Although I am disgusted with both parties (kind of really only one party as the government is run by the 1 percent) I think it would help democrats win their elections if they talked more about the real issues. We must stop any thought of raising the SS age, and the medicare age of eligibility! No one is talking about plans to make those changes a reality by the republicans.
Yesterday (Tuesday 18-October) I was at a local (based in Connecticut, but held via zoom) anti-racism meeting and one of the participants expressed a desire for guidance on how to direct resources (donations) most effectively for getting out the vote. I wrote an email to the group after the call, but it was somewhat off the top of my head and based on what links I had stored in my browser favorites. I also included a PDF copy of Jess' "Where Do I Give" document.
Here is what I wrote:
1. I looked at the link that <name redacted> posted to crushthecoup.org. I am sold in general on the idea that state legislature races are the place to expend donation and volunteer resources, especially in swing states and tight races but winnable races; and that seems to be the focus of crush-the-coup. The parent organization, indivisible.org, is quite credible in my opinion, though I have not worked with any of the local organizations directly. I like that a single donation can be split between multiple key races in multiple key states. A similar approach is taken by The States Project at https://statesproject.org/, but there is a good bit of overlap between the states in play, so you might want to choose one or the other.
2. Beyond donations, if you have some time to spare for the work, there is some evidence that lightly tailored hand-written postcards or letters to voters (targeted by alignment with (small 'd') democratic values) can be somewhat effective in improving turnout. Some of the leading 'cards and letters' programs are:
Note that these programs typically require spending some money for postage and/or cards. Also, some of the deadlines for sending the postcards/letters are coming up fast (or already due).
3. There is some evidence that a more effective method of getting out the vote is direct contact with prospective (targeted) voters. A typical method for focusing on key states is phone banking sessions of various types. I do not have direct experience with phone banking, but it is on my bucket list to give it a try.
4. A very good source for phone banking opportunities and other advocacy opportunities is Jessica Craven's substack blog Chop Wood, Carry Water. Craven is particularly appealing because she offers a variety of actions and activities on a daily basis, including not only phone banks and zoom webinars but also recommendations for calls to make to Senators and Congressional Representatives and IM-based generated messages to politicians and bureaucrats via resistbot. I have gone through brief stretches where I have called [Connecticut] Senators Murphy and Blumenthal and Rep DeLauro every weekday for a week or two, following scripts provided by Jessica. What I most like about her daily substack is her emphatically positive outlook and energy.
5. I have attached a short document from Jess Craven on Where Do I Give? This document lists specific races with links, particularly for Secretary of State and Attorney General races in key states. For US House of Reps races, I am inclined to donate via the Force Multiplier service that Craven highlights. She advises not to donate to US Senate races because Senate candidates are typically well-funded and supporting local and HR races will benefit the Senate races as well.
Writing post. Cards to Houston and nearby urging them to VOTE we wonder if you still want the post date to be October 28th. We are anxious and tempted to send sooner. Please advise these South Carolina Democrats if we should honor your date‼️‼️Bailey Symington
Link to Michael Moore; Antidote to all the media's stuff and "polls". Read today's! But read all his daily "Tsunami" postshttps://www.michaelmoore.com. Very helpful.
Hi Jess -- if we go to the Vote Riders event today, without having the letter kits, will we still be able to write letters or is it just a listening session? I signed up but then realized I might not have materials that I need. You may not know the answer to this. Thank you for everything.
Although I am disgusted with both parties (kind of really only one party as the government is run by the 1 percent) I think it would help democrats win their elections if they talked more about the real issues. We must stop any thought of raising the SS age, and the medicare age of eligibility! No one is talking about plans to make those changes a reality by the republicans.
Yesterday (Tuesday 18-October) I was at a local (based in Connecticut, but held via zoom) anti-racism meeting and one of the participants expressed a desire for guidance on how to direct resources (donations) most effectively for getting out the vote. I wrote an email to the group after the call, but it was somewhat off the top of my head and based on what links I had stored in my browser favorites. I also included a PDF copy of Jess' "Where Do I Give" document.
Here is what I wrote:
1. I looked at the link that <name redacted> posted to crushthecoup.org. I am sold in general on the idea that state legislature races are the place to expend donation and volunteer resources, especially in swing states and tight races but winnable races; and that seems to be the focus of crush-the-coup. The parent organization, indivisible.org, is quite credible in my opinion, though I have not worked with any of the local organizations directly. I like that a single donation can be split between multiple key races in multiple key states. A similar approach is taken by The States Project at https://statesproject.org/, but there is a good bit of overlap between the states in play, so you might want to choose one or the other.
2. Beyond donations, if you have some time to spare for the work, there is some evidence that lightly tailored hand-written postcards or letters to voters (targeted by alignment with (small 'd') democratic values) can be somewhat effective in improving turnout. Some of the leading 'cards and letters' programs are:
https://postcardstovoters.org/
https://www.centerforcommonground.org/postcarding
https://www.turnoutpac.org/postcards/
Note that these programs typically require spending some money for postage and/or cards. Also, some of the deadlines for sending the postcards/letters are coming up fast (or already due).
3. There is some evidence that a more effective method of getting out the vote is direct contact with prospective (targeted) voters. A typical method for focusing on key states is phone banking sessions of various types. I do not have direct experience with phone banking, but it is on my bucket list to give it a try.
4. A very good source for phone banking opportunities and other advocacy opportunities is Jessica Craven's substack blog Chop Wood, Carry Water. Craven is particularly appealing because she offers a variety of actions and activities on a daily basis, including not only phone banks and zoom webinars but also recommendations for calls to make to Senators and Congressional Representatives and IM-based generated messages to politicians and bureaucrats via resistbot. I have gone through brief stretches where I have called [Connecticut] Senators Murphy and Blumenthal and Rep DeLauro every weekday for a week or two, following scripts provided by Jessica. What I most like about her daily substack is her emphatically positive outlook and energy.
5. I have attached a short document from Jess Craven on Where Do I Give? This document lists specific races with links, particularly for Secretary of State and Attorney General races in key states. For US House of Reps races, I am inclined to donate via the Force Multiplier service that Craven highlights. She advises not to donate to US Senate races because Senate candidates are typically well-funded and supporting local and HR races will benefit the Senate races as well.
Writing post. Cards to Houston and nearby urging them to VOTE we wonder if you still want the post date to be October 28th. We are anxious and tempted to send sooner. Please advise these South Carolina Democrats if we should honor your date‼️‼️Bailey Symington
Did you see these comments about the NYT poll? It was done very unprofessionally.
https://twitter.com/therealhoarse/status/1582381878807793664?s=46&t=iYmuWJKs3KZmoeNBLTShsw
Link to Michael Moore; Antidote to all the media's stuff and "polls". Read today's! But read all his daily "Tsunami" postshttps://www.michaelmoore.com. Very helpful.
Hi Jess -- if we go to the Vote Riders event today, without having the letter kits, will we still be able to write letters or is it just a listening session? I signed up but then realized I might not have materials that I need. You may not know the answer to this. Thank you for everything.