The following student report was submitted by Ambassador League Agent Kyle W. during the 2008-2009 League.
Mission: Take Action - Volunteering for a Political Campaign
Tim Fair, Clinton County Commissioner
My campaign experience this election cycle consisted of a couple different areas of involvement. It was a great experience and taught me even more about how important honesty and hard work is in a campaign. I caught a glimpse of just how much money and bblood, sweat and tears really goes into a campaign, even if it is just someone running for county commissioner. The experience was great and something I can use going forward in life.
This was definitely not my first time campaigning for someone. I ahve been involved with local leaders campaigns since I can remember, whether it was going door to door, or just walking in parades. So when I heard that Ambassador League required me to volunteer in the political realm, I was a little bit excited because I really like politics and campaigning. The large portion of my volunteer time was spent helping Tim Fair run for county commissioner.
The first day I volunteered along with some of my friends, Mr. Fair set us right to work putting labels adn vote notices on all of his campaign literautre that we would later distribute that day. After we had whipped out about 1800 literature cards, it was off to make the lit drops. The rest of the morning was spent going to local subs and trailer parks to drop off the lit so that people could make an informed decision when they went to vote for county commissioner. This kind of campaigning provides great experience. Many times when you go up to someone's door they will want to talk to you, therefore not only can you not be fearful, but also you need to know at least a little bit about teh candidate. Doing things like this, combined with public speaking have really made me more bold and less afraid to talk to strangers. This kind of thing stretches your comfort zone and therefore makes you a better and bolder person for what you believe in.
The second day of campaigning for Mr. Fair was an all day marathon on November 3rd. About 25 people showed up to help, as we covered the entire district that Mr. Fair was running for. We sprinted from house to house putting literature in people's doors late into the afternoon. After a long day, the entire district had been covered. Now it was just time to wait to see who would win.
On Election Day several of my friends and I decided to work at a polling place. Because we were "relief" workers, we were only aloud to work five hours. It provided excellent experience. I learned just exactly how a polling place worked and how everyone needs to be working together and communicating for everything to run smoothly. I had already received training so I wasn't completely lost about what I would be doing. When I arrived I was led to the correct precinct that I was scheduled to work at. After that I was met by the chairperson and sworn in. After being sworn in I was free to watch and learn, and then get to work. My jobs that day consisted of receiving finished ballots, checking ballot numbers and application numbers to make sure they matched and then tearing the numbers off before they went into the counting machine. I also was put to work counting absentee ballots to make sure that we had the correct number. After several counts we came up with the right number.
All in all it was a lot of fun and a combination of stretching experiences. Doing things that challenge you is a great way to become bolder for things you care about. I would suggest and strongly recommend that everyone work for a campaign.
