Do you know a group of people who care about Fair Elections? Or do you want to meet others who share your desire to take money out of politics? If you or your organization would like to host an event and need materials or assistance, contact us at info@fairelectionsnow.org and we will be in touch with you to discuss your ideas and how we might help.

House parties are best known as simple fund-raisers, but they also are a great activism tool. House parties allow you to gather your friends, neighbors and acquaintances in a fun and relaxed environment to explain why you care about public funding, and how they can get involved. You can base the gathering around a special educational opportunity, like a watching a video or having a speaker, or around an action, like signing a petition or a letter-writing campaign. Below are some simple steps for setting up a house party.

1. 
   Decide on the activities for the gathering. You might get people together to watch some of our favorite videos about public funding of elections and money in politics like “Run Granny Run,” “Getting a Grip on Money and Politics,” “Clean Elections, Changing the Face of America,” and “Cleaning House.” You might discuss some of the recent political scandals and why it is important to clean up politics, or write letters to your members of Congress or letters to the editors of your local papers. Do you know someone running for office who supports public funding? Candidates and public officials often make interesting speakers. Don’t forget to have friends sign the Fair Elections Now Petition!
2. 
   Decide on the location. It should be convenient, be able to hold the desired number of attendees, and have whatever technology is necessary for the event (television and DVD player, for instance, or a podium and microphone). Often, holding it in your house is easiest, though other spaces, such as churches or synagogues or community areas also work well.
3. 
   Invite friends, neighbors and others in your personal network. A general rule of thumb is that you should invite three times as many people as you want to attend. The invitation should include the reason for the gathering, what the guests will be doing, and what, if anything, they should bring (making the event a potluck can cut down on costs). Consider using one of the good online tools like Evite or MeetUp.com to manage your invitations.
4. 
   Consider inviting others in the community. Let us know if you’d like to open the house party to other interested individuals in your community. We’d be happy to post your event on our message board.
5. 
   Double-check all arrangements. Make sure that you can watch the video or the debate, confirm with the speaker, and bring extra paper and pens for letter writing. Careful planning will help ensure that the event runs smoothly.
6. 
   Enjoy yourself! Remember that the reason you are throwing the house party is to share your interest in an important issue with those you know. Spreading the word about these issues isn’t always easy, and you’re helping out a lot by doing this!
7. 
   Tell us how it went. Send us petition signatures, pictures, video clips or a note about your house party! Let us know if you’d like us to post how your house party went on our message board.