In preparation for the 2022 midterms, Swing Blue Alliance is building relationships with groups on the ground, learning where we can fill in the gaps, and creating opportunities for volunteers to take targeted and effective action. We plan to help do the year-round organizing work that gets voters engaged, strengthens and grows the Democratic base, and connects with independent voters.
We plan to be active in states where we can be productive, narrowing in on competitive races where we have the chance to win. We are planning work in Florida, North Carolina, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Virginia. These are all purple states with competitive races up and down the ballot. Other than Virginia, where the focus in 2021 is on state level offices, these states have highly competitive U.S. Senate races as well as winnable U.S. House races to flip or defend and other important down-ballot races. We will be flexible, honing in where we are most needed and being adaptable as races and conditions change, redistricting plays out, and primaries are completed.
For each state, we lean on the knowledge and connections of our partners and volunteers. We are partnering with grassroots groups and Democratic party organizations to tap into their deep understanding of what motivates voters in their towns and states.
We are exploring the latest research-based methodologies to determine what will be most productive early on. Voter registration, deep canvassing, and cleaning up the voter rolls are among the ways we can help early in the cycle. In the 2021 cycle, we plan to help with Get Out The Vote (GOTV) efforts in selected local elections where it’s important to engage Democrats; we want to make voting a habit. For 2022, we’ll continue our year-round organizing work, and as elections get closer, partner with coordinated campaigns and federal candidates for persuasion and GOTV.
With all of our interventions, we strive to “AIM HI” with actions that are Additive, Important, Measurable, Helpful and, most importantly, Impactful. Where we can, we work with our partners to develop innovative actions that utilize the latest research on elections. We add to the work already being done in a way that’s most helpful to groups on the ground. Our research team helps to design actions where we can measure our effectiveness using randomized controlled trials.
Phase 1 of our state focus will include New Hampshire, North Carolina, and Virginia with meetings and actions beginning now or in the next several weeks. Stay tuned for actions in our Phase 2 states, Pennsylvania, Georgia, and Florida. Sign up here to join a state-based team →
https://actionnetwork.org/forms/adopt-a-state/.
–Amanda Aprati is a rising junior at Tufts University studying Political Science and Civic Studies. She is currently an Intern at Swing Blue Alliance.