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The following is a Department of Education guide on how to run for Congress. It is part of a two part series on how to run for Congress and how to be an effective legislator. With Congressional elections coming up, we as the Department of Education want to see more informed candidates running for office. This guide will show you how to run a successful campaign.

So.. you want to run for Congress, eh? Got ambitions of helping to shape our nation? Well Congress is the perfect way to express that opinion. That’s why, the Department of Education is issuing this guide to help you in your run for Congress.

First off, though, you should run for the right reasons. Those who run for the wrong reasons more often then not end up being ineffective legislators. If you are running for the following reasons, I suggest you reevaluate why you are running.

You just want the 5 gold bonus.
You just want to pad your resume.
You are involved in the Marines.
You have no idea what the issues are effecting the eUS.

If any of these things apply to you, you should seriously reconsider running for Congress. There have been many people in the past who have run for the Gold and had no idea what the problems were that are effecting our country. They would haphazardly propose ridiculous proposals that would swiftly be voted down because they had not discussed that issue with Congress. Or, one would run for Congress then realize they cannot go overseas without resigning their office. There is the National Guard 1st division for those Congressmen who want to be a part of the military. But, if being part of the Marines is more important that you than being a part of Congress, don’t run.

Given that none of these 4 reasons apply to you, and you are level 12, you can run for Congress! Great! Now, to figure out a state to run in.

If you are not a big name, or are not a member of a big party, running in a smaller state is probably best. I don’t care if you live in a state like Florida in real life and feel passionate about running there--- this isn’t real life and to be frank, regional politics do not matter in eRepublik. The only reason regional politics matter is in terms of Defense System and Hospital placement and even then Congress has a list of where the next DS or hospital is going, so, in all honestly, its best not to make a promise for placing a Q5 Defense system in Kansas--- its not going to happen. Instead, find a state with a low population that has lesser known names running. If you don’t know whether a person is a big shot or not, PM your party president. (It should also be noted that even if a big name is running, there still maybe a slight chance of you winning due to party line voting. See the case of Florida last month. Justinious lost to Dountdude due to an inflated population due to the war and party line voting. This case, though, is an exception, not the rule.) Your party president can give you suggestions on where to run. Once you figure out a state to run in, go to your party page and click on the run for Congress button. You’ll be able to select the state you want to run in from the 16th to the 23rd of each month. Once you select your state, its time to develop your platform.

(It should also be noted that if you are a member of a party that is not in the Top-5 parties, your name will not appear on the ballot come election day. You will be able to put your name up for Congress on your party page but come elections, you will not be on the ballot. If you are a member of a 6th party and want to run for Congress, please contact your Party President. They will be able to ask other Party Presidents from different parties to allow you to run under their ticket. Once elected, you are able to switch back to your original party.)

So, now that you figured out what state to run in, its time to develop your platform. Your platform is the main way you will be able to communicate your ideas to the voters in your state. Make sure your platform addresses key issues affecting our country such as the economy (inflation and the value of the dollar vs gold), helping business and workers, imports vs exports, Value Added Taxes, Import taxes, and income taxes, Mutual Protection Pacts with other countries, and your opinion on war. This is not an all inclusive list but main topics that should be involved in your platform. Do not, I repeat, do not promise a Defense system or Hospital for your state. Like I mentioned before, there is a set strategic list of where DS and Hospitals will be placed and this will not change no matter how hard you campaign. Once you have your platform developed, link it to your candidate page. It is important that you do this because when voters go to place their vote, they can read each platform before clicking the vote button. This step is imperative!

Also, make sure to post your platform on your newspaper. This is a good way to make the public aware that you are running and get a positive vibe for your campaign. If others see your platform, even if they don’t live in your state, they’ll tell others you’re running a good campaign which will get more people to vote for you in end. Also, by posting your platform in your newspaper, you are more likely to get the endorsement of the Independent Congressional Recommendations Panel run by Angrr. This panel evaluates every race in each state and recommends the best candidate from each state. If you want to get this recommendation, you’re going to need a strong platform that is visible to the public.

Now, the most important, but tedious part of campaigning is PMing your potential voters. This can be a pain, but necessary to let your voters know you really care about their needs. In order to get a list of voters from your state, go to the info tab>rankings>USA> then your state. From there, PM every voter who is level 6 or above or that looks active and will be level 6 or above by election day. Mention that you are running, give a link to your platform and tell them send a PM back if they have any questions. That way, you a being personable and sending your message to the entire state. This is, by far, the best way you’ll win votes on election day.

The day before elections, your party president will finalize the list of candidates. Don’t worry, you should make it on the ballot unless someone else from your party is running in that state. Be sure to discuss your situation with your party president before the 24th of the month if this is the case for you. If not, its time to put in a last ditch effort to get votes. Put our a short article in your newspaper reminding people to vote on the 25th and put a link to your platform in your article. Make it short, but sweet. Just get your message across. Also, I’d recommend putting out a few shouts to friends to remind them to vote.

Now, on the day of elections, go and vote. When you get to the voter page, you’ll notice that candidates are separated by party. Click on your party and then you should see your name. From there, you can vote. Once voted, you’ll see the vote count in your state thus far. If you are not in first place, you’ll see your name under the “unqualified” list. This does not mean your are unqualified for office. It just means that, as of this time, you do not meet the qualifications to get elected to office (i.e. you don’t have the most votes). If in the event of a tie, the person with the most experience points will be declared the winner. Therefore, if throughout the day there is a tie, the qualified candidate will be the person with the most XP. Keep this in mind when choosing a state. In small states, the XP factor might be the deciding factor in a election.

Congratulations! You have won the Congressional election! In the next article by the Department of Education, we’ll explain how to be an effective legislator once elected to office.