How to Get a Job on a Presidential Campaign

Each presidential election cycle, thousands of wannabe campaign staffers vie for the precious few positions available with one of the various candidates. How do those who are successful at procuring positions manage to do so? Getting any job is no easy task, and it just may be even more difficult to land one job with presidential campaign. After all, politics is never easy.

The first place to look for an opening with a presidential campaign is one of the politics-specific online job boards --

Democrats: DemocraticGAIN.org

Republicans: CampaignJobs.com

Democrats and Republicans: PolitixGroup.com, Politics1.com, PoliticalResources.com and PoliticalJobs.net

Few presidential campaign openings, though, are ever advertised. Thus, the second way to land a presidential campaign position is to look at who you know. In other words, you have to network. Let your contacts know that you are interested in such a position and get them your resume. Someone you know from high school, college, or a current or past job may know someone who knows someone who is already working for one of the campaigns.

The third way to achieve a coveted presidential campaign job is to cold email those already on staff. You can find out who the current staffers are by checking out such sites as P2008 -- GWU.edu/~action/P2008.html. The staffers you want to get your resume to are those with titles such as Chief of Staff, Political Director, or State Director.

The fourth way to find yourself as a campaign staffer is to become a volunteer for your candidate of choice. Being a volunteer gives you up close and personal access with some of the campaign staffers and affords you the opportunity to make a good impression. Sometimes, just sometimes, volunteers can make enough of an impression to be promoted to paid staffers.

One other chance to make your way onto to a presidential campaign is to work for a non-presidential campaign. Set your sights beyond 2008 to 2012 and spend the 2008 cycle bulking up your experience. Opt to employ the techniques laid out here to achieve a position with a Congressional or Senatorial campaign instead. The more experience you have, the better your chances at getting that presidential campaign job.

It is not as simple as 1, 2, 3, but with some perseverance and persistence, you might find yourself working for the man or woman that may be the next president of the United States.