by Paul Vasquez
We’ve all lived through elections where we were on either the winning or losing side. A win inspires joy and we sleep especially well if we’ve contributed to the victory. A loss causes disappointment and even restless nights in fear of the consequences and due to regrets that we could have done more.
To jump into action from now until Election Day, please explore the options in these blue links:
Canvass (knock on doors)
Phone bank for Harris/Walz
Become a Block Captain
Become a Poll Watcher
Early Voting (hand out Voter Guides)
Election Day (hand out Voter Guides)
The next critical few weeks will determine whether or not we Seminole County Democrats will be celebrating political wins on November 5th or shaking our heads in defeat and dismay. The general election occurs in less than two months, Early Voting starts on October 21st, and the last day to register to vote is October 7th.
If you’ve been putting in the hard work to secure wins in November, we sincerely thank you! Your efforts are crucial to our community. But if you have been delaying your efforts on behalf of Democratic candidates and causes, perhaps due to the summer heat, now is the time to step up your efforts in doing the “hard work” that Kamala Harris reminds us is “good work.”
Many SemDems have enthusiastically been writing postcards and waving signs on street corners to inspire our neighbors, which is helpful work that we appreciate. However, successful Get Out The Vote strategies involve reaching out to our voters in a variety of ways. The highest priority and most effective ways are phone banking (making phone calls) and canvassing (knocking on doors) so we can connect with our neighbors more directly.
If you're interested in coordinating and leading canvassing in your own neighborhood, please volunteer as a Block Captain to touch base with voters.
Because of the approaching dates mentioned above, it is critical to contact voters to make sure voters are registered and prepared to Vote-by-Mail (if they prefer.) Also, as we move into early voting (October 21st through November 3rd), we’ll need many volunteers to hand out Voter Guides. This will take place outside of polling centers to help boost our candidates both up AND down the ballot, including important state and local elections, which can help us reverse some of the foolishness we have had to contend with from Governor DeSantis and the GOP crowd in Tallahassee.
For any of these activities, extensive knowledge of government policy or political philosophy is not needed. When canvassing, just smile, ask people to vote for a candidate or an amendment, and offer flyers to inspire neighbors to research candidates and move from being spectators to participants. If no one is home, leave campaign literature at the door. We only send canvassers to households where there are Democratic or unaffiliated voters.
While phone banking, our volunteers often end up leaving a friendly message on an answering machine. To make sure voters are not turned away unnecessarily from voting, we also need poll watchers to sit, observe, and be the eyes and ears for the Democratic Party so all voters have their say.
In recent years, President Joe Biden and Vice President Harris, as well as prominent Republicans, have warned us of the threat Donald Trump poses to the U.S. Constitution, and NOW is the best opportunity to act to protect our democracy. Your role in this mission is significant. Thus, while the temperatures start to fall, let us all rise now to do our part by matching our sentiments with the crucial action to help make history by moving Seminole County and the United States forward rather than backward, and so we can all sleep more peacefully.
Please click on one of the links above to provide the power that only you can give. Let’s create a BLUE wave on Election Day!