So, it has begun.  After years of preparation, planning, campaigning and fundraising the starting pistol has finally been fired on the General Election 2015.

Of course we all knew it was coming.  Those of us who are in the business have, as it were, known the precise date of the election for some time now due to the new Fixed-term Parliament Act. 

Strangely, for the first general election during my political life, I knew when to book time off work and organise someone to pick up the kids.  As a team we knew when to plan our fundraising events and how to organise our leaflet distributions.

I wonder if it is that preparedness and lack of spontaneity that has made the election so far a little, well, slow?

For members of the public the rather odd world of the political activist goes unnoticed for much of the time. 

That is probably a good thing.

Unbeknownst to the person on the street, the years between campaigns are filled with endless meetings, fundraising suppers, the never-ending leaflet writing and knocking on doors.

Outside of election time people are mostly not interested.  Your events might see a low turnout and doors will be closed in your face. 

People understandably feel that they have more interesting things to do, like...well anything really. 

However, during election time people will start to take notice and that is the time to get your message across.

People have said that they feel the start of the national campaign has been rather dull.

Usually there will be some suspense around the exact date a sitting Prime Minister will go to the Monarch and prorogue Parliament. 

This suspense gives those first few weeks a little excitement as the nation’s political warriors hurriedly pull on their canvassing boots and begin the march towards Election Day.

The fact that this year we were all ready in comfy slippers with a flask of tea and fully expecting the announcement has maybe dulled some of the public’s passion?  I don’t know.

The one thing that has seemed to spark a little interest was the Leaders’ debates.

The media and the politicians seemed very excited about the prospect of people, who argue with each other on television every week, meeting on television to argue with each other.  I’m not so sure the public were that excited.

So far I’ve picked up very little feedback on the issue when I talk with people on the doorstep.

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It is interesting.  As the nation tries to decide which one of the two most likely candidates they would like as Prime Minister we find ourselves drawn into a seemingly more Presidential style of election.

I wonder how many people will get into the voting booth on polling day and look for the name of a party leader rather than that of a local candidate?

For those of us on the ground we are pretty much battered by the national narrative.

The personality of your party leader will, initially, dominate how people respond to you on the doorstep.

I hear the same lines over and over, “I can’t vote for you because I don’t like your leader” or similarly, “You get my vote because there is no way we can have him as PM” etc. 

It seems that the electorate’s view of politics is now overwhelmingly focused on the leaders.  That is no bad thing per se, considering what Great Britain is up against.

The geo-political problems that our nation faces are considerable: the resurgence of an aggressive Russia, growing conflict in the Middle East and instability in the European financial system.

Let alone the huge challenge around finding a joined up approach to climate change, striving to eliminate poverty and hunger and the huge human losses to the preventable diseases which  blight struggling nations.

These are problems of Herculean proportion. 

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But what struck me was that there was actually very little discussion around foreign policy at the Leader’s debate.  The focus was mainly on important domestic issues and those are the issues that come up on the doorstep – day in and day out.  

When I’m out in the constituency chatting with people I get asked about the economy, I get asked about domestic issues like funding public services, housing and education.

On television our leaders are debating the very things that we get asked about when we go door-to-door.    So the Leaders set out their stall at the debate and in the manifesto and we on the ground go out and promote it.

The local candidate is consumed by the national debate.  But does that mean that your candidate loses any chance to express themselves and say what they think? 

This week I’ve been lucky enough to take part in two hustings events.  I’ve never done any before and I freely admit to being incredibly nervous.

A hustings is a chance for local people to grill their Parliamentary Candidates.

We all sit behind a desk and members of the public fire questions at us.  You don’t know what questions you will be asked so all you can do is prepare an opening statement of two or so minutes and then you are on your toes for an hour and a half answering questions. 

It is pretty much like the BBC’s Question Time but with tea and lemon drizzle cake.

It was here that the election really came alive for me.

The first few questions were focused on national issues and answers from all candidates followed the prescribed line with responses delivered straight out of the party handbook.

But, after a while, we all started to loosen up and the answers became more thoughtful and, I believe, honest.

Without TV cameras in the room the candidates could say things like, “I agree with what x said” or “Actually I hadn’t thought of that”.

Nobody was rude or spoke over each other and the panel were all respectful of each others’ views – we just disagreed on certain ways of doing things.

The two hustings I’ve had so far have been interesting, honest and polite affairs where we discussed local and national issues in a sensible and grown up way – a far cry from what I saw on the telly. 

Don’t get me wrong, opinions were put and sometimes forcefully but done in a way that, I think, demonstrates an open democracy at its very best.

My suggestion to you is this: if you want to have a really good look at who might represent you, if you want a clue as to what they honestly think, then do take the time to go and meet them.

One of the two main party leaders will be PM.  The person who will be your influence on the PM is your MP.  Go and see who you think should get the job.