How does “politician” work as a job/career?
How does being a politician work as a job or career? Obviously when you are in office you get a salary (at least at national level). But what happens when you lose the election, or you are running for office but not yet in it? Do you get anything from your party? Do "campaign contributions" or the local equivalent help to pay your salary?
I get the impression that income distribution of politicians is heavily skewed: national politicians get lots of money, but do local ones get little or nothing, maybe having to fund their hobby out of their own pockets? Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day (i.e. like the entertainment industries and academia)?
I'm primarily interested in the UK, as that's where I live, but insights from other countries would be welcome too.
united-kingdom parties
edited May 6 at 11:58
Alexei
18.6k22103197
asked May 6 at 11:43
Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson
8,95542141
add a comment |
How does being a politician work as a job or career? Obviously when you are in office you get a salary (at least at national level). But what happens when you lose the election, or you are running for office but not yet in it? Do you get anything from your party? Do "campaign contributions" or the local equivalent help to pay your salary?
I get the impression that income distribution of politicians is heavily skewed: national politicians get lots of money, but do local ones get little or nothing, maybe having to fund their hobby out of their own pockets? Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day (i.e. like the entertainment industries and academia)?
I'm primarily interested in the UK, as that's where I live, but insights from other countries would be welcome too.
united-kingdom parties
edited May 6 at 11:58
Alexei
18.6k22103197
asked May 6 at 11:43
Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson
8,95542141
I have added UK tag because this is very likely to be different depending on the country (avoid being too broad).
– Alexei
May 6 at 11:59
add a comment |
How does being a politician work as a job or career? Obviously when you are in office you get a salary (at least at national level). But what happens when you lose the election, or you are running for office but not yet in it? Do you get anything from your party? Do "campaign contributions" or the local equivalent help to pay your salary?
I get the impression that income distribution of politicians is heavily skewed: national politicians get lots of money, but do local ones get little or nothing, maybe having to fund their hobby out of their own pockets? Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day (i.e. like the entertainment industries and academia)?
I'm primarily interested in the UK, as that's where I live, but insights from other countries would be welcome too.
united-kingdom parties
edited May 6 at 11:58
Alexei
18.6k22103197
asked May 6 at 11:43
Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson
8,95542141
How does being a politician work as a job or career? Obviously when you are in office you get a salary (at least at national level). But what happens when you lose the election, or you are running for office but not yet in it? Do you get anything from your party? Do "campaign contributions" or the local equivalent help to pay your salary?
I get the impression that income distribution of politicians is heavily skewed: national politicians get lots of money, but do local ones get little or nothing, maybe having to fund their hobby out of their own pockets? Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day (i.e. like the entertainment industries and academia)?
I'm primarily interested in the UK, as that's where I live, but insights from other countries would be welcome too.
united-kingdom parties
united-kingdom parties
edited May 6 at 11:58
Alexei
18.6k22103197
asked May 6 at 11:43
Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson
8,95542141
edited May 6 at 11:58
Alexei
18.6k22103197
asked May 6 at 11:43
Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson
8,95542141
edited May 6 at 11:58
Alexei
18.6k22103197
edited May 6 at 11:58
Alexei
18.6k22103197
edited May 6 at 11:58
Alexei
18.6k22103197
18.6k22103197
asked May 6 at 11:43
Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson
8,95542141
asked May 6 at 11:43
Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson
8,95542141
asked May 6 at 11:43
Paul JohnsonPaul Johnson
8,95542141
8,95542141
I have added UK tag because this is very likely to be different depending on the country (avoid being too broad).
– Alexei
May 6 at 11:59
add a comment |
I have added UK tag because this is very likely to be different depending on the country (avoid being too broad).
– Alexei
May 6 at 11:59
I have added UK tag because this is very likely to be different depending on the country (avoid being too broad).
– Alexei
May 6 at 11:59
I have added UK tag because this is very likely to be different depending on the country (avoid being too broad).
– Alexei
May 6 at 11:59
add a comment |
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
Local councillors aren't really paid at all, even if they're successful - they get a small stipend. Councils therefore end up getting mostly run by their permanent officers. Council candidates are almost entirely volunteers. They will get election material and some staff time from their party, but for being a candidate you don't usually receive anything. They can solicit donations, but as you can imagine, there is not a lot of money in local councils.
Elected MPs get paid 80k, which is good but not excessive for a long hours managerial job in central London.
MPs are similarly volunteers, but because of the time commitment for campaigning they tend to be limited to people who can take a few months off at their own expense. So you see a lot of people from freelance/self-employed/small business backgrounds, such as lawyers and management consultants. Some are also "journalists" such as Boris Johnson, who is paid £275k for a weekly column by the Daily Telegraph. Or Seamus Milne, who moved from being a Guardian journalist to Labour Party Director of Communications.
