“Do I Have To?”

It’s something that was asked a lot during American Majority’s “Precinct Power” presentation at last weekend’s Texas Defending the Dream Summit in Austin. Activists and candidates in attendance seemed to be resistant to walking door-to-door or canvassing their precincts. It’s an understandable reaction to the prospect of going up to someone’s door and having the door slammed in your face. However, the thing about walking door-to-door is that it’s the most reliable way to connect with voters in your neighborhood and district. Phone polling or banking does not prove to be as reliable as meeting face-to-face with your neighbors. People are more apt to talk to people face-to-face then over the phone, and especially if they can connect the face of their neighbor to the person at the door.

Let’s look at an example of why block walking or door-to-door canvassing is important in an election. Michael Gallops, an American Majority alumnus and now city councilman elect for the city of Rowlett, Texas, won his city council election by one vote. I’m sure this question has since gone through Councilman Gallops’ opponent’s mind on multiple occasions, “What if I had gone to the next house or neighborhood?” A similar thing happened in my hometown of Dayton, Texas, where a local businessman lost to another in the Republican primary for Justice of the Peace by just seven votes in the runoff. The stories are endless; everyone can point to an election where there is a single digit margin between the candidate elected and their opponent.

Personally, I’m not a big fan of either block walking or phone banking (who really is?), but I am definitely one of the “true believers” who will testify to its effectiveness for a campaign. Campaign mailers, signs, bumper stickers, and literature only serves a purpose if people know your name, who you are, and what you are running for. The argument could be made that these campaign materials could serve this purpose, but most people treat campaign mailers like junk mail; they only look at it long enough to see what it is and to throw it in the trash. If your campaign is running on a limited budget and can’t afford many of the things a well-funded campaign would implement, the one thing you can always get is volunteers. Another important thing to note about block walking is the personal connection you will make with voters. People are going to vote at the voting booth for the person they personally connected with on some level and not necessarily the person with the most bumper stickers or campaign signs. Remember: stickers and signs don’t vote on Election Day, voters do.

It’s the 21st century, you can friend me on Facebook, follow me on Twitter, connect with me on LinkedIn, email me, or text me, but I’m still more likely to vote for you if I’ve met you and talked to you about the issues facing me as a voter.