The big news this week is that the new census figures are now available for the state. The bad news is that we have lost one Congressional seat. The population of Philadelphia and its collar counties, however, has increased by close to 210,000 people over the past decade, enabling one additional state senate seat and up to three additional house seats to gravitate into the Delaware Valley. This good news, combined with a more impartial redistricting process than the one developed ten years ago should be beneficial to Democrats in 2022, as long as we take an active approach to getting blue candidates elected.
VOTER REGISTRATION
Our first order of business is to register eligible voters. PA Youth Vote has had significant success in registering high school students in Philadelphia to vote. Currently the organization is trying to persuade the Philadelphia Board of Education to create a voter education and registration policy. There will be a demonstration for such a policy at 440 N. Broad Street this Thursday, August 19, at 12:30 PM, with a performance by Forum Theater performance entitled, "How's Your Voice Gonna Matter (if you don't vote)?"
LOCAL RACES
This year is crucial because a candidate elected to a school board in 2021 may run for the State House in 2022. Office holders often have an advantage in state government races. And there are a number of ways that you can help blue candidates to win.
In case you are wondering, here is what the research says various campaign strategies:
Strategy
Effectiveness
Canvassing
Canvassing reliably produces some of the best results in increasing turnout, by as much as 6%
Phonebanking
Phonebanking is the best choice for remote volunteering, increasing turnout by 1.6-3.8%
Textbanking
Text messages have a small effect on voter turnout, , increasing turnout by 0.2 – 3.0%
Postcard and Letter Writing
Postcarding and letter-writing both appear to have small, modest effects, , increasing turnout by 0.1-1.4%
With these strategies in mind, please consider signing up for one of these events:
LEARN
·Are you new to canvassing or feeling rusty? We've got your back! Join us for Canvassing 101: How to Knock Doors and Influence People on 8/16, 8/23 or 9/13 from 6:30-8:00 PM. This training will take you step-by-step through a canvass, review how to record your data, show you how to use MiniVAN, provide best practices and tips for your conversations, model common scenarios at the doors, and take questions. SIGN UP HERE.
· Making Sense of the Census, Wednesday, 9/1, at 7 PM. Census data has been released, and we are going to help unpack what it means for PA. Join us for a discussion with some of our favorite special guests: Stephen Caruso, Pennsylvania Capitol-Star House Reporter; Lara Putnam, Professor of History, University of Pittsburgh; and Ben Forstate, Political Analyst. SIGN UP HERE.
KNOCK -MORE CANVASSERS NEEDED!
· Knock Doors in Springfield (Delco): 8/17 at 4:30 PM. SIGN UP HERE.
· Knock Doors in Northampton (Bucks): 8/21 at 11:00 AM: SIGN UP HERE.
· Knock Doors in Warrington (Bucks): 8/22 at 11:00 AM: SIGN UP HERE.
· Knock Doors in Chichester (Delco): 8/28 at 10 AM: SIGN UP HERE.
· Knock Doors in Limerick with Special Guest Senator Katie Muth (Montco): 8/29 at 12:00 PM. SIGN UP HERE.
· If you’d like to carpool, please sign up using the links and email andreakoplove@gmail.com.
·More dates and locations will be added.
TEXT
· Vote by Mail Outreach Texting, Thursdays from 3-6 PM. SIGN UP HERE. (Training is offered before each shift. New texters are welcome!)
JOIN TPAB’S MESSAGING TEAMS
· Social Media Messaging Team: to receive a weekly toolkit to advance Democratic messaging across PA, SIGN UP HEREand/or join the TURN PA BLUE SLACK HERE. You’ll find us in the #social-media-messaging-team channel.
· Letters to the Editor Team: SIGN UP HERE to become one of our letter writers.
POSTCARDS
· TPAB’s postcard store is OPEN! Voter registration and vote by mail postcard projects are available for shipment this week. ORDER HERE!
CALL
· Voter Registration Calls in partnership with the PA Dems: 8/25 from 6-8 PM. SIGN UP HERE.
Thanks,
Coleman
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