Getting started

• Choose which campaign you want to canvass for in one of Swing Left's target districts. Not all campaigns will have canvassing available at all times, so please contact our team at host@swingleft.org for help selecting and connecting with the campaign.

• Post your event on Mobilize so you can promote your event, track RSVPs, and easily communicate with attendees. This Mobilize guide will walk you through the process.

  • Post your canvass meetup or carpool using this link.

  • If you are part of Swing Left's College Program, post your canvass meetup or carpool using this link instead.

  • Important note: As the host, you will manage your Mobilize event and the campaign won’t have access to it. A few days before the canvass, please reach out to the campaign you're working with to share a headcount of how many participants you're expecting. This will allow the campaign organizers to make sure they have everything prepared for your group of volunteers.

• Recruit folks to canvass with you. This recruitment guide can help. Let folks know that it’s OK if they’ve never done something like this before–they’ll receive the training they need to feel comfortable knocking doors. You can use these strategy graphics to promote your event online.

• If you’re carpooling, recruit drivers and set a time and place for everyone to meet up to leave to head to the campaign’s field office and a time for everyone to return back to the departure location. You can use Swing Left's carpool tool (beta) to match drivers with riders.

Preparing to host

• Consider putting a team together! Hosting a canvass meetup or carpool can have a lot of moving parts. Working with a small team makes it easier to split up the tasks and manage the event–before, during, and after.

• Make sure you download the MiniVAN app (or PDI if in California) to familiarize yourself, so that you can help your volunteers troubleshoot if needed. The campaign can help provide training as well, when you arrive to the staging location that day.

  • MiniVAN guide

  • PDI guide (California only)

• Contact your volunteers a day or two before the canvass to confirm their participation–especially those who have agreed to drive a carpool!

Preparing your volunteers

• Share some canvassing basics with your volunteers that might help them feel more confident committing and following through with their shift.

  • Set realistic expectations. On average you’ll knock on 35–40 doors during your canvass shift, and many of the voters on your list will not be home. Your job isn’t to convince people to open the door, it’s to find the people interested in talking to you, collecting data, and cleaning up lists so we can be as effective as possible. Every time you contact a voter is valuable, no matter the outcome.

  • Be friendly and conversational. Think about the personal reason for why you are engaging in this work and share that with the voter. Review the script carefully, but make it your own.

  • Don’t worry about being perfect! If you are new to canvassing, don’t be afraid to say it’s your first time—there’s nothing wrong with making it clear that you aren’t a professional. We do this work because we believe in the cause and there is no message more powerful that we can send to voters.

• Share the "Know Before You Go" Canvassing Guide with the volunteers who are joining you. This guide includes a checklist of what to bring, plus tips and tricks for talking to voters. You can download a PDF version to print or email them (File > Download > PDF Document).

• Optional pre-canvass training: Consider hosting a training a few nights before the canvass to get your volunteers comfortable with canvassing. Plan to go over what canvassing is, the typical script, info about the candidate/race, canvassing app basics, and other best practices. You can even use this as a recruitment tool to get newer volunteers to sign up for a shift. Customize these slides for your training.

• Let volunteers know that the campaign will also provide training for them when you arrive at the canvassing staging location, so they’ll have an opportunity to ask questions.

After canvassing

• Debrief the canvassing experience: What worked well at the door? What do you want to do better next time?

• This is an opportunity to check in about what’s coming up next and when you can all canvass again. Make a plan to check in soon, if you don’t have something on the calendar.

• Show everyone what Swing Left looks like! Share a group photo, video, or anecdote from your event on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook (or all three)! Tag @swingleft and use the hashtag #SwingLeft to help us retweet/repost!

  • Important note: Since you are talking with private citizens and using proprietary scripts, please make sure to obscure or cover names, emails, scripts, and any other personal data in your photos.

• Update who attended and who didn’t in Mobilize. Check out the Mobilize guide to learn how to manage your attendees. This process helps you track who came to your event, and will allow you to follow up with the right folks.