A Day In The Life

Putting The Final Day Into Perspective
11/06/06

The world is full of magic numbers. The mystical power of seven, the power of the trinity number three and the awesome power of four thousand, nine hundred and six. Now you may ask me; “What is so powerful about four thousand, nine hundred and six?” I would answer; “That is the number of doors that me and my three volunteers have knocked on since September 10th, 2006. We left a brochure at each and every house we visited. Since the beginning of January this year we have distributed, through mail and events, six thousand pieces of literature about myself and the issues but four thousand, nine hundred and six holds the power because of the distance we walked, and the one on one contact I was able to have with each and every person in the eleven towns and fifteen townships we visited.

Now here it is a day before the election and I still have not ceased my work. One volunteer of mine will be spending the day phoning “Lazy Democrats.” A Lazy Democrat is a registered Democrat who only votes in Presidential elections. She will be phoning these people today to urge them to vote tomorrow. As for me I will be spending the day phoning “Undecided Voters.” An Undecided Voter is a voter who has never declared a political affiliation. I will be working hard today to ask for their votes. Tomorrow, well let’s just say that tomorrow from 7:00am to 7:00pm I will be phoning as many Democrats in our district as I can reminding them to vote. From 7:00pm to 10:00pm I will be at the court house keeping watch until the last precinct has reported.

As Tuesday, November 7th, 2006 looms closer many questions cross my mind;

Have I done enough to promote my campaign?
Have I convinced enough people that I am the man for the job?
Have I proven myself as a viable alternative in a strongly conservative region?
Have I got my message out and was it the message that people wanted to hear?

As I ponder these questions other questions arise and dance before me that can only be answered after the final tally is taken tomorrow evening.

My wife Debbie worries that my opponent will walk away with the election after not really working for it at all. She is angry that he has tried blocking my signs with his signs and that in some cases even pulled my signs to replace them with his own. She don’t understand how he thinks he can get away with placing signs on public land. She prays that people will see through his tactic of using his parents position as educators to try and qualify himself for the position. Every time she hears someone say, “I’m voting for him because I know his parents.” Or someone else says, “I knew him when he was a kid.” She cries out; “How does that qualify him for the job?” My wife is livid that he purchased a house here just to run for the position. My wife feels he is a weasel and she worries that he will win what he has not earned.

I worry too but I worry about different things. I want to win this election for several reasons. I want to win to prove that people can see through a person that only runs for selfish reasons, furthering his political career. I want to win so that I can try to make a difference. I want to win to be in a better position to help people. But mostly I want to win to show people what a true Representative is; A person who works for and too the best interest of the people. I see that somewhere along the line this has been forgotten by others in political office. I believe that the people deserve a Representative that understands who he works for. I believe that the people deserve a Representative that will communicate with them. I believe that I can be that Representative and I worry that I will not have the chance to prove it.

I have not had the type of money to throw into my campaign that my opponent has thrown into his. I don’t have special interest groups from out of state financing my campaign. I don’t have lobbyist groups and political action committees throwing money in my lap. The only thing I have had through this whole campaign is the money of a very select few that could donate a few dollars, my personal funds, the moral support of those that believe in me and a lot of hard work. My campaign has been as grassroots as it gets and I pray that I have done the right things.

I guess today I have a new magical number. Today four thousand, nine hundred and six has been replaced with a much smaller number. Today my magical number is twenty four. That’s how many hours I have until I know if the hard work I and those that support me have put into this endeavor has been recognized and appreciated by my neighbors.

"The elected official works for the people! You do not make promises to your boss which are beyond your power to keep and expect to hold your position."

-Jim George- Democratic Candidate, Kansas State House of Representatives District #12