The latest on the ground in Scranton, PA

cross posted on CDNY blog: http://collegedemsny.com/...

Today, I traveled a good hour with members of my college democrats chapter in Binghamton, NY and we went to Obama's campaign office in Scranton, PA. Around 9am, I had left the Democratic Headquarters in Binghamton to arrive early for canvassing. Even at 9am in Binghamton, NY our democratic headquarters was packed with volunteers, waiting to be transported over the state border into the battleground. Obama has used states like NY which aren't in play to act as feeder states for volunteers into neighboring battleground states.

When we arrived at the Scranton office on Wyoming Avenue, the place was absolutely packed. About 40 people were on the phones reading scripts, with another 50 in a room hearing instructions on placing door hangers on potential Obama voters in the area. Packets of canvassing materials were lined up by the hundreds in neat stacks and canvassing data was being entered into 2 laptops. It was quite an elaborate operation under weigh. The Industrial Engineers Union was nice enough to lend the Obama campaign use of their office space.

According to the field organizer at the Obama office, the Obama PA campaign had placed door hangers on every single identified Obama voter this past Saturday, which far exceeded the campaigns goals because of the massive amount of volunteers.

There is certainly a great buzz in the area down in Scranton and locals are really excited about Obama. John McCain held a rally in Scranton today but Caroline Kennedy also held a rally in the afternoon in which over 500 people showed up. Bob Casey and Congressman Kanjorski were also at the rally. About 5 blocks away from the Obama office, the McCain headquarters had about ten people in it the entire day, with little activity appearing. John McCain is making Pennsylvania his last stand because if he loses the state, it will be very tough for him to win the election, even if he somehow manages to win every toss up state. Campaign staff in Scranton know they have McCain on the ropes in PA and they are trying to land that knockout punch to give Obama the victory he needs.