Candidate qualifications for "aggressive progressive" candidates

• A record of leadership on progressive issues
• A passionate commitment to bringing our troops safely home from Iraq and to providing the support they need upon return
• A passionate commitment to restoring all constitutional guarantees that were criminally subverted by the Bush-Cheney administration, including Habeus Corpus, wiretapping only with warrants, closing Guantanamo, and ending all torture
• A passionate commitment to grassroots organizing over the Internet
• Organizing skills and political campaign experience as a candidate or volunteer
• A core group of family and friends who will devote time and energy to help you campaign

Researching your opponent: Progressive Punch is an incredible database of Congressional votes that awards every Member of Congress a "progressive score" based on their votes. You can click on the Member's name to learn more about each vote.

• Senate
• House

Legal requirements

• You must be registered to vote as a Democrat in the Congressional District by primary day
• When you spend over $5,000 on a campaign for federal office, you must register your campaign with the Federal Elections Commission and file all periodic reports
• You must meet each state's rules to get on the ballot as a Democrat (collect petition signatures, pay filing fee, etc.)
• You will need a bank account and a Treasurer who is responsible for all financial reports

Fundraising

• ActBlue hosts free fundraising pages for all Democratic candidates and charges the lowest possible credit card processing fee; you can easily link to your Actblue page from your campaign web site
• All fundraising starts with personal requests to friends and family
• As you meet people (online and offline), ask them to join your email list and send occasional (but not repetitive) fundraising appeals
• When you decide to run, seek the endorsement of progressive PACs.

Internet organizing

• Democrats.com guide to internet strategy: web sites, blogs, social networks, and more
• Democrats.com guide to campaign software: turn-key web sites, mailing list managers, and more 

Training for candidates, staff, and volunteers (see also PACs)

• 21st Century Democrats
• Democracy For America
• Emily's List
• Progressive Majority
• Wellstone Action