Campaigning in the Age of Covid

If you’ve been stuck in place lately with your local campaign because of COVID-19, it’s time to reassess your way forward and plan with the time you have left until November. First, it’s important to understand your vote goal. Do the math, and then pull out your calendar. How will you reach out to the people who you need to win? Will it be via door knocking, phone calls, texts, or events?

Get back to door knocking if you can. For every 14 doors knocked, you will get 1 vote. Those numbers you have to reach for every vote goes up for every other way to reach out. During this pandemic, however, you will need to assess how people are reacting to door knocking in your district, and the only way you can figure that out is to start knocking, if you haven’t already. 

Conservative door knockers around the country are reporting they, for the most part, are being well-received. They suggest the following when you start:

• Having a mask with you (not necessarily on if you are standing at a distance) is helpful
• Ring the bell or knock and then step back away from the door, so you aren’t too close for distancing (also so you don’t look intimidating)
• Don’t shake hands (people are still fearful of the germs you may carry)
• Remove your sunglasses to make eye contact (people are craving personal interactions right now)
• Leave them your literature
• Know your community – Suburbs that are more densely populated are better places to wear masks than sparsely populated ones

Surprisingly, the door knockers have had a higher response rate for their first 2,000 doors than they began with in 2018. People seem ready for human interaction.

Phone calls and text messages are the next best way to reach out to your district. Make sure you and your volunteers have a smile on their face when calling. People on the other end can tell if attitudes are dull or distracted, so make sure your volunteers are happy people who are passionate about your campaign. Text messages can really make an impact as well, but mass texts (depending on the population in your district) can cost some money to send through a service.

Conservative people seem eager for some type of in-person events, so be innovative. Right now, outside events could be the way to go, depending on your state. If you are in a city or state that is restricting the amount of people at an event, your event might be virtual, but careful planning should be undertaken before a virtual event. Many people have been on more than their fair share of really boring virtual meetings in the last few months, and that is not the take-away you want potential voters to have after watching yours.

Remember that it is possible people who would normally go to the polls may vote early, so getting to them as soon as you can will be key. If you can’t seem to get to everyone you need to, you can also send mail with a personal note from you inside. A personal touch is everything.