It's Friday -- what are your GOTV plans for the weekend?

There are only three weekends left before the big day. I'd love to hear how people are helping. Tomorrow I'll be in Wisconsin. It's the last weekend we'll really push for absentee ballot applications from all of those UNLIKELY voters.

Sunday afternoon I'll be phonebanking to voters in swing states. The campaign seems to have identified "undecideds" and it's those we're mostly talking to. It feels great to tell people about a point of Kerry's plans (healthcare is a biggie) that they did not know before.

In case you still need ideas for how to help:

http://acthere.com

http://moveonpac.org

http://volunteer.johnkerry.com

http://drivingvotes.org

•  Let's get it started.

  After the Packer game, I'll be going out in Milwaukee again with the League of Conservation Voters.  Thought about helping the Feingold folks, but turns out they really don't need me. Sometimes it's great not to be needed.

  And you are absolutely correct, healthcare is a bigger issue for Kerry than Iraq at this point - lots of people who don't know where the candidates stand.

  by wozzle on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:08:39 AM PDT

  •  Feingold is in great shape

    Almost everyone I talk to likes him. Is LCV also pushing absentee applications or are they doing mostly persuasion/voter ID?
    

    by lapis on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:13:02 AM PDT

    •  Voter ID;

      they don't want to be seen as tied too closely with other groups.  LCV is, after all, non-partisan.

      by wozzle on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:53:48 AM PDT

•  Oregon

  I'm driving up to Medford tonight (I'm in the Bay Area) for three days of canvassing with two friends. Only the second time I've ever canvassed and the first time I've ever volunteered out of state.

  Great idea for a diary. What I gotta figure out is, what'll I do next weekend.... Mebbe local phone-banking.

  -Cecil

  by cecil vortex on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:12:20 AM PDT

  •  v. cool

    We've been traveling out of state too. It's more work, but it feels so great to feel like you are helping. Also, face-to-face canvassing is more enjoyable than phonebanking (IMO).

    by lapis on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:15:34 AM PDT

    •  funny, I think that Moby quote

      has actually had a real sem-conscious influence on me. I don't know if I've just seen it on your sig on kos or seen it a bunch in the media, but it's been in my head the last few weeks and it's part of what got me to finally get up the courage for face to face.

      I hear Edwards and Bush were both up in Medford over the last three days, so we're thinking things will be pretty charged. Can't wait to hit the road...

      -Cecil

      by cecil vortex on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:28:06 AM PDT

•  Labor-neighbor

  With the WSLC over in the 41st LD, Bellevue-Factoria-Newcastle area.

  by eugene on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:14:41 AM PDT

•  Thanks for your efforts.

  I really thank you, and all the Illinoisans (including Barack Obama last week) who have come up to help keep WI blue, from the bottom of my heart. I am starting to feel pretty confident that all the effort is paying off and Feingold looks safe and Kerry looks likely to carry the state (but it will be close), it will require that the culminating GOTV work like clockwork to harvest all the ID and persuasion work.

  As for me, I will be canvassing Saturday with ACT. I have pretty much wrapped it up as a paid canvasser with ACT (as I have finally found good, full time work in my field), but I'll continue with canvassing on Saturdays.

  Out of curiosity, where in WI will you be canvassing?

  by pHunbalanced on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:29:35 AM PDT

  •  not sure yet

    wherever the bus takes us ;-)    It's different every weekend.

    Also, we're trying to decide between ACT and the K/E campaign for the final weekend push. Which way would you go?
    

    by lapis on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:34:08 AM PDT

    •  Final weekend

      I would lean toward the K/E campaign for the final weekend (I'll probably be working with Feingold or Moore), though I prefer ACT until that point and on election day. ACT will be laying back a bit IIRC on that weekend (except maybe phone banking) to finalize preperations for the big push on 11.2 ... which will be an awesome GOTV push the likes of which Wisconsin has never seen.

      Any chance of voting absentee, taking a personal day and coming up for 11.2?

      by pHunbalanced on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:39:21 AM PDT

      •  yes

        we'll be up there on Nov 2 -- I already voted for Kerry and Obama

        by lapis on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:44:08 AM PDT

        •  Mmmmm

          That must have felt good! I'll be going down to city hall prior to canvassing tomorrow to vote for Kerry, Feingold & Moore.

          by pHunbalanced on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:52:31 AM PDT

•  voting begins

  In Oregon, our all vote-by-mail ballots are being sent out today. This weekend we will be doing lots of canvassing and phoning, encouraging Kerry voters to vote right away and distributing lit about down-ticket dems. We get updates from the counties everyday as to which voters have turned in ballots so we can keep hammering the lazy ones. I am devoting all my free time to the effort, spending hours at the office cutting turf (preparing canvassing route maps and walking lists), phoning and scheduling volunteers, canvassing, phonebanking.

  This is it, folks. None of us want to wake up on November 3rd wishing we had done more. Let's get to work.

  by laurel on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 09:38:17 AM PDT

•  Pierce County WA

  Absentee ballots became available in WA Tuesday, and we started "chasing" calls immediately. Last night the Tacoma office alone made about 5,000 calls to absentee voters who have self-identified as Democrats.

  We are canvassing and phone-banking every day for GOTV in every Legislative District right through Election Day.

  Last night I talked to a woman who told me she had voted for Bush in 2000. How she got on our list I do not know.

  She told me her 11-year-old son had questioned her about her vote, and that she and her husband had decided to let their son research the issues, and that since the election was about his future, they would be guided by his judgment.

  She said her kid did nothing but read the news and watch TV about anything dealing with the election, and that he told her "Mom, Bush must go!"

  So she told me she and her husband were voting for Kerry for their kid's future.

  I hung up the phone wondering if I had been spoofed, but there it is FWIW.

  by Ivan on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 11:41:03 AM PDT

  •  what a cool story

    I love it, both encouraging your kids to get involved in the political process AND listening to his wisdom.

    by lapis on Fri Oct 15, 2004 at 12:21:49 PM PDT