Canvassing: Against, Against, Against, Vicious Dog

Introducing: LOLPOLITICZ!

"Paperz can has mention of hung parliament, oh noez!" And so on.

Are you unsure as to how vicious dogs and politics go hand-in-hand? Before Saturday's events, neither would I. So let's start from the beginning of my first taste of canvassing...

Saturday, 27th March

11:00

Ran down like a madman to the Moor in order to locate the Tories: had no luck until I saw the Conservative candidate for Truro and Falmouth, Sarah Newton, heading into the Wetherspoons pub. Success! Matt, Nick and Tom were also in attendance. This was the first time I had met Sarah, and she seemed quite impressed by my waistcoat: we had a quick chat about travelling, and she mentioned her work in the soup kitchens in New York. Do I detect a Tory with a social conscience?

11:10

Headed up to Clare Terrace and split ourselves into teams: I was working with Matt. We were given leaflets (in case people didn't answer their doors) and clipboards with names of people on the electoral roll. The names also had symbols on the side: C means Conservative, L means Liberal, S means Socialist, A means Against, U means Undecided, and P means Possible.

First conversation ended with a Possible: she had been living in Falmouth since 1950, and was very concerned about education. Fortuitously, the school Sarah was taught at was on the same road!

11:30

Not so much success for the Conservatives on the rest of Clare Terrace: many people were out, and those who were in usually put themselves as being Against. Matt's style was engaging some, but his tendency to go for the jugular was making me feel slightly uneasy. One voter in particular seemed to know exactly where to attack: "If Dave gets in to Number 10, what's he going to do about the sterling crisis?" Matt's answer was automatic - using spending cuts in order to boost confidence in the city - but his adversary seemed unconvinced, and asked if he would be able to receive a copy of the manifesto. I found myself asking: what would Dave do? Even he might have been taken aback by such an examination.

11:45

We somehow canvassed the returning officer! Naturally, he's not allowed to say which way he's voting. Some very nice houses in this area: some I'd walked past for two and a half years, but never noticed. Humans can be very blind sometimes!

12:00

Heading onto Wodehouse Terrace and Florence Terrace, it only got more brutal. As Sarah whispered to us, "The people here are champagne socialists": they certainly seemed to be doing well enough, and a switch to the Conservatives was probably not on their minds. Only one undecided out of the whole lot. One of the team openly admitted, "I hate this place. I want to leave." The next street, Pike's Hill, told its own story: AGAINST; AGAINST; AGAINST; VICIOUS DOG. It's important to note which house will bite your hand off if you're leafleting, after all!

13.00

Lunch at the Quayside Inn was much more positive: possibly because Sarah was more than happy to pay for the five of us. Took advantage of the political implications and had a half-pint of dry cider, as well as scampi and chips. Sarah seemed to be enjoying the day, but remained unhappy about Terrye Teverson's and the Lib Dems' negative campaigning with regards to her family links in Cornwall. As someone who is fiercely critical of parliamentary candidates who spend more time insulting than they do discussing policy, I was sympathetic.

14.00

Headed back to the Moor, then up to Belmont Terrace, where we decided to tackle Lister Street. I went with Sarah this time in order to see how she went about canvassing. Her approach was distinctly softer than Matt's: she was more than happy to talk at length to the first resident, who was elderly and appeared unhappy about losing so much of her pension. Sarah seemed at ease with this kind of discussion - she was a director for Age Concern in the '90's.

14.30

Perhaps the best discussion of the lot. Mr Mike Tremithick, a musician in the area, was quick to to voice his anger: he had been laid off in the 80's, and when his dole was stopped, he was told that "Margaret Thatcher's in charge, so there's nothing you can do about it". Sarah was quick to decry this, and soon she and Mike were discussing the various problems that Falmouth has at the moment: residents leaving, tensions caused by the University of Exeter, irresponsible privatisation, and not enough police on residential streets. It was a real eye-opener.

15.00

Moved on to Albany Road, which was decidedly mixed: some Conservative, some Labour, and one voter in particular who had "had enough of politics". It's not everyone's cup of tea. Interestingly, the team seemed very happy whenever it encountered a Labour vote: they're not seen as a threat here, but the Lib Dems definitely are.

And so, after about four hours canvassing, that was it. The Conservatives under Sarah had come to Falmouth, and... succeeded?

Well, maybe not. Still a looooong way to go in my opinion. But I was impressed. Sarah is a refreshing candidate: naive, perhaps. But honest, hard-working, friendly, and talkative, though not to an irritating extent. She might be a political lightweight, but she is in tune with the electorate.

The question is: is she in too much of a minority for the Conservatives to get a majority?

Chris