Canvassing is the systematic initiation of direct contact with individuals commonly used during political campaigns. Campaigners will knock on doors or make telephone calls (also known as phonebanking) to engage in a personalized contact with an individual. It is used by political parties and issue groups to identify supporters, persuade the undecided, add voters to the voters list through voter registration, and it is central to get out the vote operations. It is the core element of what political campaigns call the ground game or field. Organized canvassing became a central tool of contested election campaigns in Britain, and has remained a core practice performed by thousands of volunteers each election there, and in many of the countries descended from its political system. It is less common in campaigns of Continental Europe or the democracies of East Asia.

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