The air crackled with excitement one recent Saturday morning as nervous New Yorkers climbed aboard buses heading to Bethlehem City, Pa., to canvass for Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton
Many were first-time canvassers who said that fear of seeing Donald J. Trump elected motivated them to give up their weekends.
“I realized just sitting at home and complaining about Trump was not going to change anything,” said Scott Kariya, 60, a computer analyst from Chelsea who had never previously volunteered for any campaign. “The stakes are just too high this time around to not care.”
Kariya knocked on more than 30 doors. Most of his knocks went unanswered, but he was able to register a few new voters, provide information on polling venues and persuade more than a dozen registered Democrats to sign commitment cards pledging their support to Clinton. These cards were to be mailed back to them a week before Election Day as a reminder to vote.
“It may not seem like a lot,” Kariya said, “but when you take into consideration that there are hundreds of others like me doing the same thing, it adds up to a lot.”
Like Kariya, Jade Wiederholt, 42, a marketing executive from Astoria, Queens, had never canvassed before the Bethlehem trip.
“This is the most important election of my lifetime,” said Wiederholt. “And I want to make a difference.”
Door to Door Democrats
Volunteers were divided into groups of two and fours, assigned streets and asked to knock on the doors of both registered Democrats and unregistered voters.
City Councilmember Corey Johnson (D-Manhattan) accompanied the group, and boosted their energy with an impassioned speech on the bus.
“On Nov. 8, when we are all sitting in front of our computers, in front of the TV, people are going to be able to say, ‘I went to Pennsylvania. I participated. I did my part. I helped make a difference in ensuring that Hillary Clinton won,’” Johnson said.
Among the volunteers were former Bernie Sanders supporters who had voted for the Vermont senator against Clinton in the primaries.
Sanders fan Paulette Osborne, 70, an artist based in Hell’s Kitchen, said she believes Trump is “dangerous for America.”
“He has exposed racism in this country, he incites violence at rallies and he is incompetent,” said Osborne.
Another volunteer, Dale Davidson of Chelsea, said that voters Hillary Clinton have reason to be wary, but declared that Trump was not an option.
Forging On to Election Day
“Trump is someone who doesn’t believe in democratic principles,” said Davidson. “He’s just not fit to become the president of this country.”
The trip was organized by Keep Pennsylvania Blue, a loose coalition of Democratic clubs that has been coordinating volunteer efforts for the Clinton campaign in swing states.
“I have gone to a couple of campaign events and am definitely seeing a lot of new faces this year,” said Deborah Gaffney, of Keep Pennsylvania Blue.
With polls changing by the day, the volunteers pledged to keep campaigning for Clinton.
Said Scott Kariya: “We will keep going on until Nov. 8.”
