New Neighbors in the North Country: Phone Banking is One-on-One Voter Outreach
Sarah Meredith

Continued from September newsletter…..

My second evening right before the election, I managed to make 55 calls, including 18 that were hang ups. It was a delight to meet people who were town clerks, poll workers, and party activists, but one woman who had already mailed in her ballot especially stood out. She is currently undergoing chemotherapy, and has what she called “disabilities.” She said several times that she wished she could do more than just vote, “but I just can’t.” I said that she definitely could do something, perhaps make a few phone calls just like I was doing when the time comes before the November election. She was so moved that I even teared up when she realized that she could truly make an impact. Another memorable contact was the man who said that yes, he was a registered Democrat, but he didn’t plan to vote. I asked if his wife was there, since it was her name on the call list, and he said yes, but that they would either go vote together or not at all. I asked if he wouldn’t mind talking a few more minutes about why I was going to vote and he said sure that would be interesting. By the end of the call he was committed to voting and getting his wife and their neighbor to vote as well. That was a good feeling indeed.

Honestly, if my 8 hours of phone work managed to get even 10 more people to the polls, and could possibly inspire a few more to vote early for November, it was well worth it. But, the most rewarding parts of it all were the laughs and good connections with people so far away, who are now our neighbors in this new vast District 21. It may stretch all the way up to the Canadian border, but it starts with us, right here in Schoharie County, even in my tiny Town of Gilboa.