How to Talk to Your Employer about Running for Office
By Rebecca Lamorte
Board Member, Disability Victory
Deciding to run for office is one of the most daunting yet exciting decisions you’ll make as a candidate. This initial decision to run also leads to a series of conversations in your personal and professional life that are necessary for having a strong understanding and network of support for the endeavor you’re undertaking.
In this piece, we’ll discuss one of those vital discussions – telling your employer you’ll be running for office and navigating what that means for you professionally and financially.
In 2019, I launched my campaign for New York City Council with the election being held in June 2021. At the time, I was working for a labor union as a lobbyist and knew I couldn’t proceed with publicly running for office without first sharing the information with them. My employer was politically active in New York. They followed a series of traditions and protocols which required that I “ask permission” from union leadership to run for office.
While your employment situation and/or employer may not have the same practices, the tenets of the conversation and navigating the impacts it will have on you are the same.
Decide what you want the conversation to be like and identify anything you’ll need from your employer.
Before having the conversation, it’s important to understand what your goal is going into it and what you’ll need from your employer to run. This will vary by the type of elected office you’re running for and the size of your campaign. The time commitments of running for and holding elected office can range from just making small adjustments to your work schedule, to working and campaigning part-time, all the way to being a full-time role. Consider how much time you may need for your campaign, and if elected, your role as an elected official. Here are a few examples to get you thinking:
Do you want to run with the support of your employer, or are you comfortable with the possibility of losing/giving up your job for your campaign?
What is your timeline to continue working? Would you need to stop working during the course of your campaign or if you are elected? If so, when?
Do you plan to work for the entirety of your campaign?
If you do plan on leaving work, would you like to negotiate a leave of absence or will you be leaving your job?
Is your employer open to a leave of absence if you don’t want to lose your job? Having a job to return to can give a candidate peace of mind that they have something to return to if their campaign isn’t successful.
Will you lose healthcare coverage as a part of a leave of absence if one is needed/offered?
If elected, will you need to give up your job or adjust your work schedule to accommodate your new role?
For me, I wanted to run with the support of my union and continue working until three months before the election when I would take a leave of absence from my job. Taking a leave and having a job to return to if not successful in my campaign gave me peace of mind as a young person entering a crowded race. I was successful in negotiating an unpaid leave of absence but had to sacrifice healthcare coverage in doing so. I was also able to run with the political support of my union, which helped elevate my candidacy in a race of seven candidates.
Prepare for the conversation.
As the New York City MTA says, “Know before you go!” And the same rings true in this instance. Enter the conversation knowing what you’re comfortable accepting or giving up to run for office. If your employer isn’t supportive and immediately moves to fire or lay you off, do you still want to run? Are you financially able to run if not employed for the duration or a part of it? It’s important to know what you want and need before approaching your employer.
I was prepared to lose my job and seek other employment if my employer wasn’t supportive of my decision. That may not be the same for you for financial, healthcare, or other reasons, and it’s important to know what you’re willing and unwilling to accept before even having the conversation.
Talk to your employer.
Once you’ve identified what you need and are willing to accept from your employer, it’s time to approach your immediate superior, or as I describe it, talk to the person that signs your paycheck. Reach out to them and ask to discuss your employment and an opportunity you’re interested in pursuing. During the conversation, be prepared to first share that you’re interested in running for office, lay out the timeline to do so, potential impacts on your job, and conclude with what you’re asking your employer for as it pertains to running. If this person isn’t the sole decision maker, ask if there are other individuals you should speak to with them to secure support, a leave of absence, and/or whatever other items you need approval on.
Running for office will undoubtedly affect your job – both positively and/or negatively - making this conversation with your employer vital to launching a campaign and also the respectful thing to do as an employee. While you can’t control their response, you can control how you prepare for it and manage expectations for yourself so if the outcome isn’t as you hoped, you have a plan of action in place already.
Above all, remember this is a deeply personal decision you’ve made to run and even if your employer isn’t supportive, that shouldn’t diminish your passion to run or the value you can bring to your community in elected office.
Rebecca Lamorte
Rebecca is Secretary of the Board for Disability Victory. In 2021, she ran for New York City Council in Manhattan’s 5th District. Her campaign was centered on disability rights and the needs of disabled and vulnerable New Yorkers. While not successful in winning her election, Rebecca’s campaign shifted the paradigm of political engagement in New York, moving the focus more towards accessibility and disability rights as a part of all policy decisions and public life. Read her full biography.