Interested in running for local office? The Haines Borough wants to make sure you know what you’re in for.
For the first time, the clerk’s office will hold a brief “training” for residents considering a run for one of the two assembly seats open this fall.
The event, which will include a question-and-answer session with a small panel of current and former assembly members, is set for 5:30 p.m. Monday, July 25.
Clerk Julie Cozzi said she developed the training at the request of the assembly.
“It’s something the assembly wanted me to do, and it’s probably a good idea. It’s extremely rare. Most places don’t do that. It’s really going to be fairly informal. Sometimes people are kind of thinking about (running), but they don’t really know what it entails to be an assembly member.”
The training isn’t about how to campaign or how to fill out all the correct paperwork. “It’s what happens once you get elected,” Cozzi said.
“We’re letting them know it’s not just, ‘I’m going to get on the assembly and attend an occasional meeting.’ It’s more than that. You’ll hear from members of the public. You’ll have people call you and email you and stop you (on the street),” Cozzi said.
Residents mulling an assembly run might try their hand at a committee or board seat first, Cozzi suggested. “One of the things you might consider if you’ve never been involved before is get on a board or commission and try that out and see if you like it,” she said. “Or, if this sounds like something you can handle, by all means, jump right in.”
Assembly member Diana Lapham, who intends to run for re-election this fall, said the time commitment may be one aspect of the job some people are unaware of.
“You’re on committees, your phone is ringing, your computer is going off, you’re getting emails on your borough iPad and personal email,” Lapham said. “You can’t leave town to work outside of town. You have to be here for meetings. You’ve got to be available. This is another job.”
Assembly member Margaret Friedenauer, who has been on the assembly since October, said while the job is tough, she thinks it sometimes gets an unfair reputation.
“I think the job gets a bad rap,” Friedenauer said. “People like to joke about being an assembly member, you bear the brunt of public discontent and stuff, but it’s not really as bad as people think it is. I think there is a lot of pressure. If you’re doing the job right, there is a lot of pressure and it takes a lot of time.”
Aside from the time commitment and pressure, working with a group of disparate people is also a challenge, she said.
“It is difficult to work with a group of very different individuals, but this is the group that the community wants to work together, so that’s what you’re faced with.”
The code-mandated candidate filing period is Aug. 1 through Aug. 20. To declare candidacy, pick up forms from the clerk’s office or get them from the borough’s website at http://www.hainesalaska.gov/administration/borough-election-information.
State law permits campaigning prior to filing candidacy provided a Candidate Letter of Intent is filed with the Alaska Public Offices Commission.