Know What Your Race Takes. Plan It Backward. Track Every Dollar.

A note from Josh

"I founded Red Helium Strategies in 2018. I've watched good candidates spend early on signs and shirts, then run dry in the last month, right when voters start paying attention. This kit helps you find your win number and build a budget that lasts to election day. Josh Gibbons"

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The problem

Most first-time campaigns don't have a plan. They have a to-do list and a bank account. Candidates run into the same walls:

• You don't know how many votes you need. Without a win number, you can't size anything else.
• You plan forward and run out of time. Printers, the post office and your filing office all have dates that don't move.
• You guess at costs. A price you found online is somebody else's race.
• The money runs out in the wrong week. A budget can balance on paper and still come up short when the big mail bill is due.

What it costs to get it wrong

This is how good campaigns fade at the finish. The money goes to signs and shirts in the spring, and there's nothing left for mail and reminders in the last month, when voters are finally paying attention. Or the last mail piece misses the printer's deadline because nobody worked back from Election Day. None of this is about your ideas or how hard you work. It's about planning. And it's avoidable if you start with the right numbers in the right order.

The fix

The Campaign Plan and Budget Kit gives you the order of operations. Start with official past results and find your win number. Turn it into the number of voters you need to reach. Put Election Day on the last line of your calendar and work back. Then build a budget line by line with real local quotes, map when each bill comes due, and check it every week.

It doesn't print prices, fees or deadlines, because those change by state, by place and by month. Every cost is a blank you fill in with a real local quote. It won't promise you a win. Nobody honest can. It helps you plan your race and spend your money where it counts.

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Who it's for

First-time candidates running for city council, school board, mayor, state legislature or statewide office.

• Anyone asking "how much does it cost to run?" and getting no straight answer
• Candidates who want a real plan instead of a to-do list
• Small teams where the candidate, a treasurer or one volunteer keeps the books

Who it's not for

• Congressional or other federal races
• Anyone looking for legal or accounting advice. This is guidance. Your state's rules, your filing office and your state campaign finance office come first.

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What's inside

A 22-page PDF guide in 8 chapters, from "what will this take?" to tracking it weekly:

1. How much does it cost to run? The honest answer, plus a simple method: voters to reach x contacts per voter x cost per contact. Then add the fixed costs.
2. Find your win number. Use official past results for your seat, find expected turnout, divide by 2 and add 1, add a cushion, then turn votes into voters to reach.
3. Build your calendar backward from Election Day. Fixed dates from your election office first, then four phases: launch, persuasion, voter contact and GOTV. Plus how to build in printer and post office lead time, and what to do if you have a primary.
4. The budget, line by line. Filing, literature, signs, mail, digital, voter list access, events, website, bank fees and compliance help, each with a blank for your local price, plus a cushion line.
5. Cash flow. When money comes in and goes out. Raise before you spend, put "pay by" dates on the calendar, keep a floor and never mix personal and campaign money.
6. Match the plan to the race size. What small local, mid-size and large races usually look like, and an honest note on when bigger races hire help.
7. Track it weekly. Budget vs actual, a 15-minute weekly check with your treasurer, and spending categories that match your state's report forms.
8. Checklist. Every step on one page.

Plus: - A budget spreadsheet (Excel or Google Sheets) with four tabs: How to use, Budget, Budget vs Actual and Cash Flow. Every common campaign line, blank cost cells for your local prices and a cushion line. - A backward campaign calendar (CSV you can import into Google Calendar or a spreadsheet) that starts on Election Day and works back to today, with a column for the source of every date. - A win number worksheet inside the guide that turns official past results into the votes you need and the voters you need to reach. - A list of every state's election office, so you start at the real source. - One made-up candidate throughout, Jordan Avery for Larkhollow Town Council, so you can see what a finished worksheet looks like. Every example number is marked made up.

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See inside

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Why Red Helium

Josh Gibbons founded Red Helium Strategies in 2018. Josh was named Canyon County Hall of Fame, Republican of the Year, 2023.

This kit is the planning playbook laid out so you can run it yourself. It teaches you how to work out your own numbers from official sources, so you understand your plan, not just fill in a template.

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What it's worth

You could hire a consultant to build your plan and budget. That's real money, and for a first local race it's often more than the budget allows. You could also try to piece it together from blog posts and someone else's spreadsheet, which can eat nights and weekends and still leave you guessing.

This kit sits in between: the method, the worksheets and a ready-to-fill budget sheet, for less than the cost of a dinner out. If it keeps one big bill from catching you short, it has done its job.

Price: $39

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FAQ

How much does it cost to run for city council? It depends on your race: how many voters are in your district, how many are likely to vote, whether the race is contested and whether you have a primary. Any single number online is somebody else's race. The kit gives you a method instead: voters to reach x contacts per voter x cost per contact, plus fixed costs, using real local quotes.

What is a win number? The number of votes you need to win, plus a cushion. Chapter 2 shows you how to work it out from your election office's official past results.

Why are there no prices in the kit? Printing, postage, signs, ads and fees change by state, by place and by month. A printed price would be wrong for most readers. Every cost is a blank you fill in with a local quote.

Will this help me win? It can't promise that. What it does is help you plan your race, budget your money and keep it lasting to Election Day.

Will this work in my state? The method works for city council, school board, mayor, state legislature or statewide office. Dates, fees and finance rules change from place to place, so the kit tells you where to get the official ones and includes a list of every state's election office.

Is this legal or accounting advice? No. It's guidance. For questions about campaign finance rules or reports, check with your state campaign finance office, your election office or a lawyer.

Do I need accounting software? No. The budget sheet works in Excel or Google Sheets.

What about raising the money? This kit plans and tracks the money. Raising it is covered in The Complete Campaign Fundraising Guide.

What format is it? One zip file with the 22-page PDF guide, the budget spreadsheet (xlsx), the backward campaign calendar (CSV) and the state election office list.

How do I get it? Buy with the button below. You'll get your download link after checkout.

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Get the kit

The Campaign Plan and Budget Kit Know what your race takes, plan it backward and track every dollar. 8 chapters, a budget spreadsheet, a backward calendar, a win number worksheet inside the guide and a list of every state's election office.

Price: $39

Next step: raise the money with The Complete Campaign Fundraising Guide. Want us to do it for you? Talk to Red Helium.

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