Young Democrats Show Fervor in Murphy’s Watertown Campaign
By Suril Kantaria ‘09
News Staff Reporter
On Sunday October 8th, eight enthusiastic members of the Choate Young Democrats went canvassing for Chris Murphy in Watertown.
Chris Murphy is the Democratic candidate running against the twelve term incumbent Nancy Johnson, for a seat in the House of Representatives. According to Andrew Ruben ’07, President of the Choate Young Democrats, “This race is a very close one, and could be decided by a single vote.”
Mr. Zachary Goodyear, the faculty adviser for the Young Democrats, drove the students to a volunteer’s house in Watertown, where they were greeted by Murphy supporters who gave them literature to hand out, as well as specifics on what to say and where to go. The literature was a pro-Murphy flyer which, according to Ruben, “had a cute picture of Chris Murphy on it.”
The Choate students knocked on the doors of unaffiliated voters and registered Democrats in Watertown for three hours. “It was our job to convince people who support [Chris Murphy] to go out and vote,” said Ruben.
The people who the Choate students greeted were usually very friendly.
“We received extremely positive responses. Most people were welcoming and happy to talk to us,” said Ruben, adding “People didn’t really tell us who they’d vote for, but they were willing to take the literature.”
Edward Woodhouse ’09, who also went canvassing, agreed, saying, “We had pretty positive feedback from people, and they were very supportive.”
There were a few responses that definitely stood out from the rest.
“There were some people who passionately said we will support anyone, as long as it isn’t Nancy Johnson,” explained Woodhouse.
“There was this one man who asked if Chris Murphy was pro-life. He said that he couldn’t possibly vote for anyone who wasn’t pro-life. We were told not to responds to comments like these, but I really wanted to point out that Nancy Johnson isn’t pro-life either,” joked Ruben.
The race between Murphy and Johnson to represent Connecticut’s Fifth District in the House is very important for the Democrats.
“The stakes are so high in the election, that anyone who is passionate about the Democratic cause should be out there doing something,” said Ruben.
Woodhouse explained his reasoning as well: “I’m not a big fan of Bush, and I don’t think he is the best president for our nation. But Congress is what decides if the things that Bush says are actually going to happen. So if the Democrats take over the House, we can stop some of the things from getting through.”
The students who went canvassing were awarded community service hours for their work, which has caught the attention of some members of the Choate community.
“I think it is justifiable to give community service hours, and it has always been something community service has been awarded for. I think getting involved in politics is one of the highest forms of community service because we are trying to get someone elected who will do what’s best for Connecticut and this country,” said Ruben.
He continued, “If that is not community service, then I don’t know what is. We tried to keep people informed, so that hopefully Murphy can bring positive change to the community.”
Most students who took part in helping Chris Murphy are too young to vote, but these Choate Democrats didn’t see that as a limitation to go and help the Democratic Party.
“Just because you can’t vote, it doesn’t mean that you can’t contribute and influence how things will turnout on Election Day,” explained Woodhouse.
Only eight students went to canvass on October 8th, but the Choate Young Democrats will continue to bring opportunities like this to the Choate community. They have already planned another canvassing trip in Cheshire, Connecticut on November 5th.
“Choate students could be very caught up with their lives, and to ask people to give up their Sunday afternoon is a lot. I think the turnout will be much better [on November 5th] because it will be much closer to Election Day,” said Ruben.
