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Pt. 3-Eyewitness to History: A Volunteer’s Experience With the Obama Campaign
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Feb 5, 2009
Eyewitness to History: A Volunteer’s Experience With the Obama Campaign
Part Three: The General Election: July-November 2008
~ John H. McManus
(image 1)The Obama Field Office on Baltimore Pike in Media, Pennsylvania
When the Obama campaign starting renting this office, it was nothing but an empty car dealership. But as you can see, after dedicated and artistic people come together, we made a great looking field office.
There was no let-up in the campaign after the Fellows Program ended. To the contrary. Iona, Dawn and Peter were hired as Field Organizers. We quickly began building upon the work we had done in the summer. Field Organizers were divided up into township areas for the general election. Andrew was assigned the Greater Media and Great Middletown teams. Peter was assigned to Chester and soon after the summer the Obama campaign opened an office in Chester. Dawn was assigned to greater Yeadon and Iona to greater Chadds Ford. Julie was assigned to Upper Darby and Jessi to Ardmore. The Ardmore office was the third to open. As the campaign moved on, Josh was hired for the Ridley area, Matt was hired to work with Andrew and Omari was hired to work with Peter in Chester. Offices were opened in Darby, Upper Darby and Ridley later in the campaign.
One of the first focuses of the campaign in the general election was to get as many people registered to vote as possible. Volunteers were set out to all locations we felt we could register voters.
(image 3) Entrance of Media Obama Office.
My role in the general election was to work as an intern. I volunteered almost everyday at the office and put in long hours especially as Election Day got closer. Many volunteers put in long hours in the office. I reported to my Field Organizer, Andrew, and asked him what needed to be done. I had the experience to do the jobs of any volunteer, and was willing to do what was asked of me.
Field Organizer office in Media Office
The skills and jobs I had learned as a volunteer in the primary campaign and in the summer as Fellow were put to use right away in the general election campaign. One of my big tasks—as well as all the volunteers in the office, those who had volunteered before and those who had just begun—was to recruit new volunteers.
We did this in three major ways:
The first was started when supporters stopped into the office. We always had volunteers at the front desk to welcome them. One of them was Lorraine, a woman with a wonderful demeanor who greeted me the first time I entered the Springfield office in March. Supporters like to stop in for buttons, signs, law signs and such. When they did, we asked them if they could volunteer at all.
We explained to them what we needed help in: phonebanking, canvassing, front desk help and data entry help. One thing I should say about volunteer recruitment in the Obama campaign is that everyone was extremely friendly and welcoming to anyone who came through the door. Everyone smiled and introduced him or herself, asked people where they were from and why they supported Senator Obama.
Volunteer Sign in Media Obama Office Window.
When asking for help we always explained to potential volunteers that while supporting was great, helping out was even greater. And we also told them all the friends they would make and how fun it is to work with people for something you believe in.
The most valuable experience I had in nine months on the campaign was not the skills I learned—although the Field Organizers and fellow volunteers taught me so much about campaigning—-it was the friends that I made from my community. Friends I would have never made otherwise.
They are the reason why I am writing these pieces: to show my experience to you and shedding light on my county’s campaign and even introducing you to some of my friends via pictures and video.
We asked everyone who volunteered to sign our signature wall. When I signed it in August, it was nearly empty. By the end of the election it covered three ways.
In this picture, volunteer Marynell is standing in front of the signature wall.
The main reason for phone banking was to ask individuals whom they supported for President. We phonebanked everyday: in the morning, afternoon and evening. From the opening of the office at 9 AM to the close of the office at 9 PM, we always had volunteers on the phone. More volunteers were comfortable on the phone then talking to people face to face during canvassing. The first question is rather simple: “Do you support Senator McCain or Senator Obama for President? ”
Most of the time, people would answer and it would be pleasant. I can’t count the number of great conversations I had with people on the phone at the office: how they were inspired by the Senator, the hopes they had for the future and discussion of issues that were important to them. Many shared their personal stories as we had in the campaign. I phonebanked almost everyday and enjoyed the experience.
There were rare instances of people who got upset and we would always thank them and hang up. The calls were coded and entered into the data system. If the person we spoke to was an Obama supporter or leaning Obama, we would ask them if they could spare anytime to volunteer and discuss the experience as I explained in the paragraph above. If they were undecided, we would talk to the voter about his or her concerns. If an individual were a firm McCain supporter, we would thank the voter, code the sheet and not call back.
Some callers also wanted to talk about issues and many gave responses on their support based on these conversations. We had sheets of issues at each phone and points to talk to people about. When the economic crisis hit, we received a high volume of calls. We updated callers on a daily basis on stances and issues.
The other major way we connected with voters was canvassing. The premise was simple: You are given an area—a turf as the campaign called it—and a map with dots on streets. Each dot represented a house. In each house there was at least one voter we wanted to talk to. The sheets that occupied the turf listed the voter’s name and address as well as a coding system. We went out in pairs and one person would get the odd houses and one the even.
