Week 1:
Hello everyone, my name is Juan and I have been an intern for Anna Eskamani’s campaign internship for half a year now, and am fortunate to be continuing it during this spring semester. This first week has been quite the eventful welcome back to the Annaverse, kicking the year off strong! First of all I canvassed as per usual, this time near downtown and I paired up with a volunteer named Ashley who is interested in perhaps filing to run for her own district as City Council Commissioner, together we canvassed the usual 40 doors we aim for. Beyond this I began my phone banking sessions again, this semester splitting the 3 hours up into two separate shifts to lessen burnout and increase the quality of conversation I have with people. My first session went surprisingly well, as about one third of the people I called picked up and were very responsive and eager to help Anna’s campaign. One lady with arthritis said she is not physically able to canvass with us and walk around neighborhoods speaking to people but she told me she was more than willing to phonebank to lend a hand. A 75 year old man spoke to me about canvassing as well, showing age does not block the ability to be a vessel for change in one’s community. It is evident many people are excited and willing to create tangible change. Some extra events I took part in were attending Mark NeJame’s house, a prominent lawyer here in Florida for a fundraising event hosted there to help Anna’s campaign, being a grassroots movement, we genuinely believe in the power of the people, and it is evident through the many donors there that this message is heard. As I was in charge of writing down the people in attendance, guiding people to where they needed to be, and assisting in any other way, I watched dozens of envelopes with checks in them be dropped off in our collection jar. It was a great community event as well serving as a chance to network and community build for myself and for Anna. This semester I am also taking the charge to increase Anna’s presence in Lake Nona via engagement with my community. Historically, Anna has not had as much interaction in Lake Nona and the broader district 1. This district is the largest one in Orlando by population size and thus critical for Anna in her path to become mayor in 2027. With that being said I attended a Lake Nona Democrat’s Social event and while there I gave out Anna Eskamani merch like shirts, pins, stickers, and yard signs. Furthermore I got 7 people to sing up for the Annaverse App, a new site we have launched that will serve as a community builder.
Juan Ruscica's Weekly Blog Post for Anna Eskamani Campaign Internship 