Candidates all over the nation are preparing for Election Day. Nominees are working hard to assemble their campaigns and advocate for themselves. Their journey to winning is complicated, harsh, and tiresome, but State Representative candidate Trisha Zubert shares how it all becomes worth it.
“I have been so upset since 2016, that it’s like why hadn’t I thought of this before. I wasn’t doing an active role, just like volunteering to set an example. As soon as the idea popped into my head, I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Both my dad and husband thought it was a great idea, and since then I’ve loved every moment of it,” Zubert said.
To help run her campaign, Zubert’s assistant is field director of Lake County Democratic Independent Women, Quinne Welter.
“[Zubert] decided to run for State Representative and I was a part of the group who went door to door to get signatures so Trisha could get on the ballot. Then LCDIW, the organization I work for, reached out to [Zubert] so we can help her,” Welter said.
Throughout the past five months, Zubert has advocated for her name and campaign. Within the three weeks, they had hit 7000 doors in her district.
“My district has never elected a Democrat, but yet I’m still knocking at doors. Sometimes Quinne would drop me off in a neighborhood for two hours. I can only count on both hands how many bad experiences I’ve encountered,” Zubert said.
As a candidate, Zubert and Welter prepare for debates, rallies, and events. These get advertised to the public.
“Each event requires different tasks. Usually with debate prep, we will have certain questions that may get asked, like commonly asked questions, and we run through those questions several times until the candidate feels comfortable with their answers. With rallies, a lot of that is social media and making phone calls to volunteers and strong Democrats in the area to let them know about the event,” Welter said.
Each day offers new opportunities; however, Zubert has also experienced negativity during her campaign.
“One of my friends once received a robocall that had said a lot of false information about me and my campaign. I was thinking that she knew me and could confirm how fake it was, but knowing that there are people who are receiving false information and don’t know that is unsettling,” Zubert said. “It’s weird that other candidates that are about 20 years older than me act like this.”
This journey has taught Zubert and Welter many lessons ranging from politics to communication. Welter graduated from the University of Illinois in May 2018 and has been working in the political field ever since.
“Due to my current role, I am very lucky to have learned a lot about politics. I would say that there is a change and shift happening in modern day politics because it isn’t just the “good ol’ boys club” anymore, and more people are standing up for what they feel is right,” Welter said.
Reflecting on their time, both have seen what they have accomplished and what they would wish they could improve on.
“I have loved meeting new people who truly supported me and wanted to see change happen, but I really wish I would have been on the ballot sooner. I’m doing the same amount of work, just in the smaller frame of time,” Zubert said.
Looking forward, the future of politics relies on the younger generation to become involved and learn about the current climate and what they can do to get involved.
“Politics should not only be important to me but to every single person. Politicians that are elected in are the ones who make the decisions that can either help or harm hundreds of millions of people. Regardless of whether a certain policy will do anything to a certain individual, we all should care because these are lives that are being affected. We need more young people to be involved in politics. I think it’s great to have an opinion about politics and talking about it with your friends, but campaigns need volunteers and they need people to vote,” Welter said..
*Editors tried to contact Tom Weber for this story too.