Unwritten Rules of HOA Campaigning

NpB (Arizona)
Posts: 605

Posted:

For a small community of primarily disinterested owners, what are the "unwritten" rules of HOA campaigning for an election in a scenario when you are running and in an scenario when you are not running, but there is division among Board members as to which candidate they prefer.

In the first scenario when you are running, I grasped from previous threads to communicate about yourself and your accomplishments and not to communicate any negative comments about the other candidate.

What about a scenario when a current Board member is up for re-election and you can sense there is division among the Board regarding supporting the incumbent or a new candidate? The two candidates are non-controversial and the non-Board member candidate is an unknown, while the incumbent has a non controversial ideology, but does not participate in projects to where a minority of Board members do the majority of the work. I would like to see a more active Board member. I have a feeling the new candidate would be more active, but I am unsure. In this situation, with a majority disinterested community, is it fruitful or fruitless as a Board member to campaign for a specific candidate? If it got back to others (e.g. the other candidate or Board members) you were campaigning for a candidate, how would that be perceived?

WendyM5 (North Carolina)
Posts: 1,522

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By NpB on 01/27/2023 7:47 AM
For a small community of primarily disinterested owners, what are the "unwritten" rules of HOA campaigning for an election in a scenario when you are running and in an scenario when you are not running, but there is division among Board members as to which candidate they prefer.

In the first scenario when you are running, I grasped from previous threads to communicate about yourself and your accomplishments and not to communicate any negative comments about the other candidate.

What about a scenario when a current Board member is up for re-election and you can sense there is division among the Board regarding supporting the incumbent or a new candidate? The two candidates are non-controversial and the non-Board member candidate is an unknown, while the incumbent has a non controversial ideology, but does not participate in projects to where a minority of Board members do the majority of the work. I would like to see a more active Board member. I have a feeling the new candidate would be more active, but I am unsure. In this situation, with a majority disinterested community, is it fruitful or fruitless as a Board member to campaign for a specific candidate? If it got back to others (e.g. the other candidate or Board members) you were campaigning for a candidate, how would that be perceived?

everything is fair in love, war and politics. your questions are so vague that I can't answer them
it could be perceived as postive or negative depending on how you go about the support.

the best thing to do is make sure the election is run fairly. I believe AZ has the laws in place to run online elections.
I'd give people 30 days to vote and that way candidates really have time to gather votes and I think thsi more fairly reflects the will of the people. It also prevents proxies from being using in a bad way IMHO.

vis ta vie

NpB (Arizona)
Posts: 605

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By WendyM5 on 01/27/2023 7:54 AM

Posted By NpB on 01/27/2023 7:47 AM
For a small community of primarily disinterested owners, what are the "unwritten" rules of HOA campaigning for an election in a scenario when you are running and in an scenario when you are not running, but there is division among Board members as to which candidate they prefer.

In the first scenario when you are running, I grasped from previous threads to communicate about yourself and your accomplishments and not to communicate any negative comments about the other candidate.

What about a scenario when a current Board member is up for re-election and you can sense there is division among the Board regarding supporting the incumbent or a new candidate? The two candidates are non-controversial and the non-Board member candidate is an unknown, while the incumbent has a non controversial ideology, but does not participate in projects to where a minority of Board members do the majority of the work. I would like to see a more active Board member. I have a feeling the new candidate would be more active, but I am unsure. In this situation, with a majority disinterested community, is it fruitful or fruitless as a Board member to campaign for a specific candidate? If it got back to others (e.g. the other candidate or Board members) you were campaigning for a candidate, how would that be perceived?

everything is fair in love, war and politics. your questions are so vague that I can't answer them
it could be perceived as postive or negative depending on how you go about the support.

the best thing to do is make sure the election is run fairly. I believe AZ has the laws in place to run online elections.
I'd give people 30 days to vote and that way candidates really have time to gather votes and I think thsi more fairly reflects the will of the people. It also prevents proxies from being using in a bad way IMHO.

Do you think that adage would apply in a small community with very low change of ownership?

MelissaP1 (Alabama)
Posts: 13,836

Posted:

If you want to be on the Board simply state as much and go for it. People will vote for the person they know or believe will represent them. People who want to be in those positions will do the work and not be flattered by "oh you voted me in? How nice of you".

