Happy BLUE Year, Harris County

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Happy BLUE Year, Harris County

• Melissa Taylor
• Harris County Democratic Party
• Executive Director
• mrt_at_hcdp.org

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MRTs personal background

• Geographer
• Texas AM
• Summa Cum Laude
• U. of Kentucky
• International traveler
• French-Tagalog-Spanish speaker
• Small business owner

• Native Houstonian
• Southerner
• Daughter of a union pipe fitter
• ½ Filipina, ½ Texan
• Researcher/analyst

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MRTs political background

• Fundraiser
• Trainer
• Protest organizer
• Precinct statistician
• Database manager
• Website coordinator
• People person

• Volunteer coordinator
• Delegator extraordinaire
• Event organizer
• Crowd-builder
• Public speaker
• Field director
• Coalition-builder
• Problem solver

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CASE STUDIES

• Precinct Activation Success

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Precinct Activation A Look Around the U.S.

• Democratic National Committee
• California for Democracy Turn Red California
  Blue
• Democracy for Colorado Th!nk Prec!nct
• Harris County Democratic Party

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Precinct Activation

• Election by election.

State by state.
Precinct by precinct.
Door by door.
Vote by vote.
Were gonna to take back this country for the
people who built it. Howard Dean, DNC Chair
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Democratic National Committee

• GOAL An active, effective group of Democrats
  organized by 2008.
• 203,000 precincts in 3,300 counties
• 50 state strategy - Invest in every single state
  party.

www.dnc.org
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DNC 50-state strategy organizers on the
ground in 43 states
Placing Field Organizers in Red States were
the DNCs priority
Organizers in all other states expected by Spring
2006.
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Democratic National Committee

• Grassroots infrastructure in place to win not
  just the 2006 and 2008 elections, but all
  elections going forward.
• Leave no race uncontested.
• There is a place for everyone in the Democratic
  Party.

www.dnc.org
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Democratic National CommitteeBuilding a Winning
Infrastructure

• Win your precinct
• Recruit 25 volunteers in your precinct.
• Host one social event.
• Host 2 voter contact events (effective
  targeting).
• Attend 1 training get smarter!
• Create a welcome program for new residents.
• GOAL every Democrat completes these action
  items by November 7, 2006

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Democratic National CommitteeThe Strategy Year
by Year

• 2005 build permanent Party structure
• 2006 turn mechanism on
• test infrastructure on Congressional races
• 2007 evaluate, rework campaign plan
• 2008 infrastructure in place
• win presidency and down-ballot races
• future mechanism in gear to win
• Campaigns plug into efficient system

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California for DemocracyTake Back Red California

• An ambitious but much needed project to keep
  California deep blue.
• Red County v. Blue County political geography
• Urban (blue) v. rural (red)
• Coastal (blue) v. Inland/Central (red)
• Red Counties ignored by Democratic Party
• Blue Counties workers need a project

http//www.californiafordemocracy.com/?qredCounty
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California for DemocracyTake Back Red California

• Blue County shares best practices, technical
  resources, and volunteers with Red County
• Red County shares local, on-the-ground info
  with Blue County
• Take Back Red California Summit
• Northern California (Berkeley)
• Southern California (Irvine)

http//www.californiafordemocracy.com/?qredCounty
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CA Grassroots Champions CoalitionKeep California
Blue

• Precinct organizing should be year round.
• The basic for precinct work is neighbor to
  neighbor.
• We are all purple.
• Developed a multi-county effort with a central
  server and data tools.
• Turned out Democrats better than the REPUBS in
  the last election and reversed the trend.

http//www.precinctcaptains.org
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CA Grassroots Champions CoalitionKeep California
Blue
Launch a Local Democratic Precinct Captains
program

• Get volunteers.
• Enlist new precinct captains.
• Supply walker lists.
• Target precinct efforts.
• Stay in touch with precincts captains.
• Organize support structure.
• Fundraising.

http//www.precinctcaptains.org
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California for DemocracyA Precinct Voice

