As I write this I can hear beeps from cars passing Obama volunteers with signs. The response has been enormously positive, with only a stray middle finger or scowl from an old McCain/Palin supporter to suggest they even exist. When I went to vote, I saw about 8 Obama volunteers next to one McCain/Palin volunteer. Since I went at lunch, there was no line (although we did have a bit of confusion about where in the library to vote, at one point I joked perhaps either the nonfiction or the large print aisles were the spot to be).
While there was no line at my polling location, there was a line at Obama hq. People were standing in line to volunteer! Inside, they had us waiting in a room that was burning up from all the body heat. Not because they didn’t have enough signs. Because so many people were coming into help they were having trouble keeping up placing them where they were needed most.
Helping out with visibility was like yesterday. People gave thumbs up, grinned, shouted “Go Obama!”, beeped (sometimes repeatedly), and pumped their fists. One driver in an suv pulled up and handed me a water bottle! Another woman crossing the street stopped by to offer to buy me a drink from Cosi. We regularly got compliments and instructions to “keep up the good work” from passersby. Two old ladies walking back from voting strolled past headed to starbucks for their free coffee. One gave my shoulder a playful punch saying “We done voted, don’t get wet now!” with a big grin. It was raining, and not a McCain/Palin volunteer in sight. Just grins and Obama/Biden signs.
I didn’t see anywhere near this kind of enthusiasm or turnout in 2006. Today Virginia feels blue.
This post was written by Dan on November 4, 2008
