so says Mike Lux of OpenLeft.
Of course, Mike is saying this in the context of the Iowa Caucuses. But it matters just as heavily to DECs and campaigns here in Florida, too.
Precinct captains who have been well trained and know their neighbors well alter the outcomes of elections and make polls seem inaccurate. Of course, precinct captains alone sometimes don't do the job completely - they often need the help of block captains, who manage pieces of the precinct.
Precinct captains are indeed the key.
Showing posts with label Precinct Captains. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Precinct Captains. Show all posts
Thursday, August 02, 2007
Friday, June 29, 2007
Decentralized GOTV
The other "innovation" to come out of the SD3 special election for me other than than using Streets and Trips for canvassing, was decentralizing our GOTV system.
This was a test of a get out the vote system which we would like to try and use for 2008, when more precincts and volunteers are in play.
Marion used a centralized system in past elections, as we only were were working a few precincts. Which was fine, being that's all the volunteers we had to spare. However, its major drawback was response time. Marion Oaks, a set of key Democratic precincts in the southern area of the county is around a 30 to 40 minute drive from Dem HQ. Silver Springs Shores, another set of key Dem precincts, is around 15-20 minutes away from HQ. It would take even longer getting lists back to HQ for data entry and evaluation after 5pm as the workforce heads back home. Traffic is terrible on some of the arteries that lead to these two key areas.
To be perfectly honest, decentralizing GOTV, is by no means an "easier" system. It takes more work and effort, but it all pays off in both reaction time and effectiveness. Also, think long term. If a DEC is targeting more than a dozen precincts, some of which may be in different corners of their respective county, is it logistically feasible to bring a dozen or so runners back to HQ periodically throughout the day. How about response? Does your HQ have the number of phone lines to call the thousands of voters that haven't shown up to vote yet? Does your HQ have the sheer space to handle all those callers, much less those callers who bring their cell phones? What about knock and draggers (canvassers)? How do we communicate with them and get them the resources (maps in particular) they need fast enough to have an impact? As you can see, it can get pretty sticky very quickly.
Looking at the long term picture, it seems more and more likely that GOTV systems will have to be more decentralized. What we did in SD3 is take three precincts and test out decentralization. We had mixed results largely because we couldn't get the half-dozen volunteers needed for each precinct in time. That goes to show you how hard getting volunteers was for us, particularly those who would be willing to knock and drag. Most had done calling in the previous week and didn't really want to do much more: aka "burnout in the first degree."
Ironically, while we never truly tested out the entire idea in one precinct, different pieces were tested out in all three. God (or coincidence for our atheist/agnostic friends) is a funny guy. The system itself worked. It didn't produce any noticeable results largely because of a lack of manpower.
Here's how it all works in a broad sense.
1.) You have poll watchers pre-assigned to your targeted precinct's polling places. They're sitting behind the poll workers with a poll list from VAN of all the Dems (and favorable independents if you've identified them) in that precinct who haven't voted yet.
2.) Each targeted precinct has a GOTV leader, who acts as the runner (picking up lists from the poll watcher at pre-assigned times throughout the day) and the "commander" of the precinct and its volunteers. This person is typically one of the precinct captains of the targeted precinct. They've been given training weeks or months ago about what to do.
3.) Someone's home in the precinct acts a field office, technically called a "Turnout Control Center" or "TCC". TCCs are designated months before the election. At the TCC, the GOTV leader uses VAN to enter in all the Dems who have voted so far. All Dems over the age of 65 who haven't voted yet get plugged into Streets and Trips and maps are given to individual canvassing teams. Dems under the age of 65 are given to volunteers with cell phones.
4.) This process is repeated a total of 3 times during Election Day. As data comes in from the precincts, folks at Dem HQ can monitor the results on VAN, and instruct GOTV leaders in the field on any changes.
Obviously we will continue to experiment with this method as more elections (aka opportunities) come down the line.
This was a test of a get out the vote system which we would like to try and use for 2008, when more precincts and volunteers are in play.
Marion used a centralized system in past elections, as we only were were working a few precincts. Which was fine, being that's all the volunteers we had to spare. However, its major drawback was response time. Marion Oaks, a set of key Democratic precincts in the southern area of the county is around a 30 to 40 minute drive from Dem HQ. Silver Springs Shores, another set of key Dem precincts, is around 15-20 minutes away from HQ. It would take even longer getting lists back to HQ for data entry and evaluation after 5pm as the workforce heads back home. Traffic is terrible on some of the arteries that lead to these two key areas.
To be perfectly honest, decentralizing GOTV, is by no means an "easier" system. It takes more work and effort, but it all pays off in both reaction time and effectiveness. Also, think long term. If a DEC is targeting more than a dozen precincts, some of which may be in different corners of their respective county, is it logistically feasible to bring a dozen or so runners back to HQ periodically throughout the day. How about response? Does your HQ have the number of phone lines to call the thousands of voters that haven't shown up to vote yet? Does your HQ have the sheer space to handle all those callers, much less those callers who bring their cell phones? What about knock and draggers (canvassers)? How do we communicate with them and get them the resources (maps in particular) they need fast enough to have an impact? As you can see, it can get pretty sticky very quickly.
Looking at the long term picture, it seems more and more likely that GOTV systems will have to be more decentralized. What we did in SD3 is take three precincts and test out decentralization. We had mixed results largely because we couldn't get the half-dozen volunteers needed for each precinct in time. That goes to show you how hard getting volunteers was for us, particularly those who would be willing to knock and drag. Most had done calling in the previous week and didn't really want to do much more: aka "burnout in the first degree."
