Working for the Paul Friel Campaign amid a pandemic
As the United States moves into election night, many in the nation are anxious and excited for the results. Perhaps more so than the average citizen, people working for campaigns are even more emotional. Madeline Burger, a student that attends Owen J. Roberts High School in Pottstown, PA., works for the Paul Friel campaign for state house district 26.
She explains the unconventionality of working on a campaign during a pandemic. “Working on a campaign during a pandemic is strange. There’s limited canvassing and it’s harder to personally connect with voters without that face-to-face interaction,” said Burger. Burger explains that though the COVID 19 pandemic has affected the campaign, Paul Friel and his team have found ways around it. “We’ve made the best of it with more phonebanking and socially distanced, outdoor events,” said Burger.
For Burger herself, personal reasons also made this Election Day very different. “Election Day has looked a bit different for me than I expected. I was recently possibly exposed to covid and am playing it safe by working from home,” explained Burger, however this has given her the opportunity to work from home more independently. “I’ve been launching phonebanks and managing communications with volunteers,” says Burger. If not for the necessity of her self-quarantine, Burger looked forward to travelling with Friel. “Paul, the candidate, has been traveling between polling locations to talk to voters with Jhonas Dunakin, his campaign manager. If I wasn’t in quarantine, I would’ve spent the day outside of various polling places greeting voters and handing out lit to those in line,” Burger told The Hill News. Burger, at the end of the day, is happy to have had the experience to work for the Paul Friel Campaign, citing that though it was not what she expected she has had a wonderful few months. “I can’t vote this year so I am glad that I was able to do my political duty. It was still an amazing experience, one that I am very happy to have had,” says Burger as she sits at home, in her living room.
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