Indiana For Joe 2008

It's time to do something instead of just complaining about the political leaders around here and run for office. So I am pleased to announce I am running for Indiana State Representative for the 29th District. I have been asked by the Democratic Party to run and have accepted the honor.

On this blog as time permits I am going to give you a glimpse into the process of running for office. Running for office is more than a 9 to 5 job, it’s almost a 24-hour job. If you have not done it before or have someone at your side who has done it before it becomes even harder with all the paperwork and what you are allowed to do, etc.

Before I accepted I check to see what the current officer had done in office. I had heard my neighbors complaining that she didn’t do much; I do know I had e-mailed her a few times for positions and had not received any reply. So here was someone who had been in this office for 16 years and I could not find any accomplishments. Her voting record was straight party lines. So she was representing the party and not the people. My belief is that if people elect you it's your job to represent those people. It's your job to listen to the people and respond to their questions and concerns. Therefore, the request was accepted. I did know that this was going to be an uphill battle. She was a Republican in a very Republican area. But this was a year of change and many people are ready to view the candidates and ask questions. A major problem is that people have become so one way or another they don't even want to look, ask and listen.

The first step was submission of the filing paperwork. Done.

Now comes the hard part. You need lots of money to run for office. So far I have not raised any and that starts now. I did look at the fun raising of my opponent, its all-open records on the government web sites. Interesting is all I can say. I will be asking for money to buy signs and maybe make enough to use it for airtime. So if you want to donate to someone who believes in people, here I am.

I am also putting a team together to help. A few friends have volunteered, but will need lots more.

Am meeting with other candidates and will be talking with others in office to learn more of the ropes.

Website - An important part of any modern day election. Working on it now as the real first step. Need to develop my positions for listing on the site. That has been the first priority and it is coming alone, can't list everything, as it is getting far too long. What I am saying is that common sense is missing today in lots of areas and we need it back again. Within a few days it will have my positions and hopefully you will take a look. Got a concern, use the e-mail section and I will respond. Want to donate to the campaign, I have a donate now button on the site that uses PayPal, credit cards and tell you how to mail in checks.

That's it for today. More to come.

My name is Joe Weingarten and I approve this message.