Linda Cropp’s crew of clipboard-carrying volunteers spread out along R Street NW on Saturday, knocking on doors and inviting neighbors to meet the D.C. Council chairman.
When they got a bite, you’d hear, “Chairman Cropp, there’s a person who’d like to meet you.” And the candidate for mayor would make her way to the front steps, offer her spiel and ask the person to sign her nominating petition.
Like all Democratic mayoral challengers, as well as those for council chairman and at-large council seats, Cropp needs the signatures of 2,000 registered party faithful to get her name on the Sept. 12 primary ballot. Though the District’s 2006 campaign season launched months ago, the drive picked up this weekend — the first for petition-gathering.
“You can do it, but you have to be organized,” Cropp said during her three-hour tour of neighborhoods between Dupont and Logan circles. “We’ve been out here and we’ve been campaigning, but once you get your petitions in, that often separates the candidates.”
It’s not as easy as it sounds, even in a city of more than 300,000 mostly Democratic voters. Just ask Mayor Anthony Williams, who was forced to run as a write-in candidate in 2002 because so many of the signatures his hired help collected were ruled invalid. Cropp ran into the occasional rejection. She had impromptu discussions, as with the cab driver who got out of his car to complain about the Taxi Commission. She had requests, such as the woman who hollered “More crossing guards!” after promising her vote. And Cropp, her well-worn sandals taking a beating, also found pity.
“You’ve got to go through this?” asked Ken Jadin of 17th Street.
“Oh, yes we do,” Cropp responded. “We’ll leave you some literature and thank you very much.”
Cropp has done this several times before. But the other mayoral front-runner, Ward 4 Council Member Adrian Fenty, has never needed more than 250 signatures as a single ward representative.
“Right now we’re just starting out,” he said Sunday. “It’s too early to tell what’s going to come out of the petition process.”
Important election dates
» June 12: First day to file petitions with Board of Elections and Ethics
» July 5: Deadline to file petitions
» July 14: Lottery to determine ballot positions
» Aug. 14: Voter registry closed
» Sept. 12: Primary Day
