I answered every question myself.
Fill it all out, or don’t run.
Every candidate’s Top 10 record starts with The Oath: a thirty-second video, one take, filmed outside the seat of the office they are running for. The candidate says, in their own voice, that they answered every question themselves. Then they fill out the Top 10 in a recorded session on the board. The Oath is the promise. The recording is the proof.
What does the candidate say?
The same words, for every candidate, every party, every office:
“I’m [name]. I’m running for [office].
I answered every question in my Top 10 myself. No staff.
Fill it all out, or don’t run.”
The video ends on one line: We deserve to know.
Where is it filmed?
Outside the seat of the office the candidate wants:
- Congress: the U.S. Capitol.
- State office: the state capitol, such as Sacramento for California.
- City and county office: city hall or the county building.
The building says what the job is before the candidate says a word. It is filmed from public ground outside, never inside, with no official seal or government office in the shot, so no candidate uses an office or public resources to make it.
Why a video at all?
Because a promise said out loud is harder to walk back than a box that was checked. A checkbox can be clicked by anyone. A face, a voice and a building cannot be faked by a staffer, and voters can play it back the day the candidate votes.
The video also makes the standard visible. A voter scrolling past sees a person standing outside the capitol saying “Fill it all out, or don’t run.” That is the whole idea of My Vote Forward in thirty seconds.
Why is The Oath not enough on its own?
Because saying it is not proof of doing it. After The Oath, the candidate completes the Top 10 in a recorded session on the board: the camera and the screen, start to finish, every answer. The recording is kept with the record, so anyone can check that the person in The Oath is the person who answered. A candidate who needs help because of a disability may have an assistant, and the record says so.
Who can take The Oath?
Candidates for federal, state and local office in the United States. A candidate registers with their name, the office and the public filing that shows they are running. Federal candidates file with the Federal Election Commission once they raise or spend more than $5,000.fec.gov Records made before registration opens are marked self-reported by the candidate.
What does The Oath not do?
It does not endorse anyone, score anyone or say who is right. It says one thing: this person answered every question themselves. Voters decide the rest.
What My Vote Forward can and cannot do here
Can:
- Give every candidate the same words, the same thirty seconds and the same standard.
- Keep The Oath and the recorded session with the candidate’s record.
Does not:
- Film candidates, coach them, or edit their videos.
- Accept a record answered by staff.
- Endorse, rank or score anyone.
Unresolved questions
- Two buildings. When an officeholder runs for a different office, The Oath is filmed outside the building of the office they are running for. Should their current office appear anywhere in it?
- How long recordings are kept. The working answer is for as long as the candidate holds or seeks the office the record was made for.
Sources
Opened and checked on October 30, 2026.
- Federal Election Commission, “Registering as a candidate.” fec.gov
Make my Top 10
Fill it all out, or don’t run. We deserve to know.
