It's Get-Off-Your-Ass Time in America
With five weeks left until the 2022 election, it's time to put up or shut up. Couch potatoes don't get to complain.
I’m going to do something a bit different today. After a decade of working as a paid employee of campaigns, PACs, and 501(c)4 nonprofits, I’ve learned just how hard it is to get people to stand up and take action. It’s funny just how large of a crowd you can draw to an event with free food and guest speakers just by sending out an email, but how few people from that same email list will turn up to a phone bank or door knocking event.
Indeed, for everyone who’s walked into one of my offices over the last 10 years and told me all about how we’re “on the verge of losing our country,” it’s amazing that 9 out of 10 of them apparently think that “doing their part” consists of grabbing a couple bumper stickers and never returning my phone calls. So today I’d like to discuss what you should do, why you should do it, and why you don’t have an excuse not to — if you’re an American who actually values your liberty, that is.
Get Local
Right now most Republicans are glued to the TV, pontificating about why “Dr. Oz can’t seem to get a leg up on that nutty Fetterman character,” while the Keystone State and all of its fickle voters lie 1000 miles away from their doorstep. Sure, the battle for the U.S. Senate is certainly important. Preventing radical activist judges from obtaining posts up to and including the Supreme Court hangs on picking up at least one seat. We certainly can’t lose any seats, or we risk losing the filibuster and ensuring that Democrats will push through every last one of their inane policy proposals. But unless you live in PA or are ready to bust out the checkbook, there’s not a whole lot you can do for Dr. Oz.
Meanwhile, without leaving your neighborhood, you can have a real, tangible impact on races that, quite honestly, will affect your day-to-day life more than the one on TV that’s got your stomach in knots. Here in my home state of South Carolina, elections for the state house generally garner about 20,000 votes. More if it’s hotly contested and candidates spend a lot of money. Less in many other cases. What about your county and city commissions/councils? Local school board? Sheriff? For a huge number of Americans we’re talking about elections that less than 10,000 people will vote in. These people set your property taxes, and they decide what curriculum is taught in your children’s schools. All throughout COVID, they decided whether you could go into basically any public venue without a mask or vaccine. When it comes to those sheriffs — if you get a really good one — they can even decide that unconstitutional federal and state laws, such as those that infringe on the Second Amendment? Well, they just don’t need to be enforced where you live.
“But Brady, my city council race is between a Bernie Sanders socialist and a corrupt RINO!” First off, this is why you should have been active months ago for the primary — when literally a fraction of as many people vote, meaning your efforts are worth exponentially more. It’s now October, though, and that opportunity is behind us. But you know what? The vote of the councilman from the next district over means just as much as your councilman’s, it affects your life just as much, and the other side of your town is still a lot closer than that race in Pennsylvania you’re so concerned about.
How Do I Get Involved?
So we’ve concluded that there are local races in your area that are more important to you, but that you’re probably not that aware of because Tucker Carlson isn’t telling you about them every night. How do you find out about them? How do you find out who the good guys are? I’ll give you a few places to start:
Ask a friend. Almost everyone has a friend who’s more politically involved than them, and whose values generally align. Ask them what local races they’ve got their eye on, and where the biggest impact might be made.
Go to a local meeting of concerned citizens. Local groups may be hard to find, but you can always try searching on Facebook. “______ County Tea Party,” “Concerned Parents of ______ School District,” “______ City Tax Watchdogs.” You get the idea. Combine the name of where you live with a few key words, and something is likely to come up.
National, chapter-based groups are much easier to find. Moms for Liberty, for example, are a great place to start when it comes to being a watchdog for your school board. Check the group’s website to see if a chapter exists in your local area. If not, they may be willing to give you some leads on like-minded people on their email list, and help you start a chapter!
Depending on where you live, your county GOP may or may not be a good resource. They may be too soft on your RINO congressman, but they’re often fierce when it comes to local issues like property taxes. Ultimately, you’ll never know unless you attend a meeting and find out.
Look at the candidates’ websites, and reach out. Many times local candidates will leave their email and/or phone number on their website. If their website looks promising, call them and grill them on the issues that are important to you. If they pass the test, ask what you can do to help.
Say it with Me: Direct Voter Contact
What can you do for these good people once you’ve found them? You hit the damn doors, that’s what. You don’t need anything but your phone, or a tablet if you have one. Ask them which app they use to knock doors, download it, and have them give you a little tutorial. Ask them to set you up with a walkbook and give you a stack of their literature, and go to town.
Physically unable to knock doors? Make phone calls. There are apps for that, too. You don’t even have to physically dial the numbers. Don’t do this out of laziness, though. If you can knock doors, do it. Bring an umbrella and knock in the rain. Bring a big hat and plenty of water and knock in the heat. Voters will know there really must be something special about this candidate if their volunteers are that dedicated.
Does knocking doors really make a difference, though? Well, according to the folks at Young Americans for Liberty (these stats come from their Liberty Candidate Academy materials, which are not mine to share, so you’ll just have to trust me), for every 14 people you talk to, you get at least 1 vote. What about those people who don’t come to the door? Well, for every 189 doors you leave literature at, you also get a vote. Meanwhile on the phones, you’ll get one vote for every 35 completed calls.
In races that could come down to hundreds or even just tens of votes, these actions make a hugely tangible difference! Why are they so effective? Let’s contrast these actions with a horribly ineffective one: sign waving.
Door Knocking:
Targeted. You are speaking only to registered voters, who are either likely supporters (encouraging them to turn out), or persuadables (encouraging them to support your candidate).
Informative. The voter leaves the conversation informed about who your candidate is, what office they’re running for, and what some of their policy goals are.
Personal. When the voter sees your candidate’s name on the ballot, they will associate it with the interaction they had with that nice supporter who came to their door.
Sign waving:
Untargeted. How many of those people driving by do you think live in this candidate’s district, are registered to vote, likely to vote, and can be persuaded to vote for your candidate? Fewer than you think.
Uninformative. “Jerry McCandidate. Huh. Never heard of him.” “What did it say he was running for?” “I didn’t even see.” “I wonder if they’re a Republican or a Democrat.”
Impersonal. When the voter sees your candidate’s name on the ballot, maybe they’ll remember some screaming weirdos, but more than likely, they won’t remember it at all.
There are plenty of other ways people convince themselves that they’re doing something valuable for the cause when they’re actually having minimal impact as well, such as social media activism. “I post about Jerry all the time on Twitter." Great, Karen. I’m sure you’re gaining lots of traction with your 40 followers, a whole 5 of whom actually live in the district and were all going to vote for Jerry anyway.
I’m not saying any of this stuff is bad or wrong. I post plenty on my Twitter, and I’ve been to a number of sign-waves, but this is stuff that should be done in addition to, not in place of, direct voter contact.
No Excuses
I’ve heard every excuse in the book for why someone doesn’t want to engage in direct voter contact. Easily the three most popular are:
I’m an introvert. I’m not very good at talking to people.
I don’t know how to use these apps you want me to use.
I don’t have time.
But what they all boil down to in the end is this:
I don’t want to get out of my comfort zone.
Sorry. I believe you just got done telling me about how “we’re on the brink of collapse,” and “this election might be our last chance to right the ship.” If you’re not willing to do this, then you either don’t believe what’s coming out of your own mouth, or you don’t care. It’s time to put on your big boy or big girl pants and be a solution-seeker.
If you’re not good with people, ask the candidate, their staff, or a seasoned volunteer if you can knock or call with them a couple times until you feel comfortable. Start off observing, and then try to lead the conversation with your knock partner available to bail you out if necessary. You’ll get the hang of it, I promise. Don’t read off of the script. Learn the questions it wants you to get answers to, and then just have a conversation and work them in naturally.
If you’re a bit technologically-challenged, ask for some one-on-one help with the app. Ask for a walk-through. You too can ask to knock or call with someone. Try having them do the talking while you input survey answers and navigate the app until you get comfortable enough with it to do both.
We make time for what we think is important. I have a day job where I work 50+ hour weeks. I try to go to church twice a week, spend quality time with my wife, and write these articles as well, but I still find time to volunteer for candidates and causes I believe in. I do this because I know the impact that it has, and I know that if I have any business saying the things that I say on here, then it’s my obligation. I sincerely hope you’ll use these last five weeks to step away from the TV and help push some quality candidates in local, winnable races across the finish line. You’ll thank yourself for it in the end.
Friends, please consider sharing this article on social media or emailing it to a handful of friends and encouraging them to subscribe. Given what we’re up against, it’s more critical now than ever that we’re able to get our message out there. Please consider following me on Facebook and Twitter as well. Thank you for all of your support, and never let your guard down in the fight for liberty.
-Brady