How to "table." I've done lots of it, but you will want to find your own methods.

[Sophia4]

In other words, I'm just telling you what I've done. You can find your own way to do this.

1) Buy a table that you can easily carry either under your arm of on a luggage cart.

2) Get some printed materials together. The really nice, printed, published ones are best, but if you can't get them, just print things from the internet -- articles and information you think voters would read and that support your candidate or point of view.

3) Under this topic, also take some things you can sell. Give the proceeds to your Democratic Club. Don't sell things and keep the money. Don't ever do that. Things you can sell are pins, hats, tee-shirts. Your Democratic Club may have a supply or order a supply for you to use.

4) Find a partner and go together. You may need a bathroom break, and in any event, you need someone to go with you in there is some emergency. Be careful not to take so many people that you need a demonstration permit. That will probably cost some money. Two - four people are enough.

5) If you cannot find a partner, just carry your printed materials, leaflets or information and forget the table. I've done this too. It's nicer if you have a table and can sit down, but then you can approach people more easily if you are on foot and not behind a table, so there are advantages both ways. I prefer to have a table.

6) Identify a location. Check your local ordinances to see what the rules are about where you can table. Some farmers' markets are great. But if you actually table in the farmers' market, they may want you to pay a table fee. Read your local ordinances so you can find places that are public and where tabling will be legal. Certain public spaces are good. Other spaces may not be. I like to table right on a wide, wide sidewalk just outside a farmer's market. But be careful. Don't block a sidewalk. I don't table inside because I would have to pay. It's nice if you can find an area to table where people are relaxed.

7) Identify a location. Part 2. I've walked around a park and talked to voters. You probably can't table or walk around a mall. At least that is not permitted in my area. Ask the director of the mall if you want to table there.

8) Be well informed about the issues. Read up before you approach voters.

9) Be sure you have the temperament to table and talk to voters. I'm less than 5'2" and like people. I smile a lot. People are not afraid of me and don't feel offended by me. But remember. Not everyone will agree with you. Rather than argue with someone who is difficult, just say you will have to agree to disagree. And say it with a big, forgiving smile on your face. Next time you see that person, smile again. Find areas in which you agree. And point out the advantages of your own point of view rather than focusing on the bad things about their point of view. Some people have opinions simply because they never thought about the other point of view or any other point of view.

10) Many people will agree with you. So have some sort of petition or something that you can ask people to sign. Then you can use the addresses to organize in the future. You can send invitations to them to come to your Democratic Club meetings.

It's really fun. You meet a lot of nice people as well as some real jerks. Take your sense of humor. And your love. Remember people who have changed their minds to agree with you may not want to admit it.

By tabling, you can really get a lot of voters excited about your candidate and/or issues. You can also help bring members to your Democratic Club who will volunteer when it is time to vote.

I've just thrown this together and probably forgotten a lot.

So if you think of something you can add, please post it here.

Tabling is old-fashioned, but a really warm, human way to wake up voters. And like with marching and other activities, it gives the people you talk to courage because they realize they are not alone.

And you learn a lot. You learn what people are concerned about, what issues are on their minds. It's very interesting.

I'd love to read about your experiences with tabling if you have tried it. This year, for the 2018 elections, tabling will be important. It could make the difference between winning and losing the November election.

[MLAA]

1. Thank you!

For all you are doing and teaching others 😉

[Beartracks]

2. "point out advantages of your own point of view rather than... bad things about theirs"

Great advice! As is the whole "how to" guide!



===========

[Sophia4]

3. I really love talking to voters.

It's not nearly as difficult as you might think.

The important thing is to be realistic from the outset and accept that not everyone will agree with you.

One thing I forgot is that it is nice to have something to hand out to the children like balloons or a very small toy or object with the name of your candidate or a logo on it.

By the way, you can sit outside a school and register and talk to voters. Check the laws in your state on this. Some states don't allow people to register voters and campaign at the same time. Others don't prohibit combining the two jobs at all.

And be sure to check local ordinances about where you can or cannot be.

[ehrnst]

10. How do you square this with not thinking voters are the Democratic party?

Isn't that the thing the "party needs to decide?"

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=10140110

You go from very hot to very cold on the Democratic party... from trashing leadership and Hillary, to portraying yourself as the ultimate party enthusiast. I'm getting whiplash.

I guess that happens once you get past 100 posts, right?

Have a blessed day.

[Eliot Rosewater]

11. You mean there are people around who do NOT have electing dems no matter what as

their agenda? do tell

[BigmanPigman]

4. Yep, this is exactly what the Women's March, Indivisible

and MoveOn are planning for the next 9 months. We MUST WIN the midterms. Power To the Polls!
https://www.womensmarch.com/empower/

[Sophia4]

5. Yes. It's much easier to get out there and get voters to the polls than many think.

[OregonBlue]

6. I had an aunt who was head of the Young Democrats in our county for years. One of her tips

was "learn not to dismiss people". When people say something you don't entirely agree with, don't say NO. She would always listen very politely and then say YES, AND. She would then go on to explain how she felt about an issue and often (without ever directly contradicting the person she was speaking to) give the opposite opinion. I watched her a lot. It was so effective because she never shut people down. She always listened. If they said something she could agree with, she used that as an opening to the conversation, always using YES, AND. She worked very hard to validate that person before she introduced her own opinion.

She also told me not to Should On people. Replace Should with Could. And Replace Need To with Might Want to or Might Think About.

She was a really lovely woman to talk to. People loved talking with her. Even people with very different point of view.

She truly wanted dialogue, not to always Win.

She did oh so many tables in her life and loved it.

[Sophia4]

7. Excellent points!

Democracy is really working together to solve problems, not just shouting at each other.

To solve a problem together, each of us has to identify it as a problem first.

Many right-wingers just don't recognize why a lot of our issues really are problems. They have never thought about why certain things are a problem.

And they just dismissed our solutions for problems without really thinking about why we support our solutions.

Patience is extremely, extremely important.

Leave your temper and your insistence on being right at home.

And, listen, listen, listen. Everyone wants to be heard.

Thanks so much for your comment.

[OregonBlue]

8. Yes. I was amazed at how good she was at listening to people and being able to help them see how

many of the things they worried about were the same things she worried about but they just had different approaches to how to solve them. She was so good at offering ways to settle things that left people feeling like they were doing good. Bernie is a lot like that.

[ehrnst]

9. Sophia, how can you possibly work for a party that you say

can't decide what it is? You make all kind of insinuations about "the party hierarchy" and it not being run by "voters," and can't produce a "moral" "warm" "electable" candidate?

Which is it?

https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1002&pid=10140110