To knock or not to knock?
GUERNSEY’S first ever island-wide general election has thrown up a door-knocking divide, and guidance has been issued to candidates to clear up some confusion over canvassing etiquette.
Some deputy hopefuls understood that the door-knocking staple of elections past went against pandemic protocols, but Dr Nicola Brink, the Director of Public Health has clarified the position and given the green light to candidates who want to ring door bells.
Dr Brink gave a special presentation to the candidates, and advised them that doorstep meetings and hustings could take place, as long as good hand and respiratory hygiene habits were followed.
Candidates were also reminded to respect personal space, such as standing back from the door after knocking.
However, a big door-knocking divide has emerged and the question of to knock or not to knock seems to have little to do with the pandemic and more to do with the logistics of the first ever island-wide election. Many candidates are using alternative methods to reach voters, such as social media and setting up meetings in pre-arranged locations such as cafes, pubs and douzaine rooms.
The three political parties have all organised special events and hustings, and even the independent candidates have got together to arrange hustings.
With 119 names on the ballot paper, Tony Cunningham from the Alliance Party Guernsey said voters could get weary of door knockers, so they were using other strategies to interact with people.
‘With so many candidates we don’t think it’s right to go knocking on people’s doors, but we do think it’s right to give people opportunities to come and question us, so we’re setting up hustings whereby people can come and ask us anything they want and actually hear what we stand for and meet the people and make their own judgement. And we think that’s the best way to address such a large a number of candidates trying to get their message across, so we think door-knocking over 100 candidates is actually not what the people of Guernsey want.’
Without the machine of a party behind them, the independent candidates are the ones focusing on traditional face-to0face .
They believe it is a rite of passage which is in the DNA of Guernsey elections, and nothing is as effective as face-to-face interaction on the front step.
They have been posting photos on social media of their bicycles, as the best way to get around the parishes.
One independent candidate’s door-knocking operation has involved 2,000 doors in just two weeks.
Outgoing Deputy Richard Graham topped the Castel poll as a first-timer in 2016, and put much of his success down to the grind of hitting the streets, talking to people, and getting in touch with the grassroots issues.
