Field Organizing

1. Field Organizing Gettysburg, PA September 26th, 2009 Paid for by Democracy for America, www.democracyforamerica.com, and not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.

2. 2 Your Blueprint for Victory Contains your campaign’s Goals and the Strategies, Tactics, Timelines, and Benchmarks to achieve them Person to person voter contact • Delivers a campaign’s message to targeted voters • Tactics: Canvass, phone calls, mail literature drops, etc. Builds a grassroots volunteer base A strong Field Organization can help you gain between 3-5% on election day.

3. Step 2: Set Your Goals Win Number = (Projected Turnout / 2) + 1 Vote Goal = Projected Turnout x .52 3 What’s Your Win Number? Step 1: Project the turnout: Projected Turnout % Turnout in last similar election(s) Current number of registered voters = x Step 3: Write them down!

4. 4 Targeting Your Resources Why target? • Limited People, Money & Time • Gets the right message to the right voters 3 Ways to Target Voters • Geographically • Voter History & Identification • Constituencies • Research Suggestions • Secretary of State • County Elections Board • Party Voter File • NCEC • US Census data

5. 5 Calculate Your Vote Goals

6. { } Democratic % in similar election # 1 + Democratic % in similar election # 2 + Democratic % in similar election # 3 / 3 = D.P.I. 6 Democratic Performance Index ‘Percentage of the vote an average Dem can expect in an average election’ • Based on voting history NOT voter registration How to calculate D.P.I About NCEC

9. 8 Field Targeting Strategies DEM BASE PRECINCTS - D.P.I. = greater than 65% - Identification, voter registration, volunteer recruitment, GOTV REPUBLICAN BASE PRECINCTS - D.P.I. = less than 35% - Lowest priority, highly targeted contact only SWING PRECINCTS - D.P.I. = between 35% and 65% - Identification, Persuasion & GOTV

10. Partisanship ID Strong Supporter (1) Undecided (2, 3, 4) Strong Opponent (5) Always Vote (4x4) D Base A Persuasion F Voting History Sometimes Vote (2x4) (0x0) B C Persuasion #2 F Never Vote (0x4) E E F 9 Targeting with Voter History Voter Contact Priorities Undecideds likely to Vote (ID, Persuasion) Supporters less likely to vote (ID, GOTV) Undecideds less likely to vote (ID, Persuasion, GOTV) Supporters likely to vote (Base building)

11. 10 Targeting with Constituencies Look at your candidate and message Meet with community leaders early Build bases of support Seek endorsements Target niche media

12. Voter Preference Targeting 11 Conversations win Elections Phone Calls & Canvassing: • Deliver a campaign’s message to targeted voters in a personable way • Give the campaign valuable information about the voter’s preferences • Allow for a targeted field campaign Yard signs belong in Yards, NOT street corners

13. 12 Canvassing Sample Canvass Packet • Scripts • Walksheets • Maps • Campaign Lit • Candidate FAQ • Goodie bags (food, water, stickers, etc) Know your turf Prepare your canvass Packets Train your volunteers • Provide ‘context’ • Explain the Canvass Packet Materials • Review scripts, responses and coding instructions • Role Plays!

14. 13 Phonebanks Your most versatile voter contact tactic • High number of contacts • Two way communication Ideal for voter identification, persuasion, & GOTV Drawbacks: Lower impact than canvassing Increasingly difficult to reach voters

15. 14 Yard Signs and Visibility Shows supporters and donors your support base Reminds supporters of their support No more than 1% of budget spent on visibility Drawbacks: Signs don’t vote (just ask Ron Paul) Often overemphasized at expense of more effective tactics