Former atheist Republican candidate gives insight on running for office
Atheist Republican Kyle Austin ran for Texas House of Representatives to represent District 49 in the November 6, 2018 election. This was his first time running for public office.
District 49 consists of downtown Austin, Texas, and includes University of Texas at Austin. Austin lost the race to Democrat incumbent Gina Hinojosa, whom first assumed office January 10, 2017.
Austin has provided details about his experience of running for office, and what he would do to improve his campaign if he were to run for public office again.
– What led you to decide to run for office?
For many years now I’ve been a lover of philosophy. I prefer the works of Ayn Rand as Objectivism takes reality, or existence, as a basis for where to derive facts from instead of logical fallacies or supernatural claims. I was even told in my own philosophical groups that our culture isn’t ready for us to get into politics, but I disagree. In fact, it’s quite the opposite because in order to exercise our rights as individuals, we need freedom focused rational thinkers to set good laws and remove the older and oppressive ones. This understanding of what our world needs is what led me to determine a purpose of having any kind of political impact for the better. I wanted to run for office so that I could at least be in the conversation to advocate for individual rights for all in a way that is derived from facts of reality, and not a subjective declaration of authority.
– Have you ran for positions lower than Texas House of Representatives in the past? If not, would you consider it?
Honestly, it was a math problem for me. Texas House of Representatives was an uncontested seat on the Republican ticket with only one Democrat individual as opposition. I would gladly have run in any level of office because there is work to be done in all aspects of government.
– Please provide a brief summary of the process you took to run for office, starting with how you applied to be a contender, how you set up your campaign, etc.
Had the desire to run.
Went to the Travis County Republican Party office.
Paid 750 bucks to put my name on the ballot.
Literally everything after that was up to me to campaign. Since I am quite poor, I spent most of my time working and paying bills but I did occasionally appear on radio shows and TV shows to discuss ideas. I’d recommend not being in debt at all when running, but even if you can’t spend any money on a campaign. If you have some time, it is still worth it. You get many opportunities to discuss ideas with others and go to events with your political opponent. Gina was nice every time we met, probably because she knew I wasn’t a threat, but regardless, she was kind.
– Are there particular groups you reached out to to share your campaign with?
The American Capitalist Party is a perfect representation of my political ideals. I spoke with the co-founder Joe Sanders about many ideas. However, since my understanding of a proper government is one that protects individual rights and only retaliates against those that have infringed upon the rights of the citizens of the nation, I don’t support giving money to many lobbyist groups so many political parties actually disliked what I had to say since it didn’t irrationally selfishly benefit them no matter the cost to everyone else.
– What would you do to improve your campaign if you were to run again?
I would definitely want to fund a full time campaign. I have so many great ideas to try but I just need the time to do it… In order to get the time, I need money to pay for bills. So, if you have some money saved up, or can get someone to cover your bills for a year, then go for the win. If you are poor like me, still go for it if it’s your first time because the experience is well worth it. I learned so much and will be much more prepared the next time I go at it again. So if I run again, I would have bills covered for the year of campaigning. I would set up meet and greet events to discuss ideas directly with voters. I would knock on doors. I would talk with the local radio stations and TV stations to talk directly to my voters. I would challenge my opponent to a political debate. I would spend every single day of my campaign out in public talking with potential voters so that not only would I be getting more votes, but I would know that at least good ideas are being presented to the world.
Thank you Kyle for providing insight on your experience of running for office!
We hope more atheist Republicans become inspired to run for public office, whether it’s local positions on a school board or city council, or at the county, state or federal levels.
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