Wampum

The Manchester miracle...

Well, perhaps that's overstating it.

However, one of the key things which wins elections is enthusiastic, happy, organized volunteers. And while, as we saw in Iowa, it's not the be-all-and-end-all, without a strong volunteer corps to staff and election day GOTV effort, a potential win can disintegrate into a stunning loss.

Most political types knew that while Senator Edwards was spending considerable time in New Hampshire (just completing his 100th town hall meeting since this summer), his on-the-ground effort lagged behind the other New Englanders, and more recently, Clark. Eight paid staff ran the eight local offices, with the help of sundry committed interns and volunteers.

This is where Kinsey Casey came in.

Ms. Casey, a veteran from Gov. Shaheen's campaign, coordinates the Edwards' statewide volunteer effort. She was gracious enough to take some time out of her ridiculously busy day to provide me with an overview of that effort.

Ensconced in an office out of the main traffic pattern, Ms. Casey's workspace is remarkably quiet and non-hectic. Besides the cheers emanating from the Dean visibility crew on the street below, there are few interruptions to our meeting.

But what is stunning is Ms. Casey's walls; the entire 12 foot vertical space of two adjoining walls are covered with multicolored 3"x5" post-it cards, each with the names and other critical information of Edwards' out of state volunteer force. They're organized by location and dates. There appear to be upwards of two hundred, although I didn't count. Ms. Casey, though, admits that the wall is no longer up to date. She had to abandon the system after Iowa, when hundreds of new volunteers called immediately following Edwards' shocking second-place finish.

But the "miracle" lies in part with Edward's appeal, and in part with the hard work of Kinsey Casey. Ms. Casey confided that the campaign had gotten a late start in securing accommodations for volunteers; by the time she called the traditional places, meeting halls and the like, all the space was reserved by the other campaigns. Surprisingly, Ms. Casey found sufficient Edwards' supporters happy to house a volunteer or two. But that was when the numbers were still modest. The barrage after Iowa offered the real challenge.

Anyone who has run a campaign volunteer effort knows how difficult it can be to convince local families to open up their home to complete strangers. Complete strangers who work long, hard hours, and whom you may never see other than to hand them sheets and towels and point out the guest bathroom. The fact that hundreds of New Hampshire supporters of Senator Edwards took it on good faith that these volunteers were truly upstanding, their only recommendation that they too were Edwards fans, is a testament to the depth of feeling the Senator instills in these people.

I know that other campaigns also put up volunteers with locals. But the fact that every Edwards volunteer who needed a place to stay is in the home of a supporter. None are camped out in church basements or on the floors of the Goodfellows hall. And none are put up in tents in freezing temps, as I heard tell of in Iowa.

So maybe not a real miracle, but a damn good accomplishment. Congrats to both the Senator and Ms. Casey.

Posted by MB Williams at January 25, 2004 08:56 PM | TrackBack