Ironically, while we never truly tested out the entire idea in one precinct, different pieces were tested out in all three. God (or coincidence for our atheist/agnostic friends) is a funny guy. The system itself worked. It didn't produce any noticeable results largely because of a lack of manpower.
Here's how it all works in a broad sense.
1.) You have poll watchers pre-assigned to your targeted precinct's polling places. They're sitting behind the poll workers with a poll list from VAN of all the Dems (and favorable independents if you've identified them) in that precinct who haven't voted yet.
2.) Each targeted precinct has a GOTV leader, who acts as the runner (picking up lists from the poll watcher at pre-assigned times throughout the day) and the "commander" of the precinct and its volunteers. This person is typically one of the precinct captains of the targeted precinct. They've been given training weeks or months ago about what to do.
3.) Someone's home in the precinct acts a field office, technically called a "Turnout Control Center" or "TCC". TCCs are designated months before the election. At the TCC, the GOTV leader uses VAN to enter in all the Dems who have voted so far. All Dems over the age of 65 who haven't voted yet get plugged into Streets and Trips and maps are given to individual canvassing teams. Dems under the age of 65 are given to volunteers with cell phones.
4.) This process is repeated a total of 3 times during Election Day. As data comes in from the precincts, folks at Dem HQ can monitor the results on VAN, and instruct GOTV leaders in the field on any changes.
Obviously we will continue to experiment with this method as more elections (aka opportunities) come down the line.
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Party Building Basics: Part 3
As discussed in Party Building Basics: Part 2, once your calling program starts running, you need to have some infrastructure in place (discussed in PBB: Part 1) to plug potential volunteers and activists in. Today's post will focus on how to integrate these folks into the Democratic Party so they can have the most enjoyment and be the most productive.
Its All About Community: As "thekick" discussed in his comment yesterday in PBB: Part 2, Applebee's America is a must read for anyone working on organizing the Democratic Party and the Progressive Movement. The book stresses the current lack of community in the United States, and the fact that individuals are drawn to groups and organizations the fill that void. Megachurches are particularly good examples. There's a small group for everything: sportsmen Bible studies, a young mother's group, an athletic group, etc... Political organizations, like DECs, have to do roughly the same thing. If your volunteers don't feel they're valuable, if they're not rewarded, and if they don't feel a part of the group - they will leave. Of course, this speaks to the larger issue of how to DECs do their own small group thing to attract new activists and volunteers. That's another post for the near-future.
Have Good Training Programs: In my opinion, Democracy For America has the best grassroots training around. There's one in Tampa June 30th, if you're interested. I encourage you to go to one of these trainings and build off of the core ideas presented in DFA trainings as the foundation for your own. Every training should have practical, bullet-point like advice for people. It should be personal and give trainees an opportunity to do things hands on. For instance, do a phone banking training, and then actually give folks lists to take home and try out. Also, every good training has an evaluation form at the end for trainees to evaluate their trainers so trainings can be improved in the future.
Get People Moving Locally: In my opinion, the best way to keep volunteers is to make them feel that their time and talents are valued by the DEC. This means that we try and put new activists and volunteers into action as quickly as we can once they've been trained properly. I would also make sure that they're working in their own neighborhoods and communities as block captains, block leaders, or precinct captains. Getting to know one's Democratic neighbors can be a rewarding experience (hey! you're not the only Democrat on the block!)
Have A Plan/Program For Organizers: Your local volunteers and activists should be given a flexible plan for organizing their communities. Of course, DECs shouldn't just throw them in and watch - they need to make sure there's a set of people at HQ who work hand-in-hand with them. These should be folks who aren't just going to talk over the phone with local organizers, but folks who are willing to come down for the day and take the time and effort to make volunteers feel valued and appreciated. This is how we can keep up the momentum.
Its All About Community: As "thekick" discussed in his comment yesterday in PBB: Part 2, Applebee's America is a must read for anyone working on organizing the Democratic Party and the Progressive Movement. The book stresses the current lack of community in the United States, and the fact that individuals are drawn to groups and organizations the fill that void. Megachurches are particularly good examples. There's a small group for everything: sportsmen Bible studies, a young mother's group, an athletic group, etc... Political organizations, like DECs, have to do roughly the same thing. If your volunteers don't feel they're valuable, if they're not rewarded, and if they don't feel a part of the group - they will leave. Of course, this speaks to the larger issue of how to DECs do their own small group thing to attract new activists and volunteers. That's another post for the near-future.
Have Good Training Programs: In my opinion, Democracy For America has the best grassroots training around. There's one in Tampa June 30th, if you're interested. I encourage you to go to one of these trainings and build off of the core ideas presented in DFA trainings as the foundation for your own. Every training should have practical, bullet-point like advice for people. It should be personal and give trainees an opportunity to do things hands on. For instance, do a phone banking training, and then actually give folks lists to take home and try out. Also, every good training has an evaluation form at the end for trainees to evaluate their trainers so trainings can be improved in the future.
Get People Moving Locally: In my opinion, the best way to keep volunteers is to make them feel that their time and talents are valued by the DEC. This means that we try and put new activists and volunteers into action as quickly as we can once they've been trained properly. I would also make sure that they're working in their own neighborhoods and communities as block captains, block leaders, or precinct captains. Getting to know one's Democratic neighbors can be a rewarding experience (hey! you're not the only Democrat on the block!)
Have A Plan/Program For Organizers: Your local volunteers and activists should be given a flexible plan for organizing their communities. Of course, DECs shouldn't just throw them in and watch - they need to make sure there's a set of people at HQ who work hand-in-hand with them. These should be folks who aren't just going to talk over the phone with local organizers, but folks who are willing to come down for the day and take the time and effort to make volunteers feel valued and appreciated. This is how we can keep up the momentum.
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