Barker –noun 1. an animal or person that barks.
2. a person who stands before a theater, carnival sideshow, or the like, calling out its attractions to passers-by.

Precinct 35 in Durham, NC, is one of the highest voting precincts in the state, according to one of the four volunteers who have taken the day off to bark for Hampton Dellinger, running for Lieutenant Governor outside Precinct 35's polling stations. "Up to 10,000 voters, the biggest in a normal year," he says, "and this year…."

The barker for County Commissioner candidate Josh Parker, chimes in. He is late 60s, white hair, brilliant smile and overbite. "I was the first one here at 6:30, and the line was already around to here." Here is about 100 feet away from the polls. Even now, at 10:15, the line snakes out of the fire station, and the waiting voters start talking to each other, out of our legal reach.

The Dellinger volunteer was off by a little, but not by much. The Parkwood Precinct has 6,382 voters, the highest in Durham. It has 1,789 black voters, 4,049 white voters, and about 400 more women registered than men. It is a precinct of small, well-kept homes, young families, retirees, a precinct known for being able to survive the racial tensions of the lacrosse scandal. You do not feel, here, that stereotypes are that helpful. They are worth something in the aggregate, but the aging white couple, looking like they've just come from a mall-walk, talk about Obama, and the young black man with a camera asks for a Clinton button. "Reagan democrats," claims the Dellinger volunteer.

The beating sun has forced most of the barkers into the one section of shade between the gleaming firetrucks and the line of voters, and we develop an easy banter. Three candidates for District Attorney have representatives here, and two DA candidates themselves stood next to me for an hour or so. I am here for another County Commissioner candidate, Brenda Howerton, trying out methods.

"Git yer Brenda Howerton Here!" I cry out, in my best fish-lady imitation, but only the other barkers get the joke. "She's a wonderful woman," seems to be my most effective pitch, but its hard not to play around. "You know that mysterious set of boxes in the upper right hand corner of your ballot? I have the answer to that mystery. Vote Brenda." or "That is a beautiful pink suit. You need a pink flyer to go with it." Lots of women are wearing pink. So far, the pink strategy seems to be the most effective.

The man next to me, barking for Mitch Garrell, is an energetic attorney in Durham. You might remember him as the defense attorney for the 13 year old boy who killed a four year old boy in New York in 1993. His method is simple name repetition.

There are no Obama barkers, which is sort of mysterious, because I know the town is crawling with volunteers, but there is one short haired woman from the EPA with a big Team Hillary shirt on. She is very focused on educating voters about the ballot, and spends as much time with an unmarked fake ballot, pointing out the races on the back of the ballot that most people miss.

We conspire on the science of determining who wants literature and who doesn't. You don't want to waste a bark on an uninterested patron of the boardwalk.

A middle aged white woman lopes in with an oversized Cato Institute t-shirt, and I conclude that I shouldn't approach. The Hillary barker walks up, "Hillary would like your support," she says.

"But I'm a Democrat," Cato T-shirt replies.

Team Hillary is not flustered, and pulls out a fake model democratic ballot, which Cato takes eagerly.

We have different strategies for voters, some barkers whispering names "Tracey Cline, DA, Tracey Cline, DA," the way you'd offer heroin on Washington Square in 1990, and others simply standing in the way with a bright slip of paper, saying nothing, acting as if taking the flyer is near-mandatory, like the wafer at communion.

And voters have different strategies for the gauntlet we've created. Some voters--especially those alone--treat us like beggars, staring ahead lest we catch their eyes. Others thank us. Some stop and wait for us to talk. Some--mostly those over 50---pat their purses, as if to say (and sometimes saying), "I've got my list." Some take every single flyer, avoiding the problem of seeming to differentiate, and then the most conscientious come back through the gauntlet, passing back the flyers so we can recycle them.

On the way out we murmer and bow, like the ushers after a show, "thank you for voting," "congratulations," "have a good day," and some of them--many of them--turn and grin, and say something very fond about America.

Comments (9)

1. This part is hilarious...

   "The Hillary barker walks up, "Hillary would like your support," she says. "But I'm a Democrat," Cato T-shirt replies. Team Hillary is not flustered, and pulls out a fake democratic ballot, which Cato takes eagerly."

   Posted by Mask at 05/06/2008 @ 4:14pm

2. the new format for writing, editing and posting comments REALLY REALLY SUCKS!!! To all my fellow posters, some of whom I've known since 2005, I say so long for a while.

   Posted by ILOVEPHYSICS at 05/06/2008 @ 5:00pm

3. Hi Everyone!

   Joan Connell, Nation Web Editor here. Do you know you can enlarge the size of the Comments box by clicking and dragging on the little triangle on the lower right hand side?

   Posted by jconnell at 05/06/2008 @ 5:16pm

4. Hey, speaking of the Duke Lacross scandal, are you planning to give us the professor's side and if any of them are embarrassed of their attempted lynching of white students based on... no evidence?

   Posted by marybretbrad at 05/06/2008 @ 5:25pm

5. Each time I try and post my web browser jumps back to the last page I was on? Not even sure if my posts are making it?

   No triangle for me?

   Posted by Extraneous at 05/06/2008 @ 6:08pm

6. Posted by marybretbrad at 05/6/2008

   I would say the person who got disbarred is embarrassed. I don't think it was a race think Mary. Anytime a woman says she got raped it is generally taken so much as a fact of possibility that no one stops to think if she is lying. I think it's a case of some kid who may or may not have been raped, I don't know enough about the case to say one way or the other, and people acted too quickly to think which is often the case in rape situations. I would say even though rape is a terrible crime in ways I think worse than murder we still need to stop take a breath and treat it like every other crime.

   Posted by Cccomfo1 at 05/06/2008 @ 6:15pm

7. Comfy, you don't think the Duke Lacrosse scandal was a race thing? A black women accusing white college boys of rape? 95% of the entire story was race.

   Posted by marybretbrad at 05/06/2008 @ 6:20pm

8. Posted by lvliberty1 at 05/6/2008

   Ha! Ha! You are so right.

   Posted by k330k at 05/08/2008 @ 1:17pm

9. Well, I don't understand all this browser talk but I use explorer. I'm assuming that's a browser and there is no triangle. My question, Ms. Connell, is what dumbass complained about the layout? It was fine.

   Alright, I'm sorry. I don't know if the person(s) who decided to change the format are dumbasses or not. Changing the format, however, was a dumbass move, IMO. Really, the box was fine as it was.

   Posted by k330k at 05/08/2008 @ 1:21pm