Halfway through the caucus, I received a very important text message. My sister-in-law had been elected to attend the Idaho state convention in June. I will admit that this is a position she has earned. She has long been a Democrat, and has never wavered from her position. She has lived through years of campaign signs being stolen from her front lawn. She has been the campus advisor for the Young Democrats. She has been there for them when they had walked door to door hoping to influence decisions and impact an election. She has been there for them when they faced the hard reality of their first loss.
If she could do it, I decided I could do it too. It was now 11 pm, my mind raced as I developed a speech to ensure my election. As the time got closer, my enthusiasm began to fade into nervousness. By attending one rally and the caucus, had I earned the right to be a state delegate? I felt confident that my speech was convincing, but wasn’t certain whether I should continue. A kind friend we had met that evening could see that I was becoming a little more anxious. He turned to my daughter, Hannah, and said say a little prayer for your Mom, if this is meant to be she will win. With his words and the faith of my daughter I moved on.
The overall process was interestingly complex. After the final count of the votes at the caucus, it was determined that all 56 of the state delegates from my congressional district would be from the Obama supporters. It was a self-nomination process, I basically filled-out a questionnaire with my name and telephone number. Each candidate and any people still left at the caucus were handed a ballot. The rules were explained that we needed to fill-in all 56 names, and any ballot that contained a duplicate name would be thrown away. Immediately, I began working the crowd. I knew I had two votes, mine and my husband’s but I would need more to win. There were 56 seats and 89 candidates. Odds were good, but not guaranteed. I convinced the first row to write my name on the ballot, and then moved to the second and third rows. Based on the time, it was determined that we would not be allowed to give speeches. The row hopping was stopped. Each candidate was asked to stand-up as their name was read, and votes were written down.
It was late and the names were read quickly. I wasn’t even certain if my ballot contained 56 individual names – imagine receiving 0 votes, but I figured anything was possible. It was clear that the ballots would not be tallied that evening. We finally left about midnight. Everyday, I called the Democratic office, and everyday I was told it would be one more day before the delegates were announced. It took almost a week, but I made it – my name was finally posted on the Ada County Democrats web site – http://www.adademocrats.org/ht/display/ArticleDetails/i/1136141 – I was listed as Idaho state delegate number 23.
This entire process has made quite an impact on Hannah. Each night at bed time she requests a reenactment of the caucus – she is even willing to let me play the role of Bethine Church. I will admit a large portion of her goal is to try to stay-up until 12:30, but it is also her way to ensure that her voice is also heard during the process.
We look forward to a very important vote today – GO OBAMA!!!! Make certain that you go out and support your local event.