• In Nov 2003, Dean supporters from 2 adjacent
  counties on the San Francisco peninsula met to
  set up precincting. We were lucky enough to have
  good pro-bono software but our main hurdle was
  lack of a HQ. To get around that we found city
  leads for each small suburb, someone came
  forward to be in charge of the precinct walkers
  there. Some of these were new to precincting.
  For the larger cities with more volunteers, we
  got several city leads. They met regularly, were
  trained on the software, given overview maps of
  their areas, mini-manuals on precincting on
  the software to give to the walkers, a CD with
  all the precinct maps in their city (also
  donated), folders with the usual stuff in them.
  Then each city lead printed out the precinct maps
  as needed stapled them to folders, printed
  out the walk lists (thanks to the software!),
  trained their people on their own schedule. (Some
  walkers were able to use the software print
  their own lists.) The volunteer pool for walkers
  came from the big list of Dean supporters we'd
  built up by then in our County it was 1,200. We
  gave each city lead their section of the list
  they sent email then followed up with phone
  calls. Another software guru had an automatic
  lookup program we gave him addresses he
  supplied the precinct numbers, so we had that
  info in advance, the city lead knew exactly
  where the precinct was, thanks to the overview
  map. The city leads kept the walkers supplied
  provided hand-holding as needed. This model
  worked BEAUTIFULLY, and everyone really took
  ownership. Not everyone wants to walk their own
  precinct but for the ones that do, this is an
  extremely effective form of campaigning--I think
  the most effective. We had at least 75 walkers
  out there in January, then the campaign fell
  apart! We got noticed because we were the only
  ones out there precincting. The Democratic
  Central Committee in our large, populous County
  adopted this model for the general election
  again it worked beautifully, with a lot of the
  same city leads fulfilling that role again. I
  recommend this method wholeheartedly. It works
  without the software element also. If you do this
  in conjunction with a campaign, MAKE SURE that
  the walkers keep their lists, or a copy, because
  campaigns usually do not return them! Carolyn
  C., Palo Alto, CA

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Democracy for ColoradoTh!nk Prec!nct

• A powerful tool for Democratic precinct leaders
  progressive activists
• Must plan for political progress well into the
  future, build a lasting coalition
• Supports Democratic Precinct Committee Persons,
  local activists, and grassroots campaigners
• Training distributed on DVD across the state.

http//democracyforcolorado.com/thinkprecinct
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Turn Harris County Blue

• To win, Democrats must get a few things right
• Mindset
• Message
• Visibility

• Action with Efficiency
• Training
• Fundraising

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Mindset
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Mindset Negative

• Democrats must drop the identity Republicans
  carved for them
• brow-beaten
• down-trodden
• defeatist
• defensive
• divisive
• Democrats must shake the This isnt fair,
  loser mentality.
• This mindset does not attract voters to our
  Party.

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Mindset Positive

• "...so I asked myself, 'Are you going to keep
  complaining, or are you going to do something
  about it?' "  - Howard Dean, before deciding to
  run for office
• Those who say it can't be done should get out of
  the way of those who are doing it.- Unknown

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Mindset Positive

• Identifying what you want is the first step
  toward getting it, so think it over and get the
  specifics fixed in your mind.
• Go ahead and think big let your vision of your
  perfect world percolate.
• GOALS
• Get Democrats elected who represent our values,
  vision for our city, state, and country
• Broaden the Democratic community, be inclusive
• Cultivate young Democrats build a movement

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Mindset Get smart

• 2nd most populous County with 3.6 million
  residents
• Second only to Los Angeles County (9.9 million)

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Source ????
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Mindset Get smart

• Harris Countys population is greater than that
  of 24 states and DC
• 875 precincts
• 45 of HC voters cast a ballot for John Kerry

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Mindset
Democrats have a great opportunity here in
Harris County, but it will take everyones
talent, focus, commitment, dedication, and hard
work.
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Mindset

• Democrats must
• be willing to do what works.
• be willing to try new twists.
• Democrats must require more of ourselves.

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Precinct Activation

• Election by election.

State by state.
Precinct by precinct.
Door by door.
Vote by vote.
Were gonna to take back this country for the
people who built it. Howard Dean, DNC Chair
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Message
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Message What do Democrats value?

• Democrats must define our values.
• Democrats cant engage in a framework that
  Republicans built.
• What do you tell others?
• 30-second elevator speech
• Why are you a Democrat?
• I am a Democrat because I believe in the
  Constitution, civil liberties, opportunity,
  fairness, universal healthcare, peace, a fair
  living wage, and equal rights for everyone (not
  just for people who are like me).

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How do we communicate our message?

• Rapid response team
• Letters to the editor
• Media attention
• Press releases about our activities
• Sponsor issue-based forums
• corporate welfare (Wal-Mart Watch screenings)
• election reform and voter verifiable paper trail
• Appeal to Republicans and Independents as tax
  payers
• Sponsor candidate debates in communities across
  the county

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Visibility
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Visibility /visibility/ n.

• The fact, state, or degree of being visible.
• The capability of being easily observed.

