Cassanelli urges citizens to run for office: ‘Just do it!’
From our weekly issue dated March 04, 2009
Josephine County Commissioner Sandi Cassanelli. (Photo by Michelle Binker, Illinois Valley News)
“Staying on message” and accepting help from energized volunteers were two factors Sandi Cassanelli credits for her successful 2008 campaign for election as a Josephine County commissioner.
Cassanelli spoke Thursday, Feb. 26 before the Josephine County Republican Women at Elmer’s Restaurant in Grants Pass. The newly minted commissioner called on those present to run for political office.
“I just want to encourage you to run, because the electorate is just hungry for people with Republican views,” she said. “People want this, they want conservatives. They desperately want people to stand their ground and not to cave in -- not to go-along-to-get-along.”
Cassanelli said that she began early in 2008 by writing a letter to the editor, encouraging fellow county residents to put their hats into the ring. Waiting until the last minute, she decided that among proffered candidates, she’d rather vote for herself.
After filing with the county clerk’s office, the most important action a candidate must take, Cassanelli emphasized, is to make certain to be included in the Voters Pamphlet.
“You have to nail this,” she said. “You have 350 words to get into the pamphlet.” Along with a good photo, inclusion in the publication is critical, she said. “Make sure this is rock-solid,” she stressed.
Determined to spend less than $300 on her primary campaign, Cassanelli said that she stenciled poster board signs and stood in front of post offices handing out two-page leaflets listing her basic principles. Sticking with a direct motto and a few, unwavering talking points, Cassanelli maintained a consistent message.
To her surprise, she garnered enough votes to move on to the general election. After she filed with the state election office, Cassaneli started a campaign committee, but was reluctant to accept assistance.
“I did it all on my own until August,” she told her audience. “Then I hit a wall. That was a big mistake. Start earlier and let people help you. I didn’t realize that there were a lot of people who wanted to help me. All these talented, generous, hard-working people came out of the woodwork,” she recalled. “A true grass-roots movement helped me.”
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She insisted that a candidate needs to “get ... ego out of the way” and let supporters apply their energy and talent to the campaign. People made fliers, business cards, paid for advertising and arranged public appearances for her, she said.
Cassanelli said that her hardest hurdle was to learn to graciously accept donations of money, time and ideas. Along the way she learned that there was only so much preparation she could handle.
“As long as I was just myself, I was fine,” she said. “When I tried to be a politician, it was a disaster. And when I tried to be sarcastic, like the rest of them, it didn’t work at all.”
Now in office, Cassanelli said that she is learning to take the “jabs, slings and arrows” without rancor. “It’s actually fun,” she said.
“Just, please, run,” she reiterated. “Just do it, you’ll learn a lot about life and how you deal with people.”
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