{"id":45463,"date":"2016-11-08T09:11:28","date_gmt":"2016-11-08T15:11:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/?p=45463"},"modified":"2016-11-08T09:12:26","modified_gmt":"2016-11-08T15:12:26","slug":"clinton-volunteers-toil-against-the-odds-in-conservative-waukesha-wi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/clinton-volunteers-toil-against-the-odds-in-conservative-waukesha-wi\/","title":{"rendered":"Clinton volunteers toil against the odds in conservative Waukesha, Wisconsin"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Nia Prater<\/strong> <\/p>\n

It\u2019s a Saturday afternoon in Waukesha and the tenants at 272 W. Main St. are hard at work.<\/p>\n

The large front windows that directly face the busy thoroughfare are decorated with signage for local Wisconsin candidates. There\u2019s a display marking how many days there are until the election. Today, a large number 17 cut from lime green paper is hanging up. Seventeen more busy days for the volunteers at the local Hillary for America campaign office. <\/p>\n

The main room is spacious with plenty of tables, places where volunteers can sit and make phone calls to prospective voters. A small area to the side has hot food, BBQ sandwiches and pickles for anyone who wanted to partake. <\/p>\n

In addition to being a Clinton campaign office, in many ways the Main Street office acts as another base for the Democratic Party in the area. Volunteers here are campaigning for Clinton to be elected, but also working to help other Wisconsin Democrats. Candidates like Russ Feingold who is fighting for the Senate seat he lost in 2011 after serving since 1993 and Khary Penebaker, a first time politician running to be the U.S. Representative for Wisconsin\u2019s 5th district.<\/p>\n

But for all their preparation, the volunteers here have a long road ahead of them. Waukesha County is one of Wisconsin\u2019s most consistently conservative areas, with Republican candidates often winning by larger percentages here than anywhere else in the state. <\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

According to the Wisconsin Elections Commission, the Mitt Romney\/Paul Ryan ticket won Waukesha County by 66.76 percent in 2012. The state of Wisconsin itself was won by President Obama and Vice President Biden, with them receiving 52.83 percent of the vote.<\/p>\n

This knowledge however, does not discourage volunteers like Kasha Riggsbee. She sits at the table near the entrance which holds baskets full of buttons with different slogans and a sign-in sheet for anyone new looking to help out. <\/p>\n

Riggsbee has lived in Waukesha since 1979 and first began volunteering in 2000 for former vice president Al Gore in his presidential campaign against George W. Bush. She\u2019s been campaigning ever since, even though Gore, too, lost Waukesha County by over 68,000 votes. <\/p>\n

\u201cI tend to be a very passionate person,\u201d said Riggsbee.<\/p>\n

At first glance, that fact rings true. Riggsbee wears a white hat was covered in buttons with various sayings and designs: \u201cI\u2019m With Her\u201d, Clinton\/Kaine, Russ with a green Wisconsin logo in the background for Russ Feingold. Riggsbee is retired after working years as a social worker. Her volunteering is still based around the idea of aiding others. <\/p>\n

\u201cI believe I am my brother\u2019s keeper, and the Democratic Party allows me to work within that framework, said Riggsbee. \u201cWe all need help sometimes.\u201d<\/p>\n

She continued, \u201cPeople who need help far outnumber the people who don\u2019t need help,\u201d<\/p>\n

Riggsbee is passionate about furthering the Democratic Party\u2019s cause, but favors a more behind-the-scenes role.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll cook, clean bathrooms. I\u2019ve had enough doors slammed in my face,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

One of Riggsbee\u2019s greatest political experiences was during the recall election of Governor Scott Walker in 2012.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was one of the most thrilling days of my life,\u201d said Riggsbee.<\/p>\n

On that day, when she was one of the many Wisconsinites that gathered at the state capitol building in Madison, Riggsbee recalled thinking, \u201cThis is what democracy looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rose Farrar is another person determined to volunteer for the Democrats despite the conservative area. To the 69-year-old, voting for Hillary Clinton was hardly a difficult decision. <\/p>\n

\u201cI support her because she\u2019s obviously the strongest candidate,\u201d said Farrar. \u201cShe has plans, not just rhetoric and talk.\u201d <\/p>\n

The Delafield resident who retired after working for years in Milwaukee Technical College\u2019s workforce and economic development office, is far from being new to campaigning. She calls her involvement in politics \u201ca lifelong thing\u201d, mentioning her support of labor leader and activist Cesar Chavez. She has been campaigning for Clinton for about a year and did a lot of work for the Obama campaign as well. <\/p>\n

Farrar helps out by doing a lot of phone-banking. Pain in her hip has caused her to step back from door-to-door canvassing. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important to me, I hope I make a difference,\u201d said Farrar.<\/p>\n

Farrar is fluent in Spanish, a skill that she uses to reach Spanish-speaking voters in order to inform them about the election. Lately, she\u2019s been providing information regarding the state\u2019s voter ID law which will be enforced during a presidential election for the first time. <\/p>\n

Farrar, too, has seen the foothold that the Republican Party has in this part of the state. <\/p>\n

\u201cTrump, Trump, Trump,\u201d said Farrar, about the signs that dot front lawns in the area. \u201cThere\u2019s not one sign. There\u2019s seven or eight of them giving the message.\u201d <\/p>\n

She has personally experienced the contentious nature of this election season\u2019s politics. A few weeks back, Farrar was shopping for groceries when a couple came up to her and started to verbally harass her. The reason for the husband and wife\u2019s ire? A Hillary button that Farrar openly wore.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s almost like in your face. Especially\u2026I\u2019m not that small, but when somebody taller is leaning over, you can\u2019t help but feeling uncomfortable,\u201d she said. \u201cThey\u2019re hovering over, it\u2019s like \u2018go away.\u2019 Intimidating.\u201d <\/p>\n

There are times when it can be hard being a Democrat in such a staunchly conservative area. In elections past, Farrar would put an Obama bumper sticker on her car only to find out later that someone tore it off. And now?<\/p>\n

\u201cYou don\u2019t see bumper stickers anymore,\u201d said Farrar. <\/p>\n

Though there might be some pushback or difficulties along the way, there\u2019s very little that could keep these volunteers away from their mission.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe onus is on us. We have to fight for ourselves, said Riggsbee. \u201cWe have to take care of ourselves.\u201d <\/p>\n

Photo at top: A sign in the window of the Democratic campaign office in Waukesha, Wisconsin counts down the days until the election. (Nia Prater\/MEDILL)<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Nia Prater It\u2019s a Saturday afternoon in Waukesha and the tenants at 272 W. Main St. are hard at work. The large front windows that directly face the busy thoroughfare are decorated with signage for local Wisconsin candidates. There\u2019s a display marking how many days there are until the election. Today, a large number […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":311,"featured_media":45565,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1145,766,2952],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-election-2016","category-election2016","category-politics"],"yoast_head":"\nClinton volunteers toil against the odds in conservative Waukesha, Wisconsin - Medill Reports Chicago<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/news.medill.northwestern.edu\/chicago\/clinton-volunteers-toil-against-the-odds-in-conservative-waukesha-wi\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Clinton volunteers toil against the odds in conservative Waukesha, Wisconsin - Medill Reports Chicago\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"By Nia Prater It\u2019s a Saturday afternoon in Waukesha and the tenants at 272 W. 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