A canvasser would knock on the door, introduce him or herself and ask for the voter. If the voter was home, the canvasser would the voter(s) whom they supported for President. If they were a firm supporter or leaning for Senator Obama, we asked the voter if they could volunteer. If the voter was undecided, we would talk to him or her about issues or concerns. If the individual was a McCain supporter, we thanked the voter and wished them a nice day. Every response was coded and handed back to the Field Organizer and the information would be entered in the data cave.
Some volunteers were not open to canvassing and others who did it liked the experience and continued to do it. After the voter registration deadline had passed, we canvassed out of the Media office every Saturday and Sunday. There were morning shifts and afternoon shifts. The afternoon shifts were more popular and ould net more responses from voters. I canvassed quite a bit and mostly worked in the afternoon. As I mentioned, we sent canvassers out in pairs but I also canvassed by myself. Having done the job since the primary and it being my favorite job of the campaign, this was no problem for me. I enjoyed talking face-to-face with voters. Canvassing was also the most effective way to sway voters to support Senator Obama.
Just as it was on national and international news, there was much discussion and speculation about whom Senator Obama would select as his running mate. Many believed Senator Clinton was very qualified and because she did so well in the primary she would be a superb running mate for Senator Obama. This issue has been discussed at length elsewhere so I will not go into details as it has been covered.
Others suggested Governor Richardson and Senator Biden. Senator Biden was my first choice for Vice President. I thought the chemistry between Senators Obama and Biden would work well and it would be a well-balanced ticket.
Many in the office were pleased with the choice of Senator Biden as Senator Obama’s running mate. We believed Senator Biden brought valuable experience to the ticket, especially his knowledge of Foreign Policy. There were volunteers in the office that had followed Senator Biden’s Presidential campaign with interest. Many of us admired his work in neighboring Delaware.
Now a contemporary tradition, the first major decision a Presidential candidate must make is the selection of hi or her running mate. As I said, we would have been pleased with Senator Clinton, Governor Richardson, Senator Biden or other qualified candidates. Senator McCain’s selection of Governor Palin caused quite a reaction in the office.
Unfortunately, I was not in the office when the announcement was made. We had many questions: Who is Sarah Palin? Why is she qualified? Was Senator McCain trying to score political points with women by his selection? My fellow volunteers told me there was a flood of people in the office that day to talk about it and to volunteer.
For those of you not familiar with Delaware County, it has had a history of being a Republican county. Although there is a huge Democrat base in Chester, the Republicans run the government there. Many state representatives and senators are Republican.
From 1984 to 2004, Republican Curt Weldon represented the 7th Congressional District—which makes up most of the county—. He was defeated in 2004 by Joe Sestak.
Since 2000, Democrats have been making up ground in voter registration.
In 2000, there were 230,741 registered Republicans and 110, 104 Democrats.
Delaware County went Gore 50.6% to 46.4%.
In 2004, there were 213,030 registered Republicans and 131,317 registered Democrats.
Delaware County went Kerry 50.9% to Bush 48.4%
As of October 6, 2008—the deadline for voter registration for the 2008 Presidential Election—there were 190,675 registered Republicans and 172,115 registered Democrats.
That is an increase in registered Democrats by 59,378 between the 2004 and 2008 elections.
The Obama campaign has been widely credited for this significant increase and rightfully so. Registering voters was done at any location we thought we could find people to register. We aggressively registered voters from March through October 6.
As you will see at the end of this article, our work paid off.
Despite these gains by Democrats in the county, Abby repeatedly told us not to rest on our laurels and work very hard everyday to reach voters. She told us the McCain campaign was matching us dollar for dollar in the county. As the campaign season hit the final leg, Senator McCain invested a lot of money into Pennsylvania, and Delaware County was no exception. There was a McCain-Palin rally at the Delaware County Courthouse just minutes away from our office. It was very well attended. It reminded all of us that we needed to work hard.
Reminder from David Alexrod.
I attended the North Philadelphia Obama rally at Progress Plaza on October 11, 2008. The rally was held at 7: 30 AM. It was a clear and chilly morning and I was very tired. Fellow Helen and I left at 5 AM to get to Philadelphia. We parked and got in line. We waited in the cold and talked to people. We got a nice spot along the fence near the tent where the speakers were waiting.
Congressman Bob Brady, Governor Rendell, Mayor Nutter, Senator Casey and others spoke. They talked about how critical a victory in this election was. They told us how we needed to knock as many doors as possible to get people to vote and how each and every one of us will make a difference if we do.
The crowd was electrified when Senator Obama appeared. Below is a clip of the first part of his speech. There are also two more parts that can be found on the Youtube page that this video is posted on.
