“The world won’t step into its greatness until we step into ours.” Marianne Williamson
Quick – Can spiritual people get elected to political office?
That’s a question I’d like to ask you to answer after you’re done reading this post.
But first, last week was an exciting day for the spirituality and consciousness community.
For me, it wasn’t just because I had a chance to meet Marianne Williamson at the ARC theater in Los Angeles, but like many of us, I heard the refreshing news that she’s running for Congress in California’s 33rd district.
If you’re not familiar with Williamson, she is an international spiritual author, writer and speaker who has written 10 best-selling books, including the New York Times Bestseller, a Return to Love.
It felt like there was a standing ovation in the heavens when Marianne Williamson announced her candidacy.
The spiritual and consciousness communities around the United States have enthusiastically embraced her candidacy for all that Marianne stands for.
Soul sister, Heather Waxman, applauded Marianne’s ability to set the trend for a change in consciousness in the political sphere and urged us to get involved.
Mastin Kipp declared her victory. “When Marianne wins, it will inspire other seekers to run for office. And one after the other, we will begin to transform the political arena just like we are transforming every other part of life,” he wrote last week on the Daily Love.
Now that Marianne’s in this race, she’s intent on winning this election so she can be an independent voice who represents everyday people – not the moneyed interests or the special interests who run this country.
Having worked in campaign politics myself for the past 10 years, I know that there are many challenges that Marianne faces in winning a race like this, including the fact she’s running against a 36-year incumbent of Congress, a gerrymandered political district that favors the incumbent and heaps of special interest money.
Seven Practical Political Strategies to Win this Race.
If I were advising Marianne Williamson, like this were a traditional political campaign, here are seven campaign strategies on how to win this election:
1) Tell her life story to voters and relate how her personal story and life’s work is in stark contrast to others in the race who have made a career out of politics.
2) Distinguish herself on issues that matter to constituents in her district, specifically her views on the recent government shutdown and her take on the debt ceiling debate. Also, her own platform on jobs, education, the military, the prison system and the environment.
3) Informing voters how she can make her vision a reality. What are practical things she will do if elected today? Letting voters know the specifics of her platform and candidacy.
4) Listening to her constituents. Begin a series of town halls and house parties in her district where she can listen to the concerns of voters in her district.
5) Recruit, organize and inspire her constituents, supporters and readers in the district to reach out and talk to voters in the district. Start a conversation with voters about what issues matter to them and introduce voters to Marianne’s background and vision for a new kind politics, a politics that transcends party and money.
6) Pledge against taking money from lobbyists and large special interest political action committees. And challenge the other candidates to do the same. Also, shed light on exactly how much special interest money her opponent takes from the very industries he’s supposed to be regulating (especially energy and pharmaceutical companies).
Continue to mobilize the spiritual and consciousness community around the country to donate to the campaign and raise funds from smaller individual donors. (I just donated by the way and encourage you to as well by visiting: www.marianneforcongress.com)
7) Have days of action in the district where the community can join Marianne to volunteer, clean up and start taking direct action to improve the lives of regular people in the 33rd Congressional district.
Now, back to the question I had for you.
Many spiritual leaders, including Martin Luther King and Gandhi, had to launch movements outside of elected office. They used their moral authority to change the social and political structures.
What will it take to have someone who is spiritually-minded win an election?
Is it possible for spirit-filled and consciousness-based leaders to win in the rough and tumble world of money and power ingrained in our political system?
Please share your thoughts in the comments below.