October 2008
TO: Majority Council Members
FROM: Ellen R. Malcolm
DATE: October 15, 2008
Once again, we’re heading into the final weeks of an incredibly tight election. Polls show an electorate nearly evenly divided, just as it was in 2000 and 2004. So many races could go either way, from the top of the ballot on down. And I don’t think it’s an overstatement to say that the very future of our country is at stake. This is our chance to reject the right-wing policies of the last eight years, rehabilitate our economy and our global standing, and change course towards a brighter future. But we face an energized right wing and powerful corporate special interests who are determined to keep their allies in power. It won’t be easy.
All eyes are on women voters, and both parties are fighting hard to win their votes -- Republicans with smoke and mirrors and Sarah Palin, and Democrats with progressive policies that will actually help working families.
We have just a few weeks left to help our progressive women candidates get over the finish line. In fact, voting has already begun in many states, and some are projecting that up to 50 million votes will already be cast by Nov. 4. There’s no time to waste in reaching the nearly 6.5 million women voters who can make the difference for our women, Barack Obama and Joe Biden, and the entire Democratic ticket.
I want to thank you for your steadfast support. It’s because of the faith and confidence of Majority Council members like you that EMILY’s List is such a progressive political powerhouse. You have poured your heart and soul into making sure this election brings the change America so desperately needs, and I am confident that we are on the cusp of a new, progressive era.
I hope you will stand with us in these final days and dig a little deeper to make sure we have the resources we need to turn out women voters, whose support is so critical to increasing our progressive political power. So we can put your contribution to work immediately, please give online at www.emilyslist.org/memo or call our office at 1-800-68-EMILY (1-800-683-6459) and talk to a member of our staff.
This moment is fleeting. We need immediate help to expand our WOMEN VOTE! efforts in battleground states and help our women win. If we act now, I know we will celebrate many sweet victories next month!
WOMEN VOTE! enters the final phase
Mobilizing women voters in New Hampshire, North Carolina, and across the country
Our WOMEN VOTE! team has been laying the groundwork for months for the most comprehensive effort in our history, and now it’s show time! Here’s a snapshot of some of the cutting-edge work WOMEN VOTE! is doing to reach key groups of women voters in critical states.
Democratic registration has boomed in North Carolina, particularly among young voters. But in focus groups, EMILY’s List discovered that while many of these first-time voters are excited about voting for Barack Obama, only a handful could even name the candidates for governor or U.S. Senate. They understand the importance of electing strong partners for Obama, so WOMEN VOTE! is targeting young voters with a campaign called “Don’t Stop at the Top” to encourage first-time voters to vote the entire ballot, not just for president.
Using the web, including social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook, EMILY’s List WOMEN VOTE! is making it as easy as possible for young voters to learn about Kay Hagan, Bev Perdue, and other Democrats. We’re placing web ads featuring Barack Obama that direct them to sites where they can learn more about downballot candidates’ views on their top issue concerns, like gas prices, student loan rates, and the war in Iraq. WOMEN VOTE! will use the same messages to reach young voters on targeted radio and cable TV, directing them to web sites where they can find credible information to make informed choices.
In addition to North Carolina, WOMEN VOTE! is targeting young voters in 10 congressional districts with web-based “Don’t Stop at the Top” campaigns. We’re running web ads in each district that will appear on social networking and campus news sites, through Google and other search engines, and on other sites with heavy young adult traffic.
WOMEN VOTE! is tapping into pop culture on behalf of congressional candidate Christine Jennings in Florida’s 13th district with a series of YouTube videos spoofing the NBC sitcom “The Office.” Called “Vern’s Office,” the ads take a satirical look at what life might be like for employees at Republican Cong. Vern Buchanan’s used car dealerships, where he’s been accused of illegally pressuring staff to make contributions to his campaign. We’ve created a web site called www.vernsoffice.com where you can watch the series and learn more about Buchanan and Jennings. Or go to www.emilyslist.org and click on WOMEN VOTE! to learn about other individual WOMEN VOTE! efforts.
In September, we conducted research in New Hampshire among swing voters and eligible adults that shows we can have a dramatic impact on the U.S. Senate race between Jeanne Shaheen and GOP Sen. John Sununu.
WOMEN VOTE! mailed materials to two key groups of swing voters: registered unaffiliated voters and unregistered voting-eligible adults whom our modeling shows are promising targets (New Hampshire allows people to register to vote through election day). We held out a control group from each category to measure the impact. We wanted to assess how these swing voters respond when they learn specifics about John Sununu’s abysmal record on top issue concerns like rising energy costs and a failing economy before rolling out a more extensive and costly program to wider universes.
After our targets got their mail, we followed up by polling them and our control group -- and found that voters who received EMILY’s List WOMEN VOTE! communications moved dramatically toward Shaheen. Among our targeted registered voters, Shaheen’s margin increased by six points; among our unregistered targets, Shaheen’s margin grew by four points. In a race as tight as this, increased support from these voters could provide the margin of victory to send Shaheen to the U.S. Senate and elect Democrats up and down the ballot.
Join us in New Hampshire!
Our office is starting to thin out as EMILY’s List staffers head into the field to provide people-power for our candidates and WOMEN VOTE!. Many are going to New Hampshire this year, and I want to encourage you to join us there from Saturday, Nov. 1 through election day, Nov. 4. We need volunteers on the ground, knocking on doors, and talking to voters in these last days about progressive Democrats -- including Jeanne Shaheen, Carol Shea-Porter for Congress, and Democratic legislative candidates. John McCain has many friends in New Hampshire, and Democrats are counting on us to help Obama gain the edge he needs to win this battleground state.