3. Tactical strategy designed to notify the
voters of Harris County that Democrats are active.
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VISIBLE Democrat

• VISIBLE DEMOCRAT
• Action-oriented
• Shows up
• Can do attitude
• Creative, energetic
• Buttons, bumper stickers, shirts, yard signs
• Media attention
• Strategic press releases
• Community service projects

• INVISIBLE DEMOCRAT
• Stays at home
• Lots of ideas, little action Expects someone else
  to do the work
• Excuse-maker
• Afraid to speak up for whats right

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Visibility

• Maximize Democratic presence at all community
  events
• Tabling
• Parade entries
• Adopt a highway
• Clean once per quarter
• Sign posted for thousands of motorists every day
• Welcome baskets
• Watch for sale and lease signs in your
  neighborhood
• Basket should include
• Newsletters/articles
• Meeting information for local Democratic clubs
• Voter registration cards
• Food

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Action with Efficiency
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Action with Efficiency Goals

• Get Democrats elected who represent our values,
  vision for our city, state, and country
• Broaden the Democratic community, be inclusive
• Cultivate young Democrats build a movement

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Action with Efficiency

• Goal Access as many Democrats as possible
• Must blanket/cover the whole county
• Eliminate overlap
• Fill holes
• Build partnerships with
• Democratic clubs and organizations
• Senate Districts leaders
• Candidates
• Democratic office holders

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Action with Efficiency

• Goal Access as many Democrats as possible
• Coordinated campaigns
• Share Democratic volunteers
• Volunteers from each campaign block walk, phone
  bank
• Maximize exposure
• More precinct activity, constant name recognition
• Spend resources wisely more money
• Candidates who otherwise would not run for office
  step into the race
• Hold house meetings for candidates
• Conference calls
• BENEFIT Encourage more straight ticket voting,
  Democrats elected

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Action with Efficiency

• Battle of the Democratic Stars
• Carve up Senate Districts
• Democratic clubs adopt a territory of precincts
  to work
• Work with precinct chairs build precinct teams
• Results posted on HCDP website
• Bragging rights
• Awards given quarterly
• Categories ensure Democrats are doing what works,
  doing it early enough so it counts

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Action with Efficiency

• Battle of the Democratic Stars
• Precinct work
• Houses walked
• Calls made
• Voters registered
• increase in registered Democrats
• Fundraising
• raised for HCDP
• of sustaining members to HCDP
• of house meetings

• Club sustainability
• of new members in club
• Speakers bureau
• raised for club
• Members running for office
• Club diversity (ethnicity, age)
• Community outreach
• of press releases
• of visibility events
• Tabling
• Parades/marching

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Action with Efficiency

• Year-round precinct organization
• Become a precinct chair
• Attend a precinct workshop
• Get to know your neighbors
• Phone bank
• Block walk
• Watch a how-to-block-walk DVD in the comfort of
  your home
• Have a HCDP precinct master walk your precinct
  with you, show you the ropes
• Recruit a bunch of precinct chairs from other
  precincts to help you
• You help them walk their blocks

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Action with Efficiency

• Reach out to groups with common values year round
• Women
• Environmentalists
• Labor
• Senior groups
• Minorities
• LULAC
• NAACP
• South Asians
• Muslims
• Asians

• GLBT
• Pro-choice movement
• Stem cell research
• Peace groups
• Church groups
• Small business groups

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Action with Efficiency

• Do what works, but smarter
• Robo-calls for event/meeting announcements
• Phone bank predictive dialer
• Phones and computers hooked up to a dialer
• Predictive dialer
• Waits until someone answers to connect volunteer
• Passes over wrong numbers
• Passes over no answers
• Volunteers get more accomplished, feel good

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Action with Efficiency

• Cultivate young Democrats build a movement
• Put the p-a-r-t-y back in the Democratic Party
• Have fun create energy, excitement!
• Bring-a-Child-to-Volunteer days
• Share values
• Becomes their norm
• Letter writing
• Visibility
• Parades
• Street corners
• Block walking

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Action with Efficiency

• Cultivate young Democrats build a movement
• Build partnerships with local high schools,
  colleges, and universities
• Internships
• Volunteer hours
• HCDP
• Democratic clubs
• HCDP prepares letters for college packets,
  employers
• Special events for women who mentor young women

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Training
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Training

• Book clubs
• Panel discussions sponsored by Democratic clubs
• Pot luck dinners
• Share best practices among grassroots activists
• Letter writing (issues, candidates)
• Movie nights
• Inspirational and documentary
• Training classes
• Precinct organizing
• Messaging/framing
• Block walk exercise

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Fundraising
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Fundraising

• Increase number of sustaining members
• 10.00 per month
• cost of 2-3 cups of coffee
• What are your values worth to you?
• HCDP holds one big fundraiser per quarter
• Democratic clubs partner and hold one fundraiser
  for party once a quarter
• Share planning
• Bigger draw
• Constant fundraising activity

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Fundraising

• Make fundraising events
• Fun
• Inventive
• Family-oriented
• Various price points
• Online silent auctions (e-bay) year round
• Create our own HCDP designs
• Order political memorabilia
• Ask for contributions for those goods from
  Democrats, others
• Post to national, Texas blogs

• Art Auction
• Bake sale
• Wine Cheese show

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We are the Party
Democrats have a great opportunity here in Harris
County, but it will take everyones talent,
focus, commitment, dedication, and hard
work. Become a precinct chair! Organize your
precinct!
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Happy BLUE Year, Harris County

• Melissa Taylor
• Harris County Democratic Party
• Executive Director
• mrt_at_hcdp.org