This article is oriented toward standard-issue party politics, which isn’t TnT’s cup of tea. The suggestions presume it. But the general advice is sound, start working now for 2016:
Take a week, take a month, whatever you need to rest up from the 2012 campaign cycle. But then? If you want to really make a difference in American politics, the time to get started is now. Not in September or October 2016, but in the next several months. Here’s why – and five suggestions for what you can do.
Here’s the sixth suggestion:
6. Or just get involved in a local party organization. Whether this one is worth it varies quite a bit from place to place, to be sure. In some areas, formal party organizations are excellent gateways into participation. In others, they’re just meaningless sideshows – although in some of those places, there are parallel groups of some sort, either highly organized or just loosely arranged, that really are more important than the formal party organizations. And all of these groups will vary in terms of how open they are to new participants. As with anything, don’t expect to walk in and immediately start rewriting the platform in your first meeting. But that’s the advantage of getting involved now, in the off-season. By the time most people start thinking about elections again, someone starting now will have had a chance to build up some seniority and influence.
In the case of Jersey City, the politics is dominated by an Old School machine. But my local Democratic Committee was quite successful in running an independent candidate for the City Council. She won against the Machine. That win is VERY BIG.
Truth and Traditions 
Leave a Reply