
When I posted this essay to LinkedIn, it generated more discussion than anything I’ve ever posted before. So, I’m reprinting it here to see what you think. Reply here or add your voice to the Comments on the LinkedIn Post.
It was a tough post to write because it’s about questioning a campaign tactic that we think is a fundamental truth – canvassing.
Maybe we’re wrong. Or maybe we’re not.
When I was having dinner with a campaign friend shortly after the election last year, we did what all of us did – a lot of sad staring off into the distance, what ifs and “if they had only . . . “
We also asked ourselves some hard questions.
He and I both are experts in field campaigns – the direct voter contact part of any political campaign. That’s door-to-door canvassing, phonebanks, peer-to-peer texting, crowd events, relational organizing.
We’re both pretty good at it. But we both failed last cycle.
Sure, there are lots of reasons. In my case, my clients drowned in a Republican wave. In my friend’s case, his main client struggled to raise adequate funds.
But it’s not just us.
We both know dozens of friends who dropped everything to knock on doors or make phone calls in swing states and districts.
And we see how that worked out.
So, I started asking “what if we’re wrong?” What if the answer to tough political campaign questions isn’t more and better canvassing?
I hardly want to say it out loud because what evokes an authentic campaign more than the image of a smiling volunteer at a voter’s door?
The truth is that we both know what wins political campaigns – relationships with voters.
Most Democrats aren’t investing in building relationships with voters. Many of the Democratic campaign institutions think that investment means starting the canvassing in August instead of September.
Investment means building relationships with voters who share our values, but maybe not positions on issues. It also means repairing relationships with voters who share our values and positions on issues, but feel taken for granted. Because we take them for granted.
It doesn’t mean throwing an army of canvassers at low-turnout neighborhoods at the last minute and thinking it makes up for broken relationships.
On the other hand, a lot of canvassers worked their butts off to successfully elect US House candidates like Derek Tran, Dave Min and Adam Gray. A good friend who knocked on thousands of those doors believes it was the canvassing operation that ultimately brought Tran over the finish line.
If you’ve been involved in campaigns or if you haven’t, I’m curious about your opinion – are we wrong about canvassing?
Hit reply or add your thoughts to the Comments on the LinkedIn post.