How Do You Feel about the November Election?
A lot of us have some anxiety. We really want to see:
A Harris Presidency: We can’t afford to lose our democracy to Trump’s schemes.
A Democratic Congress: Winning means not losing. We can’t afford to lose seats and we have vulnerable seats. Picking up seats wherever we can is essential.
More Democrats in our State Capitols: We’ve been behind in this arena. This election we have a chance to get majorities in one or both houses in many states and even super majorities in some.
Democrats in Local Office: For example, my county voted for President Obama but currently is 100% Republican on the county commission. We’ve been losing ground in rural counties, and this trend in rural counties shows up in every state. Let’s get more Democrats in office everywhere.
We Can Do Things to Feel Better about the Outcome of This Election!
- We can talk to family, friends, neighbors about the importance of voting. Getting a plan to vote in mind is key. Visualizing voting helps make it happen. For areas with mail-in ballots, get folks to turn in their ballot right away before they forget or misplace it.
- We can help with these last door-to-door efforts. Talk with Democratic leaning voters that are identified as not always getting their ballots in. We want to leave them a list of the Democrats on the ballot, and ask them to make a plan to vote.
- We can help with calling the Democratic voters who don’t always remember to vote.
- We can help with sending personally written postcards to Democratic voters who don’t always remember to vote.
- We can get out the yard signs. This is especially effective in more rural areas. It’s getting name repetition in areas without much local media. Signs in windows where permitted in urban areas is great too.
- You can volunteer in your neighborhood. Get in touch with your Democratic precinct officers or local committee.
It’s Crunch Time!
It’s only days now! Time to help however you can. Even if you live in a blue state or safely blue city. Help your State Democratic Party get voter turnout. We need it everywhere. Your state party may need help calling or canvassing in more rural areas for turnout. It’s all about turnout now. Contact your state or local Democrats to see what you can do. Pick something you’d like. Doing something to contact voters will be an uplifting experience; they are glad to hear from us.
It's AllGOTV (Get Out The Vote)
Going Door to Door: Going door to door is not intimidating. Getting out the vote means only going to Democratic leaning voters to remind them who is on the ballot and to make a plan to vote. A face-to-face conversation is proven to be the most effective way to get these voters voting!
Phone Banking: Again, we are only calling Democratic leaning voters, with the same message to be sure to vote for the Democratic candidates. A personal phone call is the second most effective way to reach these voters! Your state Democratic Party or local party organization may be set up so you can call when it’s most convenient for you. You may have a texting option.
Sending Postcards:
Local party organizations in rural areas often use postcards to reach voters who are remote and time consuming to find by canvassing. Again, this involves a personal message to have more impact. Get in touch with a rural local party organization to see if this is on their agenda and volunteer. There are national groups may still have room for volunteers for postcards to swing states too.
LETS HAVE A VICTORY PARTY ON NOVEMBER 5TH !
The author is chair of a county Democratic Party in a blue state