Turnout Tales

[November 5th, 2008]

When history books recount the 2008 presidential election, it will be remembered for the staggering number of votes tallied, money raised and advertising dollars spent.

Behind that larger narrative will be the smaller stories of an untold number of volunteers who donated hours, weeks and months to the campaigns of Sens. Barack Obama and John McCain.

With Oregon expected to be a slam-dunk for Obama, WW checked in with three Obama volunteers in swing states to hear their tales of fighting for every vote during the campaign trail’s final stretch. And online at wweek.com, Angela Valdez, a former WW staffer, shares a dispatch from the McCain campaign.

PENNSYLVANIA

Fact: In a last-ditch effort to pull in front of Obama, McCain spent $20 million on advertising in the Keystone State, a sum that far exceeded spending in every other battleground state, according to The New York Times. Obama won decisively.Philadelphia—My canvassing partner is 15-year-old Clarence, who got a ride to the Obama office from his grandfather. His first words to me are, “I can’t wait until I’m old enough to vote.”

A University of Pennsylvania student briefs us on methods. The goal is turnout, not persuasion. Area demographic is “students, African-Americans and hipsters.”

Clarence and I practice our spiel and head out. First up is a low-rise public housing development. Most everyone is cordial; some want to volunteer. At least four people speak to us from their upstairs window. One woman won’t open the front door because she’s in her nightgown, but she talks to us anyway.

Our next stop is a 14-floor apartment building across from the Penn campus. The way to get into the building, we’re told, is to wait until someone comes out and then catch the door. We should avoid the ninth floor because the president of Campus Republicans lives there and could potentially “report” us.

We get in and take the elevator to the 14th floor. This building is everything the public housing development isn’t: sparkly, modern-looking. There’s a gym and a lounge with a big-screen television. A flier advertises housekeeping services.

Although it’s after 1 pm, students are answering the door in various states of undress. One guy brushes his teeth through our entire conversation. Many of them seem annoyed that we’re there. —Cary Beckwith

VIRGINIA

Fact: Obama narrowly won this state, once the home of the Confederacy.

Arlington, Va.—After two weeks in the Obama office, I have been given a title: the Golden Girls director. I help old ladies—who arrive in small packs, sometimes wearing homemade Obama earrings—prepare canvassing packets. 

We have an army of feisty retirees here, including Randall, a dapper 84-year-old whose stamina for campaign paperwork beats all the college interns’.

There is also an ever-growing camp of foreign volunteers. James is a shaggy, passionate law student from Australia who gets a little giddy when he trains a new batch of canvassers. Coen works in politics in Amsterdam. He is such a good canvasser that he now gets the “Ninja Packs,” turfs and apartment buildings to which no one else can gain access.

And our office leaders make the Obama campaign look like a youth revolt. Caroline, the big boss at 28, has a hipster haircut and occasionally chats about cute boys—but she runs the Northern Virginia campaign with ruthless efficiency. I’m somewhere in the middle of it, fairly anonymous, working on mundane tasks but feeling a little like I’m a part of history. —Maureen Towey

NEVADA

Fact: Barack Obama visited the state 20 times, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal. John McCain visited six times since the January caucuses.

Las Vegas—Forget about the clamoring hordes that show up at Obama rallies. We are not an army. We are an efficient handful.

The pressure to turn out our voters is intense. Our field organizer, Maria, is in charge of all things technical. She stares into her computer screen and smilingly provides us with lists of where to walk, and sheets of whom to call. Her assistant, the joyless Joyce, is our taskmaster. She demands that we sign in and commit to more hours. “Can you walk one more precinct?” she pushes.

Felicien, another volunteer, is from Africa. He is here as an exile from his homeland of Togo. He is a big, strong-looking man with a lovely French accent. He tells us that people in his country are fasting for 40 days, praying that Obama wins the election. Last week, Bette Midler stopped by to give us a pep talk. In a sleek, leopard-print dress and stiletto heels, she urged us to keep up the good work. There are perks to living in battleground Las Vegas. We need them, as exhaustion bears down. —Bonnie Hannifin