High School Elections

<p>Hey guys. I'm a sophomore currently running for class treasurer and I am really determined to win. I have talked to alot of kid in my grade and it seems as though the majority has said that they would vote for me, but I'm not sure. This weekend I have to create my posters and campaign speech, which could make-or-break my campaign. Does anyone have any tips/ideas/general information regarding the speech or posters or successful techniques you have seen other candidates use? Thanks</p>

<p>People at my school have made buttons, t-shirts, cards.</p>

<p>I think the way to grasp a large amount of votes is to state serious points, but also include some humor. People will lose concentration if you say the same stuff others may and make an excessively long speech.</p>

<p>Good luck</p>

<p>Look up John Kennedy on YouTube. Sound like that.</p>

<p>Run a campaign like Obama. </p>

<p>You will win.</p>

<p>No.
Sound like Sarah Palin and then no way you’ll lose. lolz</p>

<p>You better hope that you’re popular, otherwise you haven’t got a shot in hell.</p>

<p>well the thing is I’m much more popular than the other 2 kids and have a way more spread out group of kids that I know are voting for me, but the other 2 kids seem like pretty tough candidates to beat. One of the kids won’t stand a chance as he isn’t really qualified or popular, but the other kid is currently the treasurer (if he wins it would be his re-election), he is very smart and has a pretty well known reputation for it, but he doesn’t know as many kids as I do and he has a smaller base of students supporting him. For the speech I know he won’t be very funny, and he will most likely be talking about how much he has already fundraised and how qualified he is, do you guys have any tips for beating someone like this? such as any tips on how to make my speech funny, creative, etc. thanks</p>

<p>

Adopt a “throw out the bums” platform.</p>

<p>I don’t want to bash the other candidates and look like an a-hole though. How can I beat someone more qualified than me?</p>

<p>Ask not what the school can do for you… but ask what you can do for you school. just kiddin’.</p>

<p>

You don’t say that they’re more qualified… Why do you even want this position?</p>

<p>You can’t beat someone who can/will/did more than you.</p>

<p>If they can do better then why would you run against them?</p>

<p>I agree with Billy on this one. Why do you even want that office?</p>

<p>Kinda funny, I was in your exact same position. At the end of my sophomore year I decided to run for class treasurer. My story probably deviates a bit from your’s in the fact that I didn’t even put up flyers or posters. Pretty much everybody in my class saw me as the Smart and Serious kid. i was socially kinda-awkward but was the one person everybody looked to for help.</p>

<p>My suggestion for you is to have a serious speech that highlights your accomplishments. The way the speech is delivered (actually speaking, having your teacher read it off paper) can greatly impact the information in it. If it’s something you’re going to be actually reading I suggest you work on the speaking part more than the content.</p>

<p>BillyMC+Blackrose101- By more qualified I mean that he has past/ current experience (he is currently treasurer, but he didn’t get much done) that he can mention in his speech, while I currently have little previous fund raising experience. However, I have no doubt in my mind that if elected I will raise just as much if not more money than this student, however I have no credentials or past experience to prove this, besides stating my ideas (which is my dilemma, and what I’m asking you guys to help me out with)</p>

<p>mtv22- yeah, my plan seems like it’s going to be to put a lot of emphasis on making my speech and go mention other leadership positions I have/ will have and try to win as many votes with it as possible.</p>

<p>Vote for Pedro.</p>

<p>

Kid at my school in a lower grade got kicked out of the race for doing the dance. Thankfully.</p>

<p>This sounds superficial, but candy. When our school held government elections, all of the candidates had bags and bags of candy with “Vote for ____” written on nerds, snickers, etc…</p>

<p>Hey, sometimes you really do need to buy friendship, or in this case, voters. Most of the student population won’t give a crap about what you plan on doing for the school, honestly, so might as well make them remember you with candy.</p>

<p>

“Choose these nerds, not that nerd.”</p>

<p>Catchy, risky, and will get you thrown out. Still felt like saying it, though.</p>

<p>Hi OP -</p>

<p>I am a sophomore in High School with ~700 kids per grade. I am currently the Vice-President of my class, and I was freshman year as well. I am currently in my campaign for President this year, which I think I will win.</p>

<p>The SINGLE most important thing in winning elections is being popular. From my own experiences, the only way to secure a spot on student/class council is what you do in the other 50 weeks that are not for campaigning. Coming into elections, you need to feel as if you are already going to win because of how popular you are.
Now, there are only a few ways to achieve popularity in high school and these are:
1)Being very attractive
2)Being very funny
3)Being very good at sports</p>

<p>In order to win an election, you have to show that you are at least 2 out of these 3 throughout the school year to everyone in your class. You must talk to everyone. No matter the race/gender everyone must know your name. Mind you, this is something you have to do outside of election week because 1 week of campaigning really isn’t going to change opinions.</p>

<p>Some notes on campaigning-</p>

<p>Arrive early on the first day in order to put your posters up in the best locations possible.
***Make sure your poster does NOT have a slogan. It should simply say- _<strong><em>(name) for _</em></strong>(position) in a stand-out font and a cool design/picture. </p>

<p>Spend $100 dollars on candy and labels to pass out (seems shallow but no one really cares about your ‘platform’ or what you can do for the school) I personally bought 500+ airheads and labelled all of them with __ 4 Prez.</p>

<p>Make as many stickers, buttons, shirts, livestrong bracelets as your budget can allow and give them to everyone. The single most important thing is having your name known.</p>

<p>Make your speech FUNNY and very succinct. No one cares about what you say about the school and how you are going to change it and blah blah blah. Just state your name, what you’re running for, your platform in one sentence, and be done with it.</p>

<p>All in all, just be popular. Don’t stick to your own group or posse. Sometimes you will have to conform to society in order to be more socially accepted. Personally, I’m okay with that; but, if you don’t agree with this, then maybe student council isn’t for you. Obviously there are schools with student bodies that care about platforms and qualifications, but your school probably doesn’t. This is all I have to say about the subject.</p>

<p>609Represent-that post was very informative and helpful, thanks a lot. I feel like I have everyone under control that you listed EXCEPT the speech. From what I have read, the speech makes or breaks the campaign, and shows the student body who you really are. Do you think you could go into detail on any tips about the speech? Thanks</p>