2022 Midterm Results
The 2022 midterm elections were a critical opportunity for Democrats to hold the ground they gained in 2020 and set the stage for the 2024 presidential election. These elections were also important for the United States as a whole, as they were seen as a referendum on the policies and actions of the conservative Supreme Court and Republican Party. Democrats were particularly motivated to turn out and make their voices heard, as they hoped to push back against what they saw as a threat to democracy and civil rights. In order to be successful in these elections, it was essential for Democrats to have a strong ground game, which included recruiting and activating volunteers to help get out the vote.
To that end, the Swing Blue Alliance launched the Volunteers Taking Back Democracy (VTBD) program in 2022. This program uses active listening techniques to recruit and activate Democratic volunteers to help win critical elections and build a more substantial Democratic presence in swing districts. One thing that sets VTBD apart from other phone banking programs is that volunteers make calls to likely volunteers who are friendly and frequently pick up the phone. As a part of the program, Swing Blue offers training sessions on how to use motivational interviewing techniques to recruit volunteers, provides scripts to guide volunteers in building a connection with the person they call, and an easy-to-use, specialized phone bank software developed by Swing Blue volunteers that shows the notes of previous conversations.
In 2022, Swing Blue Alliance’s VTBD program was successful in supporting about a dozen Democratic partners in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and New Hampshire for the midterm elections. They made 16,983 calls to potential volunteers, which led to 3,846 conversations that identified 2,007 voters interested in volunteering for Democrats in these states.
In Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Swing Blue volunteers made over 5,000 calls to recruit volunteers. This effort paid off, with Democrats achieving key victories such as the election of Josh Shapiro as governor, John Fetterman as U.S. Senator, and the majority in the Pennsylvania state house. Democrats also increased their number of seats in the state senate, and re-elected all incumbents. The Democrats elected two new state reps in Bucks Country and re-elected three incumbents. While Democrats did lose some races, such as Mark Moffa’s state rep race by just 54 votes, overall the VTBD program played a crucial role in supporting Democrats in the midterm elections.
