Campaign Treasurer: The Most Important Job on a Political Campaign
Monday
Apr 27, 2009
The media often quotes campaign managers and consultants. These campaign leadership roles get lots of attention and they are key players in any campaign. However, it would be a mistake to consider your choice of a manager or consultant as the most important personnel decision for your campaign. The position that often gets shuffled off to some well-meaning volunteer with a little accounting or bookkeeping knowledge, the campaign treasurer, is really the most critical role you have to fill.
Generally speaking, the worst your campaign consultant or manager can do is lose an election. If your campaign treasurer is incompetent or dishonest, he can net you a huge fine or even a possible criminal conviction. Campaign law violations also look very bad to the voters who may not understand anything about the law you are accused of violating, but who do assume you are a dishonest politician if your campaign breaks the law.
Larger campaigns generally hire professional campaign treasurers who are well-versed in campaign finance law. A professional treasurer is a reasonable possibility for a smaller campaign. Most of their work is done through campaign software and they have pretty efficient processes set up for filing forms and tracking donations and expenses. If you can find an experienced professional treasurer who has worked with the laws of the jurisdiction where you are running, it is worth getting a cost estimate from them. You may find that they are fairly affordable.
Before you hire a treasurer be sure that you have all costs and terms in writing so there is no misunderstanding later. Check her references and also check to see if any of her clients have been cited for campaign law violations. Remember that the candidate is held responsible for any errors or omissions even if someone else is doing all the bookkeeping. So, it is vital that you have someone with a great deal of professional integrity as your treasurer.
If you can’t afford to hire someone or if you can’t find a professional you feel will do a satisfactory job, you need to find a volunteer to fill that role. In the jurisdictions I am familiar with, you can’t even form a campaign committee or raise money without a treasurer. However, don’t just sign up the first willing volunteer you can find to be your treasurer.
Here are some traits to look for in a volunteer campaign treasurer:
- Honesty and integrity
- Attention to detail
- A willingness to spend time in study to understand the rules
- A strong supporter of your campaign
- Someone who doesn’t travel a lot and will be available when you need them at critical times in the campaign
- Organized and good at setting up systems
- Computer savvy, preferably with experience using bookkeeping or financial software
Most jurisdictions have either voluntary or mandatory training sessions for campaign treasurers. Those that don’t have training classes have written training material. Training from the agencies that enforce the rules is usually free or low-priced. Even if the training is optional, you should take whatever sessions are available. And, I would highly recommend that the candidate take the training along with the treasurer. You both need to understand the rules.
