Career Alternatives, Politics

Why Didn't a Lawyer Think of This?

Unemployed woman runs for office. Hey, she needs a job...

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Usually only people who run for president like Mitt Romney are allowed to run for office despite not having a job. Down ticket, you usually have to be “a something” before voters will take you seriously. This morning, there was a nice story on Am Law Daily about an associate, Justin Wagner, who is taking a leave of absence from Weil to run for New York State Senate.

That’s how it’s supposed to work: have job, pause job, ask the people to elect you to another job.

Well, one Massachusetts woman is turning that on its head, and I’m not talking about Elizabeth Warren….

While some may disagree, being a law professor is a real job that nominally prepares one for competent public service. But being an elected official can be a pretty sweet way to ride out some cyclical unemployment. From the Huffington Post:

Out of work for eight months, Carol Murchie sought a novel escape from unemployment: elected office.

Murchie, 54, lost her job as an archivist for a sports equipment maker in April of 2011. This year, she became a candidate for a part-time position with the city of Fairhaven, Mass.

“In this bad economy, I finally thought maybe politics was a way to go because I’ve tried everything else,” Murchie said.

Actually, I’m pretty sure this has been Newt Gingrich’s strategy all along.

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Maybe this is the elusive law school “bump.” When you go to law school like Wagner, you get to run for state Senate. When you don’t go to law school like Murchie, you end up running for “tree warden” of Fairhaven.

Sorry, unsuccessfully running for tree warden:

Alas, Murchie’s plan didn’t work out. She lost the election, receiving 736 votes to Medeiros’ 1,857.

She said she’s behind on her rent and is juggling bills, and is worried what she’ll do when her unemployment insurance runs out later this year. The tree job, she said, would have paid as much as $500 a month. Before the election, Murphy said she didn’t know what she’d do if she lost, but afterward she said she’d simply have to keep trying.

Murchie seems like she’s in a tough spot, but imagine how worse off she’d be if she had six figures of non-dischargeable debt. Meanwhile, I bet there are some Northeastern Law students who are working on their tree warden talking points right now.

Weil Associate Takes Leave to Run for New York State Senate [Am Law Daily]
Elected Office Pursued By Massachusetts Woman As Escape From Unemployment [Huffington Post]

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Earlier: Barrister’s Ball Blowout: A Night of Booze, Barf, and Blood (and B*tching About the Budget)

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