Another category is people who are already party or trade union employees. They usually get to arrange to keep their job while campaigning, on reduced or no duties. MPs have assistants who help with research and constituency work, paid from MP's allowances. This is an excellent job for someone who wishes to become a candidate, as you get to see the job from the inside and meet relevant people.
Party turnover tends to be that of a medium-sized business. Enough to make a comfortable living for the senior members, not enough to pay lots of unsuccessful candidates.
(I believe the same applies for AMs, MSPs, and MEPs.)
Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day?
Pretty much, although given that the high end isn't really making much either it's more a kind of self-exploitation.
answered May 6 at 12:59
pjc50pjc50
10.2k12344
1
Excellent answer. Might be worth adding that MPs do get severance pay if they lose an election, dependent on how long they've been an MP.
– Steve Melnikoff
May 6 at 16:30
Highly local political jobs still are effectively unpaid, even in the US. My mother is on the local board of supervisors for the township where she lives. Her stipend? $300 per month. I'm not even sure that covers her gas.
– Draco18s
May 6 at 17:08
80k -- tax free or not? that makes a difference.
– devoured elysium
May 6 at 20:09
@devouredelysium national politicians all have to pay tax at the normal rates; it's only UN employees that get to be globally tax-exempt.
– pjc50
May 6 at 21:14
Taxed and NI'ed - parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/…
– Ian Bush
May 6 at 21:14
add a comment |
With respect to the United States.
Every politician is responsible for figuring out how to finance his or her own campaign. I do not have data but my suspicion is that some have mastered this so well that they do not actually want to win. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/how-to-get-rich-by-running-for-president-134557955.html
answered May 6 at 21:48
emoryemory
23816
add a comment |
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2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
2 Answers
2
active
oldest
votes
active
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Local councillors aren't really paid at all, even if they're successful - they get a small stipend. Councils therefore end up getting mostly run by their permanent officers. Council candidates are almost entirely volunteers. They will get election material and some staff time from their party, but for being a candidate you don't usually receive anything. They can solicit donations, but as you can imagine, there is not a lot of money in local councils.
Elected MPs get paid 80k, which is good but not excessive for a long hours managerial job in central London.
MPs are similarly volunteers, but because of the time commitment for campaigning they tend to be limited to people who can take a few months off at their own expense. So you see a lot of people from freelance/self-employed/small business backgrounds, such as lawyers and management consultants. Some are also "journalists" such as Boris Johnson, who is paid £275k for a weekly column by the Daily Telegraph. Or Seamus Milne, who moved from being a Guardian journalist to Labour Party Director of Communications.
Another category is people who are already party or trade union employees. They usually get to arrange to keep their job while campaigning, on reduced or no duties. MPs have assistants who help with research and constituency work, paid from MP's allowances. This is an excellent job for someone who wishes to become a candidate, as you get to see the job from the inside and meet relevant people.
Party turnover tends to be that of a medium-sized business. Enough to make a comfortable living for the senior members, not enough to pay lots of unsuccessful candidates.
(I believe the same applies for AMs, MSPs, and MEPs.)
Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day?
Pretty much, although given that the high end isn't really making much either it's more a kind of self-exploitation.
answered May 6 at 12:59
pjc50pjc50
10.2k12344
1
Excellent answer. Might be worth adding that MPs do get severance pay if they lose an election, dependent on how long they've been an MP.
– Steve Melnikoff
May 6 at 16:30
Highly local political jobs still are effectively unpaid, even in the US. My mother is on the local board of supervisors for the township where she lives. Her stipend? $300 per month. I'm not even sure that covers her gas.
– Draco18s
May 6 at 17:08
80k -- tax free or not? that makes a difference.
– devoured elysium
May 6 at 20:09
@devouredelysium national politicians all have to pay tax at the normal rates; it's only UN employees that get to be globally tax-exempt.
– pjc50
May 6 at 21:14
Taxed and NI'ed - parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/…
– Ian Bush
May 6 at 21:14
add a comment |
Local councillors aren't really paid at all, even if they're successful - they get a small stipend. Councils therefore end up getting mostly run by their permanent officers. Council candidates are almost entirely volunteers. They will get election material and some staff time from their party, but for being a candidate you don't usually receive anything. They can solicit donations, but as you can imagine, there is not a lot of money in local councils.
Elected MPs get paid 80k, which is good but not excessive for a long hours managerial job in central London.
