A flock of supporters accompanied independent U.S. Senate candidate Kevin Zeese to Frederick last week for a round of campaigning to an unusual constituency -- night workers.

Mr. Zeese hit town from just before 11:30 p.m. and stayed until after 1:30 a.m.

"One of the goals of the effort was to talk to people who work the late-night shifts and get a sense of their concerns and challenges," Mr. Zeese said. "The late-night workers keep America going while the country sleeps, but they are ignored by most people running for office."

His first stop was Frederick Memorial Hospital. The Zeese flock placed leaflets on about 300 cars in the employee garage as the candidate stood by the employee entrance.

Employees were pleased with the chance to talk to a candidate, especially one from outside the two major political parties, he said.

The conversation was cut short when an amiable security guard asked Mr. Zeese to leave.

"Being forced off the hospital property shows a common problem in our democracy -- less and less areas where the public can be engaged," Mr. Zeese said.

Less successful, perhaps because most of the people Mr. Zeese approached were, well, hammered, were the bars along the Golden Mile.

"Too many of the folks in the bars were too drunk to talk to (in the future we'll do bars earlier in the evening)," Mr. Zeese said.

But in some ways, Zeese supporters believed it was the best part of the night, Mr. Zeese said, "because it showed me talking to some challenging voters -- incoherent and a bit belligerent."

There were other stops, of course: 24-hour supermarkets, a 7/11, a Kinko's.

"Although midnight campaigning is exhausting -- it is also exhilarating to talk to people who are never asked their opinion, to let voters who are treated as marginal and unimportant know that they matter to someone who is running for office, to hear how the current economy and the current government is not working for them," Mr. Zeese said.

You've got to give him some credit for refreshing political thinking. But will anyone he talked to be awake to vote for him on Nov. 7?