Interning at WA-08

• Sep 14, 2008 Posted by Dr. Alex Blum

  An entry from Paul Lee, who worked on Darcy Burner's Congressional campaign in Washington's district 8.
  

  I really didn't know what to expect when I agreed to intern at a congressional campaign.  I had done some issue campaigning before concerning universal healthcare, but I had never been involved in a political campaign.  The initial reason I wanted to get involved was because of the excitement behind Barack Obama's campaign and a strong interest I gained in health policy.  Although I wasn't able to do any policy work, it turned out to be a great experience participating in and observing the workings of a political campaign.

              For the most part, I spent my time phonebanking on the weekdays and canvassing on the weekends.  There was definitely an adjustment period to get used to the long hours on the phone and the 10 hr work days everyday.  There were already two other fellows from another PAC (SNAP) that had been there for a month, so my volunteer organizing responsibilities were limited the first two weeks.   Once I got used to the schedule and got to know the staff a little bit more, I started to do more volunteer recruitment calls and train volunteers to phonebank and canvass.

              The events I went to were always fun.  I went to a dinner put on by the Democrats in one LD (I forget which) that featured Governor Gregoire.  Darcy couldn't make it because she was still dealing with things related to her house burning down.  It was great though to see the governor in person and hear her speak.  She was very impressive and knew how to connect with the audience.  I also went to two parades.  Even though the staff talked of the limited usefulness (almost none) of parades, they were fun to walk through and a welcome respite from the office.

              Since Darcy had to deal with her house being burnt down, she was rarely in the office the first two weeks I was there.  The day I finally got to meet her was at her speaking event at Microsoft headquarters.  She seemed right in her element talking to Microsoft employees since she was one herself and was extremely knowledgeable on every issue people in the audience asked about.  Although it would have been nice to interact with the candidate more, she was very busy since she came back because she missed time (especially call time) and it was only a few weeks from the primary.

              The primary on August 19th was what the staff had worked for the entire time I was there.  GOTV was exhausting and relentless, yet fun and satisfying all at the same time.  Canvassing for 10 hours for 4 days in 95 degree heat and some showers was an endurance test.  The field staff boasted of having one of the best field operations in the country and often talked about the high profile of our race, so we and the volunteers couldn't disappoint.  Even though we narrowly lost the primary, it was still a good sign for the general since we have more money than our opponent Dave Reichert and a stronger staff.

              One thing I wished I had more of during my time there was better voter contacts.  The phonebanking and canvassing didn't lead to as many good voter contacts where I hear of their experiences and their views and their reasons for voting one way or the other.  There were always the bizarre ones, where strong Republicans say they won't vote for the hippie party or for the Communist party, but still overall, voter contact wasn't as good as it would be at a town hall meeting with a candidate.

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