MPs are similarly volunteers, but because of the time commitment for campaigning they tend to be limited to people who can take a few months off at their own expense. So you see a lot of people from freelance/self-employed/small business backgrounds, such as lawyers and management consultants. Some are also "journalists" such as Boris Johnson, who is paid £275k for a weekly column by the Daily Telegraph. Or Seamus Milne, who moved from being a Guardian journalist to Labour Party Director of Communications.
Another category is people who are already party or trade union employees. They usually get to arrange to keep their job while campaigning, on reduced or no duties. MPs have assistants who help with research and constituency work, paid from MP's allowances. This is an excellent job for someone who wishes to become a candidate, as you get to see the job from the inside and meet relevant people.
Party turnover tends to be that of a medium-sized business. Enough to make a comfortable living for the senior members, not enough to pay lots of unsuccessful candidates.
(I believe the same applies for AMs, MSPs, and MEPs.)
Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day?
Pretty much, although given that the high end isn't really making much either it's more a kind of self-exploitation.
answered May 6 at 12:59
pjc50pjc50
10.2k12344
1
Excellent answer. Might be worth adding that MPs do get severance pay if they lose an election, dependent on how long they've been an MP.
– Steve Melnikoff
May 6 at 16:30
Highly local political jobs still are effectively unpaid, even in the US. My mother is on the local board of supervisors for the township where she lives. Her stipend? $300 per month. I'm not even sure that covers her gas.
– Draco18s
May 6 at 17:08
80k -- tax free or not? that makes a difference.
– devoured elysium
May 6 at 20:09
@devouredelysium national politicians all have to pay tax at the normal rates; it's only UN employees that get to be globally tax-exempt.
– pjc50
May 6 at 21:14
Taxed and NI'ed - parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/…
– Ian Bush
May 6 at 21:14
add a comment |
Local councillors aren't really paid at all, even if they're successful - they get a small stipend. Councils therefore end up getting mostly run by their permanent officers. Council candidates are almost entirely volunteers. They will get election material and some staff time from their party, but for being a candidate you don't usually receive anything. They can solicit donations, but as you can imagine, there is not a lot of money in local councils.
Elected MPs get paid 80k, which is good but not excessive for a long hours managerial job in central London.
MPs are similarly volunteers, but because of the time commitment for campaigning they tend to be limited to people who can take a few months off at their own expense. So you see a lot of people from freelance/self-employed/small business backgrounds, such as lawyers and management consultants. Some are also "journalists" such as Boris Johnson, who is paid £275k for a weekly column by the Daily Telegraph. Or Seamus Milne, who moved from being a Guardian journalist to Labour Party Director of Communications.
Another category is people who are already party or trade union employees. They usually get to arrange to keep their job while campaigning, on reduced or no duties. MPs have assistants who help with research and constituency work, paid from MP's allowances. This is an excellent job for someone who wishes to become a candidate, as you get to see the job from the inside and meet relevant people.
Party turnover tends to be that of a medium-sized business. Enough to make a comfortable living for the senior members, not enough to pay lots of unsuccessful candidates.
(I believe the same applies for AMs, MSPs, and MEPs.)
Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day?
Pretty much, although given that the high end isn't really making much either it's more a kind of self-exploitation.
answered May 6 at 12:59
pjc50pjc50
10.2k12344
Local councillors aren't really paid at all, even if they're successful - they get a small stipend. Councils therefore end up getting mostly run by their permanent officers. Council candidates are almost entirely volunteers. They will get election material and some staff time from their party, but for being a candidate you don't usually receive anything. They can solicit donations, but as you can imagine, there is not a lot of money in local councils.
Elected MPs get paid 80k, which is good but not excessive for a long hours managerial job in central London.
MPs are similarly volunteers, but because of the time commitment for campaigning they tend to be limited to people who can take a few months off at their own expense. So you see a lot of people from freelance/self-employed/small business backgrounds, such as lawyers and management consultants. Some are also "journalists" such as Boris Johnson, who is paid £275k for a weekly column by the Daily Telegraph. Or Seamus Milne, who moved from being a Guardian journalist to Labour Party Director of Communications.
Another category is people who are already party or trade union employees. They usually get to arrange to keep their job while campaigning, on reduced or no duties. MPs have assistants who help with research and constituency work, paid from MP's allowances. This is an excellent job for someone who wishes to become a candidate, as you get to see the job from the inside and meet relevant people.
Party turnover tends to be that of a medium-sized business. Enough to make a comfortable living for the senior members, not enough to pay lots of unsuccessful candidates.
(I believe the same applies for AMs, MSPs, and MEPs.)
Is there an exploitative bottom end? With lots of young hopefuls putting in the leg work in the hope of making it big one day?
