11/04/2022
Late post:
Sharing my neighbor's take on our H2H campaign over the weekend
THE POWER OF THREE - by Veronica Ester Mendoza
One day three women decided to go out to do house-to-house campaigning to respond to the call of VP Leni and Sen. Kiko to reach out to warm bodies and find out exactly who they will vote for in May. While the rallies are so inspiring, there is now the need to translate the sea of pink into actual names and household votes.
We do not have yet the knowledge nor the confidence to do this type of campaigning but we heeded the call just the same. But even before we went out, we somehow prepared for it by doing the following:
- We decided that we shall not wear pink or any pink paraphernalia so that we do not attract potential hecklers since there are only three of us.
- We were ready with collaterals that were well curated and well-packaged so that recipients would see that we are not only prepared but we acknowledged their importance as voters.
- We shall not be taking any photos to respect the privacy of those we shall be interviewing so as not to compromise them and their safety as well as ours.
- We did tasking among the three of us based on our talents and comfort levels: Louie, with her very amiable & pleasant manner made the first approach and made people comfortable; Nikki has the stock knowledge to provide additional information and sustain the engagement; and I did the documentation and spotting of potential persons to engage. Grabe, I am so good in spotting that I even discovered a dimsum wholesale seller in Esteban St.!
We were expecting the worst scenario, that is, only very few would talk to us and that most residents might go for BBM. The latter is because VP Leni didn’t do well in Brgy. Highway Hills during the 2016 elections and the fact that Mandaluyong LGU is hostile to her since Abalos is BBM’s national campaign manager. But these are our results and learning:
- In a period of 2 hours, we were able to knock on 17 residences and interviewed and engaged in meaningful conversation many individuals. Not counting the group of tricycle drivers we encountered, we were able to secure at least 70 votes for VP Leni and her party.
- We have also strategized that only one of us, usually Louie, make the initial approach so as not to intimidate a voter(s). It is only after we feel that the voter is relaxed that the two of us closes in. And we get that cue once Louie calls us to come nearer.
- It is important to assure them that it is not our purpose to convince them to change their stand or choice but only to find out their reason(s) for their choice and then to provide them with information and reading materials before they make their final decision by May 9
- Those who initially told us that they are either voting for BBM (3) and Lacson (1), in the end said that they are willing to re-consider and that their choice is really not that final yet. We believe that not coercing them into changing right there and then and not challenging their perception worked well for us.
- We learned that those tarpaulins you see in some walls and shops/stores do not necessarily reflect the choice of the owners since those were just placed there by certain people. Almost all of them admitted that they are voting for VP Leni but will remain silent for fear that their permits may not be renewed by the city hall.
- Even before talking about their candidates, people like talking about themselves. As a psychologist, this is the best way to engage them. Acknowledge first their importance and their concerns and it is much easier to get them into our side. In fact, even those who already expressed that they are Leni supporters, we still engaged them in brief conversation for two reasons: to validate that they will indeed vote for her and will not anymore change their minds and then to remind them how they should vote on May 9 so that they will not be disqualified due to technicalities. I think this is important for them to know and should be part of the campaign work.
All in all, our first experience in ground-level campaigning was very satisfying. Yes it was hot and humid but as we were well accepted we felt better and that sustained our energy level. We were very low-key even by the way we handed out collaterals and this did not alienate people. Hence we looked at this first attempt as confidence-building exercise for ourselves.
Note: In the photo are some of the people we chanced upon while walking along Esteban St. Obviously, all these men are rooting for VP Leni. And this is the only photo we took that day with their permission.
