Lessons Learned from Knocking 1500 Doors
Observations from the front line of American politics.
Me and my Dad hitting doors in Folsom, CA.
This campaign season I knocked on roughly 1500 doors. The vast majority of them in my hometown Folsom for a City Council candidate (who won, thank you very much), as well as homes in Arizona for Kamala Harris* and down ballot Democrats. Here are the most interesting lessons I learned on the trail in 2024.
Voters pick personality over party
It’s easy in today’s political landscape to assume that all Democrats will vote Democratic and Republicans Republican without regard to candidates’ unique qualifications or character. Things are pretty divided, after all. In fact, that’s the opposite experience I had on the campaign trail. Time and time again I found voters from the Republican side of the aisle pledging support for my Democratic candidate, and occasionally Democrats telling me why they are supporting a MAGA candidate. The things voters cared about were the issues, the qualifications of the candidates, and most importantly, whether they had interacted personally with the candidate in question. I’d wager only 30% of voters I spoke to were true “tribalists” who voted down the party line without question. The rest were open minded.
The meanest - and nicest - voters were Trumpers
I was shouted at a few times while canvassing. Every time by a Trump voter (I knew because they had his flags in their yard). Once was for leaving a flier on the voter’s doorstep (they said I was “littering” on their property) and another time for walking up to the door, only to see a “no soliciting” sign and turn around to walk away, but alas it was too late and the voter gave me an earful for disrespecting their sign and coming onto their property. At the same time, the nicest voters I met were also Trumpers. The only voter who offered me water when it was 110 degrees outside was a Trump supporter. She was hospitable, kind, and supportive of my work despite disagreeing with the party of my candidate. Same goes for a woman who thanked me profusely for my work canvassing and heaped praise on my civic values.
A lot of people aren’t home, or don’t answer the door.
Canvassing can sound intimidating to folks who have never done it. I like to remind those newbies that in reality 70% of the doors you knock on won’t have someone answer. You will leave your flier and go on your merry way.
Converting a voter to a supporter immediately was rare.
The point of canvassing is to win votes. This said, I found that it was uncommon for a voter to pledge support for my candidate after listening to my pitch. Usually, voters would listen to what I had to say, thank me, and tell me that they would look into it. I’d wager only 15% of voters I spoke to would immediately convert into a supporter. Roughly 80% would be noncommittal and 5% would tell me that they were voting for someone else.
Swing State Canvassers are Aggressive
When I canvassed in Arizona I was surprised to watch my canvassing partner - also named Julian - knock on a door 3 separate times over the course of 90 seconds. Why wouldn’t you leave after they don’t answer the first time? I thought. Well, apparently the practice in AZ was to give the voter 3 separate attempts to answer the door. Sometimes this helped because older folks may not hear the first knock, but they would hear the second or third. Personally, I thought it was absurd. The last thing you want to do is piss off a voter by bothering them with multiple knocks. Coincidentally, a voter in the first house that Julian knocked on multiple times yelled through the door, “get the f*** out of here!” Can’t say I blame them.
Also, AZ canvassers are instructed to ignore no soliciting signs.
There are plenty of other lessons learned on the trail this year but these stand out the most to me. Canvassing was a tiring, rewarding, enriching, and character building experience. I hope to do plenty more of it in my life. The act is truly a bedrock element of our great democracy and republic.
Cheers! And if you aren’t subscribed, hit the button below!
*I did not canvass with a Democratic campaign or the party, but a nonprofit organization that supports progressive candidates and values. The comments and observations in this article should not be construed as reflecting the Party or Harris campaign’s strategy.
It’s nice to meet you! My name is Julian. I’m a practicing lawyer and creator on social media who lives in Folsom, CA. I write about politics and law. Agree, disagree, or have thoughts on this article? Email me at julian@juliansarafian.com.