BTW... My experience is do not go to a party at the clubhouse your first few months of living in your HOA and have embarrassing picture made of you... Had a guy jump into the pool. Disrobed. Tossed his underwear into the crowd. Pulled me into the pool with him! When getting out he followed me full little Monty (it was cold). I have my hand up behind me trying to shield the appendage while people took pictures. Later I was asked if I was running for President... I won but now have skeleton pictures to hide... 😂

Former HOA President

SheliaH (Indiana)
Posts: 6,964

Posted:

Are you running for the board (I seem to recall you asked a similar question a few months ago)?

You can't predict or dictate how people will react or feel about anything, so what's the point of asking how something will be perceived? If the current board members are divided as to whether they should support the incumbent or a newbie, that's their issue - and how do you know if others don't feel one way or another for whatever reason? And if they find out you're campaigning for the newbie (that's what this sounds like), who the hell cares? You're not part of the Borg - you can make your own decisions.

This sounds as ridiculous as Congress these days, where some people give away all their power to keep their position (and now can be pulled this way and that). This isn't high school - stop obsessing about other folks and focus on convincing a significant number of the apathetic owners to get off their duff and vote for your candidate. I wouldn't be surprised if the craziness you're talking about is why many of them don't bother.

If it is not right do not do it; if it is not true do not say it. Marcus Aurelius

NpB (Arizona)
Posts: 605

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By SheliaH on 01/27/2023 9:19 AM
Are you running for the board (I seem to recall you asked a similar question a few months ago)?

You can't predict or dictate how people will react or feel about anything, so what's the point of asking how something will be perceived? If the current board members are divided as to whether they should support the incumbent or a newbie, that's their issue - and how do you know if others don't feel one way or another for whatever reason? And if they find out you're campaigning for the newbie (that's what this sounds like), who the hell cares? You're not part of the Borg - you can make your own decisions.

This sounds as ridiculous as Congress these days, where some people give away all their power to keep their position (and now can be pulled this way and that). This isn't high school - stop obsessing about other folks and focus on convincing a significant number of the apathetic owners to get off their duff and vote for your candidate. I wouldn't be surprised if the craziness you're talking about is why many of them don't bother.

I am currently on the Board, which changes the dynamics of campaigning. The scenario I am faced with the is the latter in my OP.

WendyM5 (North Carolina)
Posts: 1,522

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By NpB on 01/27/2023 8:07 AM

Posted By WendyM5 on 01/27/2023 7:54 AM

Posted By NpB on 01/27/2023 7:47 AM
For a small community of primarily disinterested owners, what are the "unwritten" rules of HOA campaigning for an election in a scenario when you are running and in an scenario when you are not running, but there is division among Board members as to which candidate they prefer.

In the first scenario when you are running, I grasped from previous threads to communicate about yourself and your accomplishments and not to communicate any negative comments about the other candidate.

What about a scenario when a current Board member is up for re-election and you can sense there is division among the Board regarding supporting the incumbent or a new candidate? The two candidates are non-controversial and the non-Board member candidate is an unknown, while the incumbent has a non controversial ideology, but does not participate in projects to where a minority of Board members do the majority of the work. I would like to see a more active Board member. I have a feeling the new candidate would be more active, but I am unsure. In this situation, with a majority disinterested community, is it fruitful or fruitless as a Board member to campaign for a specific candidate? If it got back to others (e.g. the other candidate or Board members) you were campaigning for a candidate, how would that be perceived?

everything is fair in love, war and politics. your questions are so vague that I can't answer them
it could be perceived as postive or negative depending on how you go about the support.

the best thing to do is make sure the election is run fairly. I believe AZ has the laws in place to run online elections.
I'd give people 30 days to vote and that way candidates really have time to gather votes and I think thsi more fairly reflects the will of the people. It also prevents proxies from being using in a bad way IMHO.

Do you think that adage would apply in a small community with very low change of ownership?

seriously just support the best candidate, even if it's the exboyfriend of your sister, who now hates him.

vis ta vie

CathyA3 (Ohio)
Posts: 6,299

Posted:

I agree that being on the board can make it tricky to openly support one candidate over another. If your preferred candidate loses, then you may have burned some bridges with the winner - and you have to be able to work with this person while you're still a director yourself.

