[lacoolj]

> ... and to find out whether things like this happen in other countries as well.

I didn't DM anyone, and I didn't run the campaign, but there happened to be the John Edwards campaign HQ near me so I walked inside and said I could help do their IT, next day I was a full-on volunteer.

They took me to Charleston for a rally (which was cool cuz I never been) and even got me a jacket with my name and the campaign logo on it. Was pretty nifty at the time.

Few months later they hired me and sent me to New Hampshire for the primary.

Wasn't long after that that we were no longer in the running, but was great experience.

Highly recommend more young people attempt cold walk-ins/calls/DMs like this article mentions.

[jimbob45]

For anyone out of the loop, Edwards was caught in an infidelity scandal and his candidacy collapsed. OP didn’t do such a bad job with IT that the campaign failed lol

[devsda]

> OP didn’t do such a bad job with IT that the campaign failed lol

Some non-tech people tend to think of IT folks as jack of all trades with the ability to fix their faulty printer all the way to hacking email accounts for fun/profit.

I'm sure few of them would have believed that their IT team could have prevented the scandal by some fast & serious typing on the keyboard a.k.a hacking for regular folks :)

[fsckboy]

infidelity, paternity, staffer scandal

[jimbob45]

Yeah, I undersold it. Cheating on your wife is one thing. Worse if she has cancer. Worse if you deny it. Worse if you try to fake the DNA test and pretend the baby isn’t yours. Worse if you used campaign funds to cover it up. His career is definitely over.

[throwaway29812]

> infidelity scandal

Seems quaint these days.

[wjsdj2009]

Thanks for sharing — that sounds like an amazing experience.

It’s interesting how similar opportunities can happen in totally different places.

Glad it turned into something meaningful for you.

[euroderf]

Seconded. Political campaigns are fun. And if you're not sure it's for you, start by volunteering for a local campaign.

[0x1ch]

I can't wait to volunteer after my 8AM-5PM job at a non-paid position, IN POLITICS!

[pegasus]

Then it's not for you. Doesn't mean only unemployed people find something like this not just desirable, but actually rewarding.

[euroderf]

That's just one of many good arguments for shortening the standard work week.

[0x1ch]

Yeah, I can get behind that. I'm a young guy but in the blink of an eye, I'll be in my 50s if I keep working this schedule...

[overfeed]

If only there was a way to get legislation to change in a way that resonates with your beliefs.

[spelk]

Political campaign staff often keep hours way past what a volunteer with a 9-5 job has. It's a terrible life, terrible profession but it still draws in people that are willing to find meaning in being a workaholic and seen as "politically savvy".

[robocat]

  From what I could find, working in a presidential campaign is mostly volunteer-based and pretty much full-time.
  It sounded fun and like an incredible experience, but I was already working full-time and didn’t have that kind of availability. So I politely declined.

- JP Jeon (Jeon Jeong-pyo)