Door-to-door campaigning easier than ever with new app

ORLANDO, Fla. — Before Rep. Scott Plakon ever knocks on a door, he already knows something about the family behind it.

"They participated in the telephone town hall we did," he said about one resident.

Plakon's is one of the first state-level campaigns in Florida to use a new iPad app that shows if the residents who live at a house are Republican, Democrat, independent or in some cases, all three.

"I have a very good record of working across party lines," he said.

Plakon said he can see if a homeowner is an active or inactive voter, and the app will even show what job the residents have and if they require a license.

"One of them is a Realtor, we do know that," Plakon said of one home he went to. "All of this information has always been available, but this is the first time it's been so easily available on the streets, literally at a candidate's fingertips."

Some voters were a little disturbed to hear how much about their lives candidates know.

"It's too late to prevent that from happening, but it's not good to have that kind of information," said Raoul Sergile.

Plakon said the technology simply helps him reach out to the most interested voters so he can serve them better if re-elected.

"It's a way to communicate with voters more efficiently and more effectively," said Plakon.

The new technology is also helping candidates keep track of where all of their campaign signs are.

Supporters of some campaigns can even log onto phone databases from their own homes.

WFTV