Turn off the computer and hit the doors!

Blogging at DailyKos, Portland school board member Ruth Adkins (known there as "Ruth in OR") relates her experience canvassing for Barack Obama:

I'm a 40-something mom who has been spending way too much time online following the campaign--it was about time to leave the 101st Fighting Keyboardists and actually get out and do something!

I started by heading over to Portland Obama HQ in the former Wild Oats supermarket on SE Division St. about 10 am. It's not a fancy place (basically an empty storefront with some tables and chairs and sofas) but it is buzzing with activity and energetic young (and old!) staffers. ...

Given that I live in a very Democratic, latte-liberal kind of neighborhood, and that Obama just filled Memorial Coliseum with 12,000 people at two days' notice, I expected to find pretty good Obama support. Sure enough, of the 80 voters I contacted, 45% were strong Obama, 18% leaning Obama, for a total 63% support! Another 27% were undecided and just 11% were leaning or strongly supporting Hillary. Of course, this is only anecdotal, but I would not be surprised if Obama won Oregon by a 60-40 margin.

Have you gone door-to-door for a candidate yet this year? Tell us about your experience.

Discuss.

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    Been door-to-door for Sam Adams' mayoral campaign. As always, it's tons of fun: interacting with Portlanders and engaging with them about the issues. I love it!

  • LT (unverified)
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    Thanks for posting this. It is a reminder that the real world of campaigning involves person to person contact!

  • verasoie (unverified)
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    Door-to-door for Merkley in Irvington, a ritzy part of NE Portland last weekend.

    The reception was good amongst those who were at the doors, people seem eager for someone (i.e. Jeff) with solid progressive credentials, experience, and the credibility to take on the Bush-lackey Smith.

    Several people took yard signs and/or bumper stickers, and many, many more were eager to hear about Jeff, but I think much work remains to be done for the general, this race doesn't seem to be on people's radar screens a ton with the presidential politics overwhelming everything.

  • Taylor M (unverified)
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    Met plenty of people under the Obama tent at the Eugene Saturday market yesterday morning. More power to Ruth and the countless other canvassers who swarmed Oregon streets Saturday.

    Anyone interested in canvassing for Obama in the Eugene/ Springfield area, contact the Oregon for Obama campaign office in Eugene at 1280 Willamette Street. If you're elsewhere in the state, the campaign has field offices in Portland, Beaverton, Oregon City and Corvallis. Get involved!

  • Matthew Sutton (unverified)
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    And Obama has an office in Medford now.

  • Steve Bucknum (unverified)
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    Interesting that your door-to-door work in Portland has nearly the exact same ratio between Obama and Clinton as found in the January 13th straw vote conducted by the Crook County Democrats.

    There are probably not two places in Oregon any more different than the latte-liberal neighborhood in Portland that you were working, and the small town/rural Crook County/Prineville area where our straw vote was conducted.

    It's looking good for Obama.

  • Charlie Burr (unverified)
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    The most fun volunteering I've had wasn't even Oregon. About 100 of us headed north for Washington's caucus a few months ago. We had a blast -- and carried Clarke County for Obama by two-to-one.

  • Charlie Burr (unverified)
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    I realize there's no "e" in Clark County. Sorry, I thought I was hitting "preview."

  • Bill Bodden (unverified)
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    There is no question about the value of door-to-door activities, especially in the case of the younger generation getting on the bus to do so, but with the trolls running around the blogs we can't abandon field to them.

  • mamabigdog (unverified)
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    Not all of us are able to physically do the door-to-door thing. I have personally been phone-banking for Obama, which has been rewarding and interesting. When I'm able to be out and about, I ask people if they're registered to vote. If they state a preference for the election, we may discuss that further, or we may not- depends on the situation. I have taken to carrying VR forms with me to facilitate folks registering or changing parties before the 4/29 deadline. My teenagers do phone banking as well- it feels safer to me than having them do door-to-door. There are lots of ways to contribute positively to the process. Let's be open to them all.

  • Michael O Hanna (unverified)
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    My experience in talking to co-workers, our online and informal polling of AFSCME Union members, and door-to-door canvassing has been a consistent ratio of 2-to-1 (66% to 33%) Obama over Clinton, which is roughly equivalent to your ratio of 60% to 40% that you have experienced. Washington state's caucus was 68% Obama to 31% Clinton (I know Washington's primary was different, but it was non-binding and thus many voters stayed home, so I don't count it since the Democratic party doesn't). So, this is also consistent with 2-to-1 and Washington voters are not all that different than Oregon voters. In summary, 2-to-1 is what I would expect Obama's win to be here in Oregon on May 20th, or even higher.

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    Not all of us are able to physically do the door-to-door thing. I have personally been phone-banking for Obama, which has been rewarding and interesting.

    Phone Banking: Just as important as Door Knocking!!!

    Keep it up!

  • lws (unverified)
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    I support Obama but a canvassing diary by a director of the segregationist, discriminatory Portland Public School district isn't exactly inspirational to me.

  • lws (unverified)
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    That's right. Segregationist.

    Portland Public School district policies increase racial (and economic) segregation and then provide fewer educational opportunities in the minority and low income schools. The open transfer policy is part of the problem.

    Here's the city and county audit of the policy. http://www.co.multnomah.or.us/auditor/PPS%20Student%20Transfer%20Audit.pdf

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