Run for Elected Office—and Win

Introduction

“Why did you decide to run for office?” This is the question I get asked most often when speaking to groups about public service. The next question is, “Are you going to run again?”

My aha! moment of inspiration to run for elected government office came to me in 1982, when I was a teenager on a 4-H trip to Washington, D.C. Standing in the U.S. Capitol rotunda, looking at the history on the walls, soaking in its solemn majesty, and admiring the monumental architecture, I was struck by a sense of the sacred mission of serving as one the people’s chosen representatives. The charged atmosphere spoke to many of us Minnesotan 4-Hers on that trip: one of us went on to run for U.S. Senate; another became speaker of the house in her state ...