Tomorrow, local Democratic groups are participating in a canvass to reach out to their communities and spread the Democratic message, carrying Chairman Dean's 50-state strategy to its next logical step. But I won't be a part of it, and neither will my local Democratic club or committee.
When I first heard about the canvass, I was enthused. I'd been meaning to get involved with my local Democratic party group, whose identity and membership I did not even know, and wanted to get in on this action. A search of the national party's 'Find a Canvass' site revealed nothing near me, and the New York State Democratic Party site is a joke, linking to several defunct county party sites. I got the name of a likely contact from the county party chair/Board of Elections commissioner: my local county legislator.
My conversation with her was interesting and a bit disturbing. First of all, I got the distinct impression that she felt I was wasting her time. She told me that the local Democratic COMMITTEE, of which she was the chair, was involved in nominating candidates to run for office, but did not perform any grassroots outreach such as the canvassing I was proposing. Such actions would be the purview of the local Democratic CLUB. When I asked for a contact name, she told me that she didn't know anyone who was in the club. That didn't bode well for coordinated efforts, I thought but did not say.
I then turned to Google and searched on '<my town> Democratic Club'. From the very few hits that came up (another disturbing sign), I gleaned a name that I then Googled to find a phone number.
This was a much more interesting conversation. The man with whom I spoke was a former member of the Democratic club (and party) who told a sordid tale of committee members who blackballed other members and acted like they owned the levers to power, and the predictable decline in election success that occurred over the past decade or so. He also gave me a few names of likely current members, one of whom turned out to be the current club president.
"Now we're getting somewhere!" I thought when the current Club president identified herself. I explained who I was, what the canvass was, and how I was interested in getting involved in local Democratic politics. She was mildly interested in the canvass, but told me that the club was not very active at present. It seems that costs to host meetings at a local public facility had risen sharply (something about insurance), so she had taken to hosting meetings at her house. Then, personal health had taken a toll (she was planning to undergo back surgery in the near future). She asked me to call her back in the beginning of May so I could get involved at the next Club meeting and pitch the idea of a canvass then (which I fully intend to do).
So, my little journey to meet my local Democrats and link up with their canvass ended without the result that I was seeking. However, it was hardly all in vain. I did find the contacts I was looking for, so I have people to whom I can reach out to get invovled. Also, I learned of a voter registration drive going on in an adjacent Congressional District (NY-19), so I will be registering voters to hopefully oust Sue Kelly this fall while many of you will be putting a face on the party.
I wish all of you canvassers luck this weekend, and hope that this is just one more step out of the political wilderness.