Pretty much, although given that the high end isn't really making much either it's more a kind of self-exploitation.
answered May 6 at 12:59
pjc50pjc50
10.2k12344
answered May 6 at 12:59
pjc50pjc50
10.2k12344
answered May 6 at 12:59
pjc50pjc50
10.2k12344
answered May 6 at 12:59
pjc50pjc50
10.2k12344
10.2k12344
1
Excellent answer. Might be worth adding that MPs do get severance pay if they lose an election, dependent on how long they've been an MP.
– Steve Melnikoff
May 6 at 16:30
Highly local political jobs still are effectively unpaid, even in the US. My mother is on the local board of supervisors for the township where she lives. Her stipend? $300 per month. I'm not even sure that covers her gas.
– Draco18s
May 6 at 17:08
80k -- tax free or not? that makes a difference.
– devoured elysium
May 6 at 20:09
@devouredelysium national politicians all have to pay tax at the normal rates; it's only UN employees that get to be globally tax-exempt.
– pjc50
May 6 at 21:14
Taxed and NI'ed - parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/…
– Ian Bush
May 6 at 21:14
add a comment |
1
Excellent answer. Might be worth adding that MPs do get severance pay if they lose an election, dependent on how long they've been an MP.
– Steve Melnikoff
May 6 at 16:30
Highly local political jobs still are effectively unpaid, even in the US. My mother is on the local board of supervisors for the township where she lives. Her stipend? $300 per month. I'm not even sure that covers her gas.
– Draco18s
May 6 at 17:08
80k -- tax free or not? that makes a difference.
– devoured elysium
May 6 at 20:09
@devouredelysium national politicians all have to pay tax at the normal rates; it's only UN employees that get to be globally tax-exempt.
– pjc50
May 6 at 21:14
Taxed and NI'ed - parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/…
– Ian Bush
May 6 at 21:14
1
1
Excellent answer. Might be worth adding that MPs do get severance pay if they lose an election, dependent on how long they've been an MP.
– Steve Melnikoff
May 6 at 16:30
Excellent answer. Might be worth adding that MPs do get severance pay if they lose an election, dependent on how long they've been an MP.
– Steve Melnikoff
May 6 at 16:30
Highly local political jobs still are effectively unpaid, even in the US. My mother is on the local board of supervisors for the township where she lives. Her stipend? $300 per month. I'm not even sure that covers her gas.
– Draco18s
May 6 at 17:08
Highly local political jobs still are effectively unpaid, even in the US. My mother is on the local board of supervisors for the township where she lives. Her stipend? $300 per month. I'm not even sure that covers her gas.
– Draco18s
May 6 at 17:08
80k -- tax free or not? that makes a difference.
– devoured elysium
May 6 at 20:09
80k -- tax free or not? that makes a difference.
– devoured elysium
May 6 at 20:09
@devouredelysium national politicians all have to pay tax at the normal rates; it's only UN employees that get to be globally tax-exempt.
– pjc50
May 6 at 21:14
@devouredelysium national politicians all have to pay tax at the normal rates; it's only UN employees that get to be globally tax-exempt.
– pjc50
May 6 at 21:14
Taxed and NI'ed - parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/…
– Ian Bush
May 6 at 21:14
Taxed and NI'ed - parliament.uk/about/faqs/house-of-commons-faqs/…
– Ian Bush
May 6 at 21:14
add a comment |
With respect to the United States.
Every politician is responsible for figuring out how to finance his or her own campaign. I do not have data but my suspicion is that some have mastered this so well that they do not actually want to win. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/how-to-get-rich-by-running-for-president-134557955.html
answered May 6 at 21:48
emoryemory
23816
add a comment |
With respect to the United States.
Every politician is responsible for figuring out how to finance his or her own campaign. I do not have data but my suspicion is that some have mastered this so well that they do not actually want to win. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/how-to-get-rich-by-running-for-president-134557955.html
answered May 6 at 21:48
emoryemory
23816
add a comment |
With respect to the United States.
Every politician is responsible for figuring out how to finance his or her own campaign. I do not have data but my suspicion is that some have mastered this so well that they do not actually want to win. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/how-to-get-rich-by-running-for-president-134557955.html
answered May 6 at 21:48
emoryemory
23816
With respect to the United States.
Every politician is responsible for figuring out how to finance his or her own campaign. I do not have data but my suspicion is that some have mastered this so well that they do not actually want to win. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/how-to-get-rich-by-running-for-president-134557955.html
answered May 6 at 21:48
emoryemory
23816
answered May 6 at 21:48
emoryemory
23816
answered May 6 at 21:48
emoryemory
23816
answered May 6 at 21:48
emoryemory
23816
23816
add a comment |
add a comment |
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I have added UK tag because this is very likely to be different depending on the country (avoid being too broad).
– Alexei
May 6 at 11:59