Volunteers and staff assembled in various locations throughout the county to watch the debates. It was fun to get together and talk to people and share the experience together. People from my area assembled at Swarthmore College and watched on a big screen in a nice auditorium. I watched the first debate with some Obama friends at Shannon’s house. We were outraged that Senator McCain did not even look at Senator Obama in this debate. The most memorable debate was of course the final one, often referred to as the “Joe the Plumber” debate (editor’s note - while outside one of the more shameful events of the campagn occured - Veterans were rebuked by both campaigns and CBS, and Nick the Vet had his skull stomped on by a horse courtesy of the Nassau County PD). We laughed a lot during the debate and talked about how ridiculous it was. What we all noticed watching the debates was that Senator Obama kept his cool and looked Presidential while Senator McCain was often agitated.
One of my final tasks in the Media office was to recruit volunteers for Get Out the Vote. I had call lists of supporters and volunteers. I would call and ask them if they could do three-hour shifts from November 1st through November 4th. Many were willing to do a shift or more. I let them know how critical it was to volunteer during these days. Oftentimes, it took some convincing to get people to volunteer. A lot of people told me that we would definitely win the county and the election was over.
I reminded them that the election was not over and nothing was guaranteed until the final votes were tallied.
I was assigned to a union hall in Boothwyn for Get Out the Vote. We phonebanked and canvassed those four days. I canvassed for Get Out the Vote. We only talked to supporters and made sure they would get out to vote on November 4th.
I arrived at my polling place at Indian Lane Elementary School at 6:30 AM on Election Day. There were probably twenty people in front of me. By the time the polling place opened at 7 AM, there were at least fifty people behind me. I was eleventh in my ward to vote. I will never forget walking into the both that day. I stood there for a moment and took it all in. This moment was the culmination of nine months of hard work. I pulled the Democrat lever and walked out. While I have always voted since I was 18, I was never so excited to have voted in my life.
I quickly made it to the staging location. I got my canvass packets and headed out for the first shift. I made some phone calls that day and checked in on the TV screen for news. We had a lot of union help and out-of-state help for Get Out the Vote. Honestly, the day was a blur. The next thing I knew the polls were closed and we watched the first results come in.
We all knew what we were witnessing that day was historic. We saw long lines throughout the county and heard news of people waiting up to five hours to vote. We saw voters of all ages and races and a record number of young people. I never thought I’d see the day when so many voters got to the polls.
The initial states were called while we were still at the union hall. After we cleaned out the hall, we made our way to Campbell’s Boat House on Providence Road in Media to watch the results.
It’s hard to put into words how excited we all were that night. The boathouse was crowded and we all cheered as states were called for Senator Obama. Delaware County was called for Senator Obama and we erupted. We were so proud of our work. When the final results were published, we had won the county 60% to 40%. We watched Senator Obama’s electoral vote count widen.
Once Pennsylvania was called for Senator Obama, we knew Senator Obama would be the 44th President of the United States. We could not control our emotions. We hugged and cried and I was standing next to Abby when it was announced officially that Senator Obama was elected. Abby is from Chicago and she worked on the campaign since New Hampshire. The vast majority of the staff worked in many states. It didn�t happen right away, but I cried that night. I got text messages from my brother Andrew, my friend Emily, my boss Michel and I talked to my friends Jenna and Stephanie. Watching the Grant Park speech was overwhelming. It was a sea of people of all walks. Here is the speech that President-elect Obama made that night:
I was witnessing history on November 4th. I have seen great speeches in American history as I have a degree in Social Studies Education from Penn State. Martin Luther King Jr., John F. Kennedy and Robert F. Kennedy were my favorite speakers. But November 4th was different. This was a leader for my time. Because of my work on the campaign, I felt like I had a direct impact on the movement and the success we achieved here in Delaware County. Andrew agreed.
In this video, volunteers Marynell, John and Marilee talk about their work on the campaign and the future:
We didn’t want the night to end. We stayed out and talked for hours. We knew that we would not see the staff for much longer.
For the next few days, staff and volunteers cleaned out the offices. The staff went home. Abby was hired by the Transition Team as was Julie and Andrew volunteered for the Transition Team.
When I now drive by the Media office—a building that stands dormant—I have two reactions. The first is a reminder all of the great work we did and all the friends we made. We were all eyewitnesses to history. We came together for a common purpose and worked day and night for a candidate we believed could improve the direction of this country. The second reaction I have is that I miss everyone I worked with. I miss the sights and people of the office I worked with for months.
That said, November 4th was not the end of a movement but only the beginning of the next phase of the movement. Soon after the election, Shannon had a social at her house that many volunteers attended. We discussed where we go from here. Many volunteers participated in Day of Service. We had a book drive for local children who do not have books of their own.
Many of us had Inauguration plans. I attended the Inauguration in Washington DC and am writing an article based on my experience.
- Please stay tuned for Part 4 - Inauguration Day!-
~John H. McManus
(John H. McManus, a new GlobalPundit.Org Correspondent, was a volunteer for the Obama campaign in Delaware County, PA during the primary, an Organizing Fellow in the summer and an intern for the Pennsylvania Campaign for Change during the general election. He is also in a label institute course with Realize Records, a musician, a songwriter, a poet, a GED tutor and an avid reader.)
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