Get out the Vote Campaign Ideas
Appoint Coordinators:
As you begin your get-out-the-vote drive you may want to name coordinators in each of the following areas:
- General publicity
- Local election laws, Voting-machine demonstrations, Absentee balloting (optional), Candidates Forum
- List development and maintenance
- Direct mail/Telephone campaigns
- Transportation and special needs
Get Your List In Order:
No later than three months before an upcoming election, your organization must create (or update) a comprehensive list of known voting-age individuals with disabilities and their families. Begin with your list of the clients. Be sure to include family members of clients, staff and friends. Every effort must be made to verify address and phone information where possible. It is also important to determine who is registered to vote and who you need to encourage to register. In 44 states, the National Voter Registration Act requires disability agencies to offer voter registration to their clients.
Getting the list in order is the first and most important operational step in the voting process. Overall responsibility for this task should fall to a competent individual with a track record of thoroughness and follow-through. If the list is incomplete or inaccurate, the entire process will fall short. This step is extremely important because accurate lists drive every get-out-the-vote campaign that is respected by candidates. Lists should be compiled in a simple database format that can later be modified. E-base is a free online interactive database that is available at www.ebase.org This database will allow you to keep track of your entire constituency and can be used to produce phone scripts, mailing labels and will be essential for post election analysis. As your campaign evolves, lists of prospective voters will need to be sorted by varying criteria, such as by address, "Likely to Vote," or "Needs Ride."
Have a Dress Rehersal:
Voting is an intense decision-making process, anxiety provoking to even the seasoned voter. Therefore, it is especially important to guide voters through a "dress rehearsal" of the voting process. This dress rehearsal must be scrupulously non-partisan. The goal is to make people familiar and comfortable with HOW to vote, not WHO to vote for. NON-PARTISAN means you do not encourage an individual to vote for or against a particular candidate or party. A non-partisan get-out-the-vote campaign encourages individuals to vote for the candidates and ballot issues of their choice.
Once a satisfactory plan has been devised, determine the dates, times and places at which a voting system or practice ballot will be needed for dress rehearsals. In communities that use paper ballots, the election board can provide sample ballots for your dress rehearsal. Contact your local election board promptly and in writing to make the necessary arrangements. If election officials are uncooperative or do not provide assistance allowed by federal and state election laws, and you have made a good-faith effort to work with them, seek legal assistance immediately.
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