In case you haven’t noticed, it’s a presidential election year.

We can’t turn on the television in advance of the coming primaries without hearing the latest about Barack and Hillary. (After all of these months of campaigning, we are on a first-name basis with them, it seems.) And with every mention of the Democrats comes a mention of their presumptive Republican opponent, John McCain.

Once the dust settles and the nominees are chosen, what’s next? An even more vigorous campaign and an opportunity for regular people like us to lend our support to the candidate of our choice in what looks like it’ll be an epic struggle.

(On a tangential note, isn’t it a bit of hypocrisy that the United States loves to promote its democratic ideals, but never in my 20 years of formal education, has a class been offered that teaches people how to work on an election campaign?)

If you think you have to have a talk show or throw glitzy Hollywood fundraisers to support your candidate, you’re wrong. In truth, the most essential part of any good candidate is the campaign foot soldier, the mom who finds time to volunteer between her kids’ soccer practices or the man who makes calls on his lunch break.

Here’s a list of campaign activities any normal citizen can participate in. Go to your candidate’s Web site for events local to you.

Phone banking is calling voters, reminding them to vote, and asking them to support your candidate.

This is probably my least favorite campaign activity because we all know how annoying phone solicitors can be. But I try to go into it thinking I am doing people a civic favor: I am reminding them that it is Election Day.

In the old days, volunteers usually gathered at an office that donated its phone lines and called voters from a list pulled from the registrar’s office. Nowadays, phone banking can be done from the comfort of your own home. Thanks to the Internet and some amazing candidate Web sites, you can log in, be given a list of voters and make calls from home.

Recently, I made calls to Washington in my pajamas and no one knew otherwise.

Canvassing, also known as ""walking,"" is going door to door in a neighborhood, passing out brochures and signs, and advocating for your candidate. (Sometimes, volunteers even drive to neighboring states in ultra-competitive contests).

This probably is my favorite campaign activity because it allows me to get to know parts of my city that I otherwise would not have seen, is done outdoors, and is strangely, really, really fun.

I canvassed in the Wrigley area of Long Beach and to my surprise, people were excited to see me. Even the ones who didn’t support my candidate wanted to talk about the election. Who did I think would win? Who has the best chance in November? It was like talking about a big boxing match or the Kentucky Derby.

In a too-big and too-fast world, canvassing brings people together. I met wonderful volunteers and neighbors and was not chased by any dogs nor did I have a door slammed in my face.

Fundraising is not the most glamorous or prettiest part of a campaign, but it’s one of the most important. How do you think those flyers get sent out, those TV ads are paid for, and your candidate criss-crosses the nation?

With the Internet, giving to your candidate is clicks away. An individual can give a candidate up to $2,300 per election, with the primary and general elections being separate contests.

One of my friends has it set up to give a set amount every month. I give $25 at the beginning of each month (it’s not much, but it is what it is), but I also donate after elections so it looks like my candidate has momentum, and after long-frustrating debates with non-believers.

In addition to individual giving, I’ve also seen people host fundraising parties at their homes. And yes, you can even party for your candidate. In Echo Park, the DJ crew Beat Junkies gathered and performed for a fundraiser, while in Costa Mesa, the Shark Club donated its time, space, and money for volunteers.

Organizing is key. Eventually, some people want even more activity during a campaign and step up to become precinct captains who help to organize events and volunteers in their voting precincts. Because they know the people, businesses, and issues of their area, precinct captains become invaluable translators for their candidate, translating how their stances and policies will affect them locally.

Election Day is full of activities summed up with the acronym GOTV, which stands for Get Out the Vote.

On Election Day, the goal is to get as many of your supporters out to the polls. Phone banking and canvassing are key elements in this effort.

There also is a lot of work centered on the polling place itself.

Poll campaigning involves advocating for your candidate at the poll itself. But be careful because election law mandates that you must be at least 100 feet from the entrance of the polling place.

Poll monitoring is the intricate task of going over lists of voters at the polls and checking to see who has voted. By going over these publicly available lists and comparing them with your own campaign data, you can make sure your pledged supporters (confirmed by phone banking and canvassing) make it out to vote.

Poll watching means going to polls and basically, making sure no funny business is happening. Sometimes, polls run out of ballots, incorrect information is given, or people are wrongly turned away. By watching a poll, you can make sure things are running smoothly and if not, report back to your campaign or the county registrar.

On Super Tuesday earlier this month, I walked in Signal Hill and on the west side of Long Beach, phone banked in Carson, and then worked the polls in Compton. While campaigning, we had a strange contest to see how many cars we could get to honk at our sign. When it got too cold, we went inside to watch the polls. The poll workers (the people who run the poll) were excited to see us; we helped to clarify some questions and concerns. This was new to me, and I really enjoyed it because it felt like such a privilege. I wondered, in how many other countries could a regular citizen walk into a poll, observe, and not be harassed or beaten up?

People power. So after you’ve walked, called, given, and volunteered for your candidate, have you made a difference? Yes. Not only have you contacted voters, informed them, maybe even inspired them, you have influenced them.

I believe there is a whole psychological aspect to all this volunteerism. Because at the end of the day or in the poll, I think all this effort can really move an undecided voter. For a wavering person, the sight of kids holding signs at an intersection, a friendly phone call, or a trove of volunteers giving up their Saturday morning to walk your neighborhood can be just the nudge needed to get their vote. And as we’ve seen in the past, every vote counts. Except maybe in Florida.

So what are you waiting for? Voting is not enough anymore. It is only the beginning point of civic participation. I mean, think about it. We get to choose the leader of the free world, so he or she better be a good one.

Remember: Democracy is not something you watch, it is something you do.

Like one of the campaigns says, ""We are the ones, we’ve been waiting for.""