My personal rule of thumb is that if a candidate isn't my preference but they don't have any obvious or serious issues, then I'll support my preferred candidate is less obvious ways: helping write and distribute flyers and talking to my neighbors about the election. If a candidate does have serious shortcomings that could affect the community, then I'd be more open because the stakes are higher. I define "serious issues" as an inability to get along with others or a police record of some sort. A police record needs a judgment call, though. For example, I'd consider a misdemeanor involving financial misconduct to be more serious than some felony convictions, especially if you don't have a community manager and the board actually has access to the checkbook. Event current financial difficulties would be a red flag for me if you don't have a manager. And a more recent conviction is worrisome while something from when a person was young and stupid may not be.

So, no hard and fast rules - details matter, and you have to weigh them against each other.

NpB (Arizona)
Posts: 605

Posted:

This is a complex situation . Suppose I advocate for the candidate and he/she loses and then runs next year against me. Would that seem odd if I am campaigning for myself next year?

It seems easy to campaign for myself but more complicated to campaign for someone else.

KerryL1 (California)
Posts: 14,550

Posted:

Having served on my Board for a number of years, I've been in your situation many times. Another's are right, you need to be subtle and careful about what you say and to whom.

But I've generally expressed my preference to close friends and to those who ask. Depending on the situation, I might say, "This is a tough one. Jo is on the Board now, is polite with owners, so has some Board experience. But Meg has a strong background in xy, she seems like a go-getter, and she has good ideas. So I lean towards Meg.."

Something like "damning with faint praise" might be good.

NpB (Arizona)
Posts: 605

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By KerryL1 on 01/27/2023 2:51 PM
Having served on my Board for a number of years, I've been in your situation many times. Another's are right, you need to be subtle and careful about what you say and to whom.

But I've generally expressed my preference to close friends and to those who ask. Depending on the situation, I might say, "This is a tough one. Jo is on the Board now, is polite with owners, so has some Board experience. But Meg has a strong background in xy, she seems like a go-getter, and she has good ideas. So I lean towards Meg.."

Something like "damning with faint praise" might be good.

Your comments make sense. Do you think it is unusual to proactively campaign for someone vs waiting until someone asks you for your opinion?

ElleN (Idaho)
Posts: 4,420

Posted:

Kerry's fine approach reminds me that the mathematics of many HOA Board elections are similar to Ranked Choice Voting. The strategy for winning an RCV election is to lean moderate, saying constructive nice things about someone you might oppose but distinguishing this person from someone you prefer far more. If your first choice does not win the most votes, you want to help ensure he or she maybe wins the second-most votes.

KerryL1 (California)
Posts: 14,550

Posted:

Given your scenario, if by proactively campaigning you mean knocking on doors & sending flyers, I personally wouldn't do that. In your situation, I behaved as described above. Look, you don't know who your'll be woking with on the new Board.

Will there be a candidate's night?

JohnC46 (South Carolina)
Posts: 14,265

Posted:

NpB

When campaigning keep it positive regardless of the media used. If a mailing then extoll you own virtues and those of who you would like to see get elected. Do not go negative.

KerryL1 (California)
Posts: 14,550

Posted:

NpB's dilemma is that he's ON the Board, JohnC. See par. 3 of his OP. I think I understand it OK.

MichaelS56 (Minnesota)
Posts: 858

Posted:

One technique that some Boards use, is to ask the Board member who has announced that he or she is not going to run again, to resign so the Board can appoint whoever they want to fill out the term. This gives that person a very good chance to win the election.

JohnC46 (South Carolina)
Posts: 14,265

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By KerryL1 on 01/28/2023 1:50 PM
NpB's dilemma is that he's ON the Board, JohnC. See par. 3 of his OP. I think I understand it OK.

I do not see this an an issue. On the BOD or not, he is allowed to campaign for himself and others. What he does have to do is make it clear he is speaking for himself, not the BOD.

KerryL1 (California)
Posts: 14,550

Posted:

His issue, to me and him is how to campaign without pissing someone off with whom he might serve.

JohnC46 (South Carolina)
Posts: 14,265

Posted:

Quote:

Posted By KerryL1 on 01/29/2023 10:59 AM
His issue, to me and him is how to campaign without pissing someone off with whom he might serve.

If this is a concern then publicly campaign for yourself and privately campaign/advocate for others.

KerryL1 (California)
Posts: 14,550

Posted:

Unless I'm reading him wrong, the OP is not running. Please read par. 3 of his OP, 2nd line form the bottom.