Sometimes, as I walk the streets of Nashua, I feel as if I, as if we, the politicos, are the only ones out there. All alone, going door-to-door. I knew enough to not expect a warm welcome — I'd canvassed for several campaigns in Missouri, while I was in college. But something about this election — the presidential, and this state — New Hampshire, led me to believe that maybe, just maybe, folks would be excited. For the most part, the doors I knock on are answered by average citizens, no more or less engaged than my parents or their friends. "It's awfully early," many begin. And not because they don't like my candidate, but because they don't particularly like politics, the pursuit of power. But when I get into my schpiel — Dean balanced the budget eleven years straight in Vermont, health care for virtually all children, 92% of adults, etc — they get interested. Start criticizing Bush, embrace the Doctor.

The early evening is already my favorite time of the day to canvas. I'm three-quarters of the way into my shift...but I invariably get a second wind. Talking to a young voter I persuade to register. Learning about how a single mom without health insurance is getting by. Conversing with a man fixing his car and persuading him to pause for a moment, to learn about the Governor. As I walk by the apple orchard, the sun sets. A beautiful scene. The sky is a million shades of red, pink, blue. But all is quiet. And I keep walking.

—Yoni Cohen, June 2003
Field Staffer, Dean campaign