Day 1 – Obama, Manassas VA

Today I started my Full time volunteering as a DFO (Deputy Field Officer) for the Obama Campaign in a Battleground State – Virginia. You never know what you are getting yourself into and having done this in 2003 for Kerry in Ohio, I had some idea but every state, every office, and every campaign is different. So here is some background of where I am and why it’s important:

Census 2000 Demographic Profile Highlights:

General Characteristics – show more >>

Number

Percent

U.S.

Total population

39,186

 

 

Male

19,910

50.8

49.1%

Female

19,276

49.2

50.9%

Median age (years)

31.7

(X)

35.3

Under 5 years

3,390

8.7

6.8%

18 years and over

27,466

70.1

74.3%

65 years and over

2,132

5.4

12.4%

One race

37,951

96.8

97.6%

White

28,655

73.1

75.1%

Black or African American

4,869

12.4

12.3%

American Indian and Alaska Native

137

0.3

0.9%

Asian

1,380

3.5

3.6%

Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander

31

0.1

0.1%

Some other race

2,879

7.3

5.5%

Two or more races

1,235

3.2

2.4%

Hispanic or Latino (of any race)

5,562

14.2

12.5%

Household population

38,325

97.8

97.2%

Group quarters population

861

2.2

2.8%

Average household size

2.95

(X)

2.59

Average family size

3.39

(X)

3.14

Total housing units

13,384

 

 

Occupied housing units

13,006

97.2

91.0%

Owner-occupied housing units

9,400

72.3

66.2%

Renter-occupied housing units

3,606

27.7

33.8%

Vacant housing units

378

2.8

9.0%

 

 

 

 

Social Characteristics – show more >>

Number

Percent

U.S.

Population 25 years and over

23,734

 

 

High school graduate or higher

19,562

82.4

80.4%

Bachelor’s degree or higher

6,911

29.1

24.4%

Civilian veterans (civilian population 18 years and over)

3,916

14.3

12.7%

Disability status (population 5 years and over)

4,889

14.0

19.3%

Foreign-born

5,413

13.7

11.1%

Male, Now married, except separated (population 15 years and over)

8,574

58.2

56.7%

Female, Now married, except separated (population 15 years and over)

8,350

57.4

52.1%

Speak a language other than English at home (population 5 years and over)

6,583

18.3

17.9%

 

 

 

 

Economic Characteristics – show more >>

Number

Percent

U.S.

In labor force (population 16 years and over)

21,413

74.8

63.9%

Mean travel time to work in minutes (workers 16 years and older)

32.9

(X)

25.5

Median household income in 1999 (dollars)

62,938

(X)

41,994

Median family income in 1999 (dollars)

71,654

(X)

50,046

Per capita income in 1999 (dollars)

24,618

(X)

21,587

Families below the poverty level

330

3.5

9.2%

Individuals below the poverty level

2,215

5.8

12.4%

 

 

 

 

Housing Characteristics – show more >>

Number

Percent

U.S.

Single-family owner-occupied homes

8,474

 

 

Median value (dollars)

158,400

(X)

119,600

Median of selected monthly owner costs

(X)

(X)

 

With a mortgage (dollars)

1,340

(X)

1,088

Not mortgaged (dollars)

367

(X)

295

(X) Not applicable.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Summary File 1 (SF 1) and Summary File 3 (SF 3)

Prince Williams County is one of two counties that the state of Virginia hinges on (read about it here) Lyzz and Christine are the Field Officers here in Manassas and they seem to be pretty amazing। Very positive -can-do attitude, nothing is ever in crisis mode but everything is important to do well and move forward। My role looks to be an Office Manager, a trainer of Canvassers and phone bank volunteers, Help organize events (Such as the Obama Rally in Leesburg on Wednesday), inhouse IT, and whatever else is needed at the moment। also knowing that I’ll be there for 15 days helps them get me entrenched far beyond a typical volunteer. so in my first 13-hour shift, here is what I saw and heard in this microcosm of a town:

  1. The redistribution of wealth by gas station owners is crazy. Regular Unleaded: 2.59, Premium Unleaded: 2.89, Super Unleaded: 3.19
  2. two Chinese journalists came to our office unscheduled to interview me and other volunteers. Some Italian journalists were there on Monday
  3. young people should run everything… things seems to just flow and everyone does well
  4. I met a woman today that told me that Obama is the first president she has ever voted for – In Virginia there is no formal early voting, but there is in person Absentee Ballots that can be submitted (She had the right to vote for other presidents, she just chose not to vote)
  5. She also told me that her family doesn’t talk about politics because there is a lot of tension about it all… and even though they don’t want to admit it, they are probably voting for Obama
  • Comment: this is where I see the problem for Obama… he is trying to get a Latin vote in this county that is critical to his success but there is some hesitation in the community about voting for him. so in some ways, I feel the poll #’s here are under-reported!
  1. It’s amazing how many people like to cold call when they are passionate about something
  2. Strangers are Wonderful…. they are nice, we crack jokes, and they come in asking to meet you and treat you as if they have known you forever

Also, I am splitting my time between two homes where I stay. My Cousin lives 30 minutes away and I have some guest housing that was arranged for me by the local office here. Dan and Lupa are my hosts and Dan is an avid political Hobbyist and an avid student of Lincoln. Just to give you an idea of who I’m staying with, We went to sleep talking about Politics and work up to the new poll numbers over coffee. I think his wife is relieved in some ways that there is someone staying with them who has the same passion as Dan but at the same time, can’t believe how much we can talk about this.

I’ll post some pictures soon

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