Top Liberal Groups Plan Get-Out-The-Vote Blitz On Weekend Before Midterm Election

[Valin]

HuffPo

The Last Weekend aims to mobilize an army of volunteers in the days before Nov. 6.

Daniel Marans

July 17 2018

Swing Left and 22 other progressive organizations announced a joint effort Tuesday aimed at mobilizing volunteers to get out the vote for Democratic candidates in the days leading up to the Nov. 6 congressional elections.

The Last Weekend, as the groups are calling the initiative, would serve as a national call to action from Saturday, Nov. 3 until Election Day ― a period when get-out-the-vote (GOTV) efforts are most effective. Swing Left, a post-2016 upstart that aims to help Democrats retake control of the U.S. House, believes the campaign is unprecedented in its scope and scale.

The goal of The Last Weekend is not only to maximize Democratic turnout in a midterm year, when Democratic turnout has historically been lower, but also to provide a central coordinating arm for veteran party activists and political newcomers who want to take action but are not always sure how.

(Snip)

Another impetus is the disproportionate concentration of liberal voters in safe Democratic districts, where their door-knocking and phone-banking is not needed in a general election. Creating a one-stop hub for interested activists is a way of helping redistribute these Democrats’ energies to help in nearby federal, state and local races where it is more useful, according to Todras-Whitehill.

“We need them to volunteer in the key races where control of our government will be won and lost in 2018,” Todras-Whitehill said.

(Snip)