
You don't need to be good at all of these before you run.
But if there's an area where you know you're less confident, this is a great time to start practising.
And Remember: You Have Time
One of the biggest advantages of thinking about running for office before an election is that you don't have to do everything at once.
You can spend a year getting involved in your community. You can spend another year learning about an issue you're passionate about. You can build relationships, develop your skills, and figure out what kind of leader you want to be.
Then, when the time comes to make your announcement, you're not starting from zero. You've already been showing up. You've already been contributing. You've already been listening.
And hopefully, your community has already started to see you as someone who cares about making it better.
Need a resource to help?
We've created a free resource to help you figure out what you can start doing right now—even if your election is still years away.
Build Your Future Campaign includes 22 ideas for building your experience, connections, and community relationships before you're ready to run.
