On a recent afternoon, I rode with Tuman and two campaign volunteers in his VW Touareg to a canvassing expedition in Millsmont near Mills College.
I asked Tuman to sit in the back seat beside me so I could record him. He wasn't happy about having a volunteer drive. He said the 10-year-old car had ticks and was hard to drive. When we arrived at 57th and MacArthur Boulevard, a relieved Tuman hopped out. He propped up his trunk with a large umbrella that resembled something out of a bad acid trip.
"Don't laugh he said," laughing himself. "The part is broken and it would cost $1,500 to fix. This works just fine."
It had begun to drizzle. Tuman said he liked canvassing in the rain. "It gives you an advantage," he said. "People feel sorry for you."
One campaign volunteer handed him a stack of brochures. Tuman began signing them to leave in the doors of people who weren't home -- which was most people. Shirt-sleeves rolled up to the elbow, Tuman set out with long legged strides down 57th Avenue. As we walked, he compared this final stretch of the campaign to the 24th mile of a marathon. He has run more than a few and is probably in the best physical shape of all the candidates.
A volunteer walked each side of the street knocking on doors. The women surveyed precinct lists calling out the name and age of occupants to Tuman.
He spotted a corner house with a Jean Quan sign planted on the lawn and approached it with gusto. He knocked at the iron security gate but one answered. Tuman left a brochure.
He continued door to door until someone opened. Tuman would introduce himself, saying he had a good chance of being Oakland's next mayor. Then he'd ask, if elected, "what can I do for you?"
Some people wanted the city to do something to stop the donut spinning menace of sideshows on MacArthur Boulevard. Others had concerns that had nothing to do with the mayor.
An 89-year-old woman answered in a purple housecoat. She apologized for the fact that she "looked a mess." Tuman and his volunteers, Robyn Hodges and Cynthia Remmers, stood in front of her porch, encouraging her to her tell her life story. She lived alone and was happy for the company. Tuman said he hoped she would consider voting for him.
After they had left, she came out of the house and walked with the aid of a cane in a visible hurry toward them.
"I just filled out my ballot," she said. "I already voted for you."
"I'm a hit with the seniors," Tuman later said.
More @ Oakland Tribune
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