Amherst Forward FAQ

Do you have questions about Amherst Forward? Here are answers to some of the most common questions we’ve been asked.  

Why a political action committee (PAC)?

We formed a PAC because many of us have felt shut out of the town power structure on some of the issues most important to us. So we created an organization to channel our energy towards engaging fellow residents and public officials about critical issues facing our town. We organized it as a PAC for maximum transparency. No closed email groups, no secretive coalitions. We’re listed by name here on our website, and any donations we receive, as well as all of our expenses, are publicly reported—precisely BECAUSE we registered as a PAC.

What are you trying to do?

We want to get residents involved and help them engage with their elected officials on issues they care about. From our conversations over coffee, at parent pick-up, and on doorsteps during election campaigning, we think there are four priority issue areas for our town. We want to do our part to make sure they stay front and center in Amherst’s political conversations.

Is money really needed for that?

Honestly? Not a lot. But it takes some money to mail out postcards to voters, hold issue-focused events, print flyers, and pay the hosting fees for our website. So we have modest fundraising goals, we only accept contributions from individuals living in Amherst, and have limited contributions to $52 or less -- well below the legal donation limit of $500.

Are Amherst Forward-endorsed candidates required to vote in accordance with Amherst Forward?

Absolutely not. All the candidates running for Town Council are independent. A subset of them has indicated, through surveys and in-person conversations, that they are likely to address the four priority issues in a way that we also believe will work well for Amherst. So we endorse those candidates. We need elected representatives who will listen to their constituents, research best practices, and make practical decisions for Amherst.   

Why might Amherst Forward endorse candidates who don’t want to be endorsed by you? Our endorsements are based on the responses that candidates provide on our candidates’ questionnaires, but that’s not the only tool we use to decide who we will endorse. We review candidates’ interactions with community members, their record of public service, and/or other public statements on matters of interest to voters. We also assess whether candidates will align with our four priority issues. 

Some candidates we endorse do not wish to be endorsed by us. Obviously, we’re disappointed by those decisions. But we endorse candidates who we believe will represent Amherst constituents in good faith and will work hard to be fair in their decision-making. And like the endorsements of all political organizations, Amherst Forward’s endorsements are for our supporters’ education and information – not for candidates.

Aren’t you bankrolling candidates?

Nope. We’ve helped some candidates in informal ways to get their campaigns off to a good start, benefiting from what we’ve learned ourselves in past campaigns. That includes:

·       Conducted basic financial training for treasurers. If you’ve ever looked at public campaign finance reports (you should!), you’ll see how important this is. Better financial reports make for stronger transparency.

·       Shared insights and firsthand experience on good campaigning.

·       Connected candidates to volunteers and to one another to campaign together, if they felt it would be helpful.

·       Identified voter positions on recent town votes to inform candidates’ door-to-door outreach efforts.

·       Shared voter lists available from the town clerk’s office, re-formatted to aid candidates’ door-to-door campaigning.

·       Offered “get out the vote” training to candidates based on what we’ve learned in recent campaigns.

We have created simple campaign materials that list the candidates we support. The costs of these flyers are considered an “in-kind” or non-monetary contribution to candidates—an idea that we’ve already cleared with state campaign finance officials. We encourage candidates to report their in-kind donations and provide them with all of the financial information they need for their campaign disclosure reports.