When people knock on the door to talk politics, most visits go unanswered.
A group of about 40 Oak Park-area volunteers and 26 University of Chicago students made the 180-mile trek to Battle Creek, Michigan, last weekend to support Kamala Harris and other Democratic candidates. This is what some members of the group encountered. .
Volunteers from Oak Park, including former bankers Gordon Hellwig and Rhoda Bernstein, explored a neighborhood of smaller siding houses. Many of them had seen better days.
They knocked on 52 doors, but only eight were answered. When no one came to the door, volunteers left campaign literature and moved on to the next house. When someone answered, many did not feel comfortable talking about the election. Some said they were not interested in voting.
But the volunteers were undaunted.
“I think this is the most important election of my lifetime,” Hellwig said. “That’s why I’m doing it now. I think it’s extremely important that people are aware of the issues and go vote. The difference between the candidates is so stark that I’m volunteering and… , I think it’s really important to do the best we can.”
Calling out and speaking to voters is nothing new for Hellwig. Mr. Hellwig also served as a Foreign Service official for 10 years. Hellwig, a student at Cornell University in Iowa, knocked on Jimmy Carter’s door in Cedar Rapids in 1976. He also worked extensively for Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012.
Oak Park volunteers Gordon Helwig and Rhoda Bernstein will discuss the upcoming election with residents of Battle Creek, Michigan, on Saturday, October 26th. He visited the battleground state of Michigan to gather votes for the Democratic Party. (Bob Skolnik/Pioneer Press)
Saturday’s trip to Battle Creek was Hellwig’s fifth promotional trip this year. He campaigned three times in Kenosha, Wisconsin, and once in Niles, Michigan.
The volunteers are a coalition of Chicago-area Democratic groups led by Patrick Hanley, leader of the New Trier Democratic Party and former Obama field organizer, and Ben Head, political director for U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D). Directed by Operation Swing State. -9th place).
“We are a partnership-based organization,” Hanley said. “We are a coalition of partners, and our partners extend across the northern side of Lake County, the northern suburbs and into Hazel Crest, the southern suburbs and parts of the western suburbs.”
Oak Park volunteers met at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at the Oak Park Democratic Party headquarters on North Avenue. There they were given $25 prepaid Visa cards to cover the cost of lunch and possibly dinner, and split into cars for the nearly three-hour drive to Battle Creek. The driver was also given a $25 prepaid Visa card to cover gas costs.
They arrived at Democratic Party headquarters in downtown Battle Creek around 1 p.m. ET. There, they are given a challenge and the route is downloaded into a recruiting smartphone app. They also heard words of encouragement from Michigan State Rep. Jim Hersma, a Battle Creek Democrat who is running a tough re-election campaign. Hardsma thanked the volunteers who came to Battle Creek and said the outcome of his race could determine whether Democrats retain their slim majority in the state Legislature.
“It’s very disturbing,” Hersma said of the influx of volunteers from the Chicago area. “Now I know I have friends I’ve never met.”
Mr. Hellwig and Mr. Bernstein, who previously campaigned for Mr. Obama, identified 14 Harris supporters on the road, but that number included assurances from other family members of several they met on the street. This included the residents of the house. They spoke with only one person who said he supported Republican candidate Donald Trump.
“This trip was the most encouraging yet,” Hellwig said of the five promotional trips he has taken this year.
Some University of Chicago students who traveled to Battle Creek on buses paid for by Operation Swing State also had trouble finding people willing to talk about the election.
“Many of the people I spoke to today aren’t even going to vote, so if I could get just a few more people to come vote…I think that would make a big difference,” Skriya Nan A said. I am a first-year graduate student at the University of Chicago pursuing a master’s degree in both public policy and international relations. “Some people have been very receptive and open to conversation, while others are facing some challenges, and that’s OK. I think they’re very inconvenienced and we I understand that too.”
Nunn was pleading with Timothy Lefebvre, a first-year student at the Graduate School of Public Policy who is also from Belgium. This was Lefebvre’s introduction to American politics.
“It’s very interesting,” Lefebvre said. “I’m also discovering more normal people than the people I’m meeting at the more privileged University of Chicago. It’s really different from Chicago.”
Volunteers gathered at Democratic Party headquarters in Battle Creek, Michigan, on Saturday, October 26, and then fanned out across the city knocking on doors to encourage people to vote. (Bob Skolnik/Pioneer Press)
While solicitors were knocking on doors in Battle Creek, Harris landed at Battle Creek Executive Airport on her way to a rally with former first lady Michelle Obama in Kalamazoo, about 37 miles away.
But Hellwig and Burstein weren’t too disappointed in missing out on the chance to meet the candidates who were knocking on their doors for support.
“I think we’re doing a good job here,” Hellwig said. “I’d like to see her, but there are too many people to fill that stadium.”
Operation Swing State’s Mr. Hanley said that while his recruiters typically speak to less than 20% of the people in the homes they visit, they are overwhelmingly likely to speak to people in the closely contested races in Wisconsin and Michigan. He said he hopes that will bring about change. Last weekend alone, Operation Swing State sent 1,450 volunteers to Michigan and Wisconsin, and volunteers have knocked on nearly 150,000 doors in those states since June.
Hanley believes that old-fashioned face-to-face contact can still make a difference.
“I think it certainly makes a difference for someone to come to your door, knock on your door, show you the respect of being right in front of you and the belief that you’ve driven all the way from Chicago,” “I think it reframes elections for people who otherwise might have stayed home,” he said.
“The choices Illinois volunteers make, and the actions Illinois volunteers take in Wisconsin and Michigan, could make all the difference in this election.”
Bob Skolnik is a freelance reporter for the Pioneer Press.
