Let's talk about what canvassing is like. I'm not an expert (I've only gone twice) but I'll share my experiences and I'm hoping others will chime in. I'm going to start by saying it isn't nearly as hard or scary as I thought it would be. So here's what happens: (cont.)
You sign up for a shift (though the campaign website or a group like @swingleft, @PPAdvocatesPA) and then go to the campaign headquarters at your assigned time. If you've watched too much TV like I have, the headquarters will be much less fancy than you expect. (cont.)
When you show up, there will be a volunteer coordinator who will get you signed in. There should be a short training session. You'll learn what points they'd like you to make, how to fill out the forms about each door you knock, and the best ways to talk to people. (cont.)
Depending on the campaign, you might get to meet the candidate at this point. This is fun! I always feel like I'm famous-by-association at this point. (Refer back to me watching too much TV.) (cont)
You will be given a stack of campaign fliers, voter reg forms, voter pledge postcards and other materials. You will also be given your list of voters/addresses to visit. This will be either on paper or via an app on your phone. Generally you get 50 addresses. (cont.)
You can bring a friend or ask to be paired with a more experienced canvasser. My first time I got to canvass with the candidate! (Hi @malcolmforpa!) This is a great way to get comfortable with the process. Once you have your materials and addresses, you set out. (cont.)
You will know the names of the people at each address. You knock on the door, introduce yourself and say something like "Do you plan to vote for <candidate>?" Many people will be enthusiastic and say yes. (cont.)
Then you ask if they know where their polling place is and have a plan to vote. You ask them if you can send them a reminder postcard. As you walk away from the door, you fill out the form about them and fill out the reminder postcard. (cont.)
If they are unsure about the candidate, you tell them the few major points that you learned in the training and ask them if they have any questions. You leave them with a flier and encourage them to check out the candidate. (cont.)
In the case that the person is against your candidate (especially as we get closer to the election, the lists will mostly include only Democrats so this should be pretty rare), you say "Ok, thank you. Have a good day." You don't argue or try to convince. (cont.)
At the vast majority of the doors you know, no one will answer. So you just leave a flier and mark them off as "not home" on your sheet. (cont.)
That's it! I find it exhausting because I'm such an introvert. But it's totally doable and it's really important. Statistics show that to get one vote you need to send out 1500 mailers or make 150 calls. But it only takes 15 doors knocked to get a vote. (cont.)
Please let me know if you have any questions and/or share your experiences. You can do this!
