It’s 6pm and polling closes in 4 hours so I’ve headed back to base for a refuelling stop. Here’s my thoughts on leafleting. Because time presses, it’s most self-plagiarised from my last by-election campaign blog but with some adaptations for leafleting in South Kintyre which I’ve now done on three separate visits, this last time over two days.
Pros of leafleting are being out in the fresh air (especially seeing the sights of magical Machrihanish and the sparkling Southend where I’ve been today) and people talking to you—more about that later—and the drawbacks are only the slight worry of wee yappy dogs and letterboxes conveniently-placed centimetres off the ground. Fortunately, most letterboxes now have draught excluders—which are really annoying when you’re trying to shove a card through but useful cos they confuse the pooch. Mr Small and Angry can’t decide which outrages his pack’s privacy more: the human fingertips, the moving bristles or the paper card falling on the mat. So far, my digits are intact.
Going door-to-door may be a bit wearying but the monotony can also be quite meditative. I find myself falling into a wee dwam—broken when I take the wrong door in blocks of flats and end up in their back court. It’s amazing the variety of doors and gardens and plants and ornaments, as well as all the different types of garden gates—each with a different way to open.
The outside post box is my favourite, to be honest, cos it doesn’t have a draught excluder and is easy to open. Usually. If there’s a notice saying (usually quite forcibly) NO JUNK MAIL! then I don’t leave a card. If it only says NO COLD CALLERS! then I do.
I decided not to canvass at doors for various reasons:
- I don’t have time, if I want to leaflet more than 4 houses an hour.
- I’d rather folk read the campaign points on the card and looked up this website to learn more.
- I think people are exhausted with far too much input these days.
Still, some people do talk and of course I’ll stop and chat. They want, quite reasonably, to know what you’re standing for. I tell them it’s on the card and—in all honesty—focus on the one I think they’ll be most interested in.
People will challenge you about campaign points or party policy and that’s good. Freedom Alliance is a listening party and we don’t palm you off with slick answers. At the same time, people respect honesty and commitment. As I found out today, it hasn’t gone unnoticed that I’ve made the effort to get here, and get all round the ward, inspite of all the various challenges I’ve written about in previous posts.
So today when I was ready for a break from leafleting, a lovely gentleman came out of the polling station I was passing (heading for the nearby tearoom) hailed me, recognising my party tee-shirt that was wearing over my shirt, and invited me to his house for a coffee, sharing his concerns—global, national and local—and giving me a book on economics that I look forward to reading as, to be quite honest, it’s not my strong point in terms of party policy.
You’re not alone. If you’re reading this and feeling that you are, today is a great lesson. Here’s a chap I had never met who could finish my sentences for me, wide-awake and very glad that Freedom Alliance has put up a candidate here in his own ward. I’m up against local candidates here and they seem to be good people but I’m confident that I can pick up some second votes at least and win or lose it’s raising the party profile and putting our policy points on the agenda for whoever wins the seat.
Okay. The mixed veggie bhajis were delicious and the tomato, chickpea and aubergine soup is hot now. (I know I’m doing it backwards.) Then I need to get back to leafleting, until maybe the last hour which is better spent at the polling station. (Not at, nearby, I met the Returning Officer and her husband today in Stewarton today—removing my campaign regalia before entering the Polling Station—so I’d better keep to the rules!)
Why did I go in? To thank them for their service. No, really. People who staff polling stations are literally the guarantors of democracy. It’s a very worthy occupation and I’m very grateful to them. I also went in to ask where the Count is (Campbeltown Grammar School) cos I didn’t know.
Stand by for tweets (at)UKFreeAlliance from there!
(Photos copyright the author may be used—unconnected to commerce and without transformation—with a link to this blogpost)
Promoted by Cath Evans of Freedom Alliance, 83 Ducie Street M1 2JQ.
Last campaign post: What Now For Scotland?
Next campaign post: Homeward Bound
Standing for Freedom in South Kintyre 
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