Every policy campaign needs to have a “case” for the policy; a statement which makes the most important arguments for adopting the policy and answers the most important questions about it. You need to develop your case at the very start of the campaign, so that all of your literature, all your public statements, and everyone working on the campaign use the same basic messages.

This section will explain the basic elements of a case statement, and how to go about deciding on primary arguments.

Endorsements are Essential

No matter whose statistics you believe, LGBT people are a small minority of the population. There is no way you can win a campaign without widespread support from other people. One of the most important techniques for getting both public support and the support of politicians is getting endorsements. You need endorsements both from organized groups and from individuals who are respected, either generally or by the board members you are trying to reach.

This section is about using events or making things happen to get the board and the public to think seriously (or more seriously) about the need for a policy. This is often a good way to start the public phase of a policy campaign. Most of the strategies covered here can also be used to support your arguments during a campaign.

To use events effectively, you’ll usually have to use one or more of the tactics covered in other parts of this guide. This section will refer specifically to some of them. The last part of this section covers a few public campaigning techniques that are not covered elsewhere.

Three Reasons to Get Involved in Politics

This section covers things you can do through electoral politics to advance your campaign. It applies mostly to campaigns where you are trying to get a board elected by voters to adopt a policy. You can use electoral politics most effectively with three goals: