Mail and Phone Campaign

Voter Lists

Develop or update a comprehensive list of known voting-age individuals with disabilities and their families.

• Begin with your list of consumers;
• Include family members of clients, staff and friends;
• Verify address and phone information where possible;
• Determine who is registered to vote and who you need to encourage to register.

General Publicity

• Put a get-out-the-vote message on your organization's answering machine
• Include a get-out-the-vote message in your organization's e-mail signature.
• Newsletter coverage of voter registration, absentee, voting, and GOTV information

Direct Mail

Begin to plan for the mailer that will go out two weeks before the election. The mailer should explain clearly and simply why people with disabilities, and their families, need to vote.

Example message:

• Your access to community services
• End of waiting lists for disability related services
• Affordable and available health care
• Quality adequately funded special education

Other information:

• Display a phone number to call for polling place information.
• List a phone number for people who need to request transportation to the polls, or who have other questions.

Phone Campaign - Plan

A phone campaign is the single most important part of a successful get-out-the-vote effort. If your resources are limited and you need to limit your activities, MAKE SURE that the phone campaign is part of your effort. Your phone campaign can occur 1 ½ weeks and/or 4-days before the election and/or the day of the election.

Phone Bank Considerations:

• Additional phone lines may be donated from the offices of local businesses, law firms, non-profits, community centers, and YMCA/YWCAs;
• Phone calls can also be made from people's homes. This might be a good way to have people with transportation limits help the effort. However, experience group efforts result in more completed phone calls and turned out votes;
• Obtain precinct finder - Most voters will know where their polling place is located. If this is not true for your callers, your local election board should provide you with a precinct finder (an address directory which allows you to look up polling place locations). Otherwise, the voter (or your agency, if the voter is unable to) can call the local board of elections to find out their polling place location.

Phone Bank Checklist:

• Telephone instruction sheet (see Appendix 1)
• Script to be used during the shift. (see Appendix 2)
• List of people to call and their phone numbers, including space to record responses.
• Requisition forms for election-day assistance (such as transportation, baby-sitting, etc.) to submit at end of shift.
• Notepad for special questions, reports to supervisor, etc.
• Pens and pencils.
• Polling place information - precinct finder or board of elections telephone number.
• Daily tally sheet for phone bank manager to record the number of calls placed and the response totals.

General Considerations:

• Ideal hours to phone are 6-9 p.m. No phone calls after 9 p.m.
• Gather your volunteers and give them dinner (e.g., sandwiches, pizza, salad, soft drinks).
• Encourage your volunteers to socialize while eating.
• Informally encourage discussion of the day's political news.
• Announce to the group:
  "Our goal tonight is to reach [number] of voters. We will be on the phones between 6 and 7:30. We will have a break from 7:30 to 7:45, and then resume calling from 7:45 to 9 p.m."
  
• When you return from the break, announce the number of calls completed and thank the volunteers for their efforts.
• Most non-partisan phone bankers complete at least 15 calls per hour of phoning. A completed call includes a conversation (not just leaving a message). Your call list might require more time, but the object is to complete as many calls as possible during your allotted phone banking time. It helps to build and sustain enthusiasm among your volunteers.
• If a household has more than one registered voter, the caller should speak to each voter (without being obtrusive).
• Based on the special needs (for rides, babysitting, absentee ballot information, etc.) identified in this calling, preliminary plans for fulfilling them should be initiated at this time.

Physical considerations:

• Phone interviewing assignments typically should be no longer than three hours.
• Phone callers should face a wall, not each other, or they should be separated by dividers.
• Make aisles wide and accessible.
• Place supervisor stations in view of all callers.
• Use touch-tone phones or headsets.
• Work in good lighting.
• Place refreshment stations near, but not in, work area.

(Source: adapted from American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, How to Conduct a Winning Get-Out-The-Vote Drive)

Appendix 1

Suggestions for Telephone Instruction Sheet:

• Our goal is 15 completed calls per hour.
• If answering machine picks up, leave this message: "This is [your organization] calling to remind you to vote on [election date]. We will call back."

Note "LM" for "left a message" in the result column of the call list.

If the line is busy or there's no answer, mark "B" in the result column of the call list.

Do not call back the "LM"s or "B"s on the same night. The phone bank manager will note these uncompleted calls on his/her tally sheet, and add them to the call list for a future night.

• Remember to ask during the call if the client wants to volunteer in your get-out-the-vote drive.
• If a ride is needed, fill out the "Ride Needed" form and give it to the phone bank manager.

To see a sample call list and tally sheet for the phone bank manager see Forms and Tables section.

Appendix 2

Sample Telephone Script:

Hello, my name is [your name] and I am a volunteer for the (your organization name) Get-Out-The-Vote Project.

Would you like to see more community services for people with disabilities? [or substitute with a particular issue of concern to your clients] [Wait for affirmative response.] Do you plan on voting on [date]? [Wait for affirmative response.]

That is why I want to remind you the election is on [date].

This is a [primary/general] election to select [offices to be filled]. Remember, we want every politician to know that people with disabilities vote.

This election addresses issues that affect you and your life, such as:

Now list several issues of importance to your callers.

Examples:

• Your access to community services
• End of waiting lists for disablity related services
• Affordable and available health care
• Quality adequately funded special education

The polls are open [hours].

Do you need any help getting there? [Offer to arrange for transportation if needed].

Please remember to vote on [date].

If people with disabilities voted at the same rate as the rest of America, there would have been 5 million more votes cast in the 1996 Presidential election

[If you need more volunteers to complete your calls, ask if the person you are talking to would like to participate in your phone bank.]

Thank you.

GET-OUT-THE-VOTE (GOTV) Pages

• Get-Out-The-Vote: An Educational Campaign
• Get-Out-The-Vote: A Mail and Phone Campaign
• Get-Out-The-Vote: Pollworker Training
• How to Host a Candidate Forum (PDF)