Local elections in Washtenaw County and all over Michigan as well as the nation are just beginning to pick up steam. Soon calls for you to dip into your pockets to support fundraising will follow. While early-on polling for the Republican nomination for governor clearly had shown Congressman Peter Hoekstra as having an early edge and state Attorney General Mike Cox in second place, a new entry who seems monetarily well-positioned to be a contender enter the fray.

Gubernatorial hopeful businessman Rick Snyder started bombarding the airwaves in Michigan on Super Bowl Sunday with his “One Tough Nerd” commercial. He announced that Michigan needed a successful businessman nerd to run state government.  According to published reports last fall Snyder received endorsements from Jerry Zandstra, president of Pro-Life Federation of Michigan, and ex-Republican National Committeeman Chuck Yob,

Think about this: an informed electorate considers where do Snyder, Congressman Hoekstra, and Attorney General Cox stand on life issues especially when their donation requests come a calling?

Michigan voters can easily ascertain where the highly visible Cox and Hoekstra stand on the life issue. Snyder, as well as the other candidates on both sides of the political aisle, will more than likely make their life stands public shortly. Yet one of the real battles for building life support is at the local level.

While the local voter in Ann Arbor or Saline or Ypsilanti might feel it is still too early to be thinking about trying to make up your mind about all the issues, it’s not really considering you want to be an informed donor and voter. Perhaps you should narrow your early concerns to just one issue. Does your candidate believe in and unflinchingly support the sanctity of life?

In local elections for mayor or city council as well as other township or county elections, one might feel there is little opportunity for a candidate to have vocalized support for or against life.

In order to find the answer consider this starting point. Look at the literature that the hopeful candidate has prepared. Examine the candidate’s organizational affiliations to see if he or she has joined, participated in, or donated to life issues. Consider checking online whether the candidate has been covered in the media on issues involving life.

Research whether or not he or she has actually published statements on life issues or questions. Use some of the online search engines such as Google, Yahoo, or Alta Vista to begin your online political candidate search.

Does this seem like a lot of work for a prospective township candidate or one vying for city council? Not so. Remember you are not just electing a candidate for office by donating to their fundraising efforts. You are hiring this person to truly represent your interest not just in the short run, but in the long run, So make your fundraising efforts count for “Life’s” sake.

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