Making the decision to run for office triggers a long and grueling journey. Making sure that your name is on the ballot come election day can be a simple task, or require a significantly coordinated effort by the campaign. Depending on which office you are running for, there are key requirements to get your name on the ballot.

In Michigan there are two ways to get onto the ballot to run for the Michigan House of Representatives or the Michigan Senate.  The first way is for a candidate to collect petition signatures of valid registered voters from the district they are seeking to represent. For the House of Representatives, a minimum of 200 signatures is required, for the Senate a minimum of 400 signatures is required. In lieu of collecting signatures, under the second option a candidate can pay a $100 filing fee to have their name listed on the ballot. Most candidates running for these offices choose to pay the fee and skip the signature collection process.

Candidates running for higher state offices do not have the option of paying a fee, they are required by law to collect signatures. Candidates for Governor are required to submit a minimum of 15,000 valid signatures. Gubernatorial candidates can submit a maximum of 30,000 candidates to provide a buffer and ensure the minimum signature requirement is met. Federal candidates have signature requirements as well. Candidates for the U.S. Congress are required to file a minimum of 1,000 signatures (2,000 maximum) to have their name placed on the ballot. Candidates for the U.S. Senate must file 15,000 valid signatures (30,000 maximum), which is the same as gubernatorial candidates.

While these signature requirements may not seem onerous, they have been a challenge to candidates in the past and in some cases resulted in incumbent legislators not having their name on the ballot. An important factor of these signatures is that they must be valid signatures, which means the signature must be legible and from a registered voter. For statewide positions, there are also other subtle requirements. For example, there must be signatures from at least 100 registered voters from half of the 14 congressional districts in the state.

The task of getting your name on the ballot may seem simple. But for candidates, it should be priority #1.

Michigan Legislative Consultants is a bipartisan lobbying firm based in Lansing, Michigan. Our team of lobbyists and procurement specialists provide a wide range of services for some of the most respected companies in America. For more on MLC, visit www.mlcmi.com or connect with us on LinkedIn and Twitter.