Hillary Clinton opens campaign office in Athens

A campaign office run by Hillary for Ohio and Athens County Democrats opened its doors in Athens County on Aug. 18 with the hope of winning over potential voters in the area. The office’s opening at 77 E. State St. featured appearances from former Ohio First Lady Frances Strickland, Ohio House candidate Sarah Grace, State Representative Debbie Phillips and Athens County Democratic Chairman John Haseley.“A lot of people kind of write off Appalachia or the southern part of the state when they talk about the importance of elections, but the fact of the matter is that a lot of elections in Ohio are decided by a few thousand votes,” Haseley said. “With our efforts for Democratic candidates statewide and Democratic candidates here in Athens County, we can actually produce that number of votes.”People who have been hired to work at the new office are charged with the task of informing the public face-to-face about Democratic candidates from the national, state and local levels.According to a post on Clinton’s campaign website, campaign fellows in offices across the country are responsible for meeting voters, canvassing, collecting voter registration forms, logging data and completing other administrative tasks.“Everything is geared toward direct conversations and engagement with voters so that people don’t have to rely on all these terrible ads on TV or radio,” Haseley said.Haseley invites anyone interested in politics or the election to stop by the office to learn more about volunteering.“The Democratic headquarters is a serious place where serious work is being done, but it’s also a place where people should feel like they can go,” Haseley said.Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump does not currently have a campaign office in Athens, nor do third party candidates Gary Johnson and Jill Stein, who will also appear on the Nov. 8 ballot.