As a naive teenager, I believed political campaigns were a world of professionalism. I had envisioned a nice space with fancy desks where employees would be filing paperwork, interns shuffling to and from the coffee machine, and the campaign manager emerging from his glass-walled office to announce a major breakthrough in the polls, at which point the volunteers, interns and employees would clap and cheer, just as movies had depicted. But my first day of volunteering was not what I had expected.
During my first time volunteering, I was shocked that the calling center was just a small room with some tables and phones. There were no wooden desks with bustling interns or all-important campaign managers, but just some plastics tables with phones. The movies had tricked me.
Over the course of 13 weeks, I volunteered at a political campaign on Saturdays as a history assignment. I worked, listened and learned. Through it all, I discovered that politics is not an unearthly phenomenon but rather an accessible system made of real people who can make a real difference.
Campaigns are surprisingly simple, educational and all about people.
As soon as I walked in, I was immediately put to work. From phone banking and data entry to gluing on pieces to a board, I worked a variety of jobs. But what is so fascinating about campaigning is the simplicity of it all. The core of a campaign seems to be phone banking, data entry, canvassing, sign waving and simple speech-making. All of the core actions are relatively simple tasks, which make politics easily accessible.
I was fortunate enough to listen to and meet both candidates running in the race. The first time I met one candidate in a calling center, I was nervous and didn’t want to embarrass myself. But his calming presence quickly faded my worries and instead I began to learn. He told us his life story and then proceeded to show his audience some information. The second candidate, following a similar structure in his speech, had a charming speaking style and charismatic aura, both great assets for a politician. I learned much from the candidates, but I observed that they both conveyed a great sense of balance.
Balance is the key to a great politician. One cannot be perceived as too charismatic or too intellectual.
They need to connect with the people. They must strike balance in their policies and platform, find the balance in representing the rich and the poor, people of all genders, colors and ages, and create a balance among people.
By actually experiencing the political process, I realized that politics is about the people who work inside the building, the people making one phone call after another, the people who work hard at whatever job they are assigned, and the people who believe they can make a difference.
I soon grew to love that little room of tables because it symbolized that politics is not hard. Politics is just people trying to make a difference, doing whatever they can even if it is the most miniscule job of the day. And in essence, a political campaign is very simple. People unite in order to fulfill their cause of making life better for their community. The United States’ political process is wonderful. Anyone can volunteer, and anyone can express their opinion. If people want to take part, they can. And that is beautiful.
