Kind of true:
“Trying to run a national campaign out of Boston if you’re not a Democrat is idiotic,” is how one GOP mandarin put it. “You’re surrounded by the enemy. It’s like going to Moscow to negotiate a peace treaty.”
What are you seeing as far a ground games in your neck of the woods?
You are right. It’s kinda true. But then, Willard has the Boston Herald. Which is a right-wing paper. Also, too, being in Boston hasn’t burst the right-wing bubble of the Willard campaign, so does it really make one bit of difference?
How far down in the electoral geography has OFA gone this year? There is a lady in my neighborhood who has set up her house as an office coordinating location for canvassing in our neighborhood. She manages the local canvassing lists and just provides volunteers with maps and checklists of what polls would call “unlikely” voters, primarily college students who live at home. Almost everyone else seems to be decided. According to my wife, who canvassed last night, there were a number of folks on her list in which the parents had already voted and were going to make sure that live-at-home student got out to vote. There were no Romney-Obama split couples; it was either Romney-undecided (wonder who got on the canvassing list?) or Obama-undecided splits in families.
If the geographic detail of canvassing is as good everywhere as it is here, the GOTV effort for the Obama campaign is going to be a historical event.
Local news coverage:
There is already polling evidence of Team Obama’s superior ground game.
Also from NC, voted yesterday and turnout was steady all day according to the poll workers. Anecdotally, in rural outlying areas there was a healthy scattering of Romney/Ryan signs that popped up in the wake of the first debate. A smaller number of Obama/Biden signs out in the sticks. Urban areas are awash in Obama signs.
It is really close here and it’s a turnout battle. White Helms-type voters are very highly motivated. The TV ads are pretty steady from both sides. But this is a ground game contest, pure and simple, and I still think we’ve got a shot.
Romney pulling out resources in NC is, to me, a sign of how desperate he is to make up ground elsewhere. He’s gambling, and it could backfire here unless he has reliable election fraud already in place.
I’m the data, turf-cutter, list and label maker for our county. This time around, I’m seeing a lot more effort to coordinate activity between OFA and state and local Democrats. Its a beautiful thing!
Here in PA, the reason for the lack of Obama yard signs is that the campaign offices aren’t giving them out. People are pulling out their 2008 signs if they have them.
The Romney campaign is using the local Republican headquarters instead of their own offices, and not only handing out yard signs, they are making 4×8 stretched canvas signs that are professionally printed, and nailing them over signs for new housing developments, or on empty parcels of land owned by the township in an effort to beef up the appearance of strong support.
Here in PA, the reason for the lack of Obama yard signs is that the campaign offices aren’t giving them out.
Why aren’t they giving them out? I think mine from ’08 is still in my car trunk.
From what I read in 2008, the OFA team felt that signs were mostly a waste of money that could be spent elsewhere. They would provide them, but “signs don’t vote”.
Already early voted about a couple of weeks ago. My mother has already voted, my brother and sister in law already have voted (all for Obama), and from all I can see, the turnout is fairly brisk in Ohio.
It feels good to have that over with, and I can then spend Election Day just hitting F5 for election results. I strongly recommend early voting. Shorter lines and and more time to look at your ballot, plus since it’s not Election Day proper, you aren’t as nervous either so you actually can understand those complicated Issues a little better.
I can actually now tune out most of the Election noise as well. I like thinking that because of early voting, a lot of ad money by the Kochs is being wasted now. On people who’ve already voted and are tuning them out.
I live in a pretty red part of MA. I’ve already had 4 Warren signs stolen.
I’m pretty sure its some kids from down the street. The parents on the street don’t seem to give a damn about anything, and I don’t think they care enough to steal signs.
If I were allowed to have a yard sign (I live in a condo) I would find a way to put a surveillance camera on it. I’d want to press charges if anyone messed with it. That would feel good.
In VA, OFA started setting up teams led by people who opened their houses for the same stuff—canvassing, phone banking, data entry. That was a few months ago. It’s all turn out calls now and voting information about when people voted or when they will and how. Besides these neighborhood teams, there are still many larger official offices.
I read somewhere that in NC, many are registered Democrats as part of some family tradition/legacy, but they vote Republican. Is that true??
that’s true of the whole south.
Less true than it used to be, but there still are some. In NC, Jesse Helms made it OK for those types to re-register as Republican.
Still seeking out persuadable voters. Not finding a whole lot out there who are undecided, but there are some. Also pushing hard on the early vote for those supporting the President. Did a GOTV training session last night in preparation for the final push. With the weekend voting issue as settled as it’s going to be, we are in the home stretch.
President Obama did a con-call the other night with volunteers in the state to make sure everyone knew the stakes and that their efforts are not going unnoticed. This next couple of weeks are going to be insane here in this state.
Someone clue these people in to what year It is.
Century, even!
This is the party whose nominee said Russia was the biggest current threat, though, so at least they’re consistent.
but not before Monday’s debate.
no action at all in my solidly Democratic part of CA. There is discussion of the state propositions and local candidates and issues, but the top of the ticket isn’t in question around here.
Actually, the whole concept I keep hearing about here, with people going door to door, is something I’ve never seen in my life for any office above state assembly.
It’s is pretty recent in NC. I don’t remember canvassing before the Obama campaign in 2008. Probably a product of the general Democratic complacency that saw it lose completely in the South to Republicans who did their GOTV through churches and business clubs (Lions, Rotary, Civitan…)
Nothing going on in my district in IL that I can see, but I haven’t checked the local office, just email and neighborhood activity. After redistricting I lost Dold and gained Jan Schakowsky as my rep and Schakowsky has a safe seat. There are carpools to IA though and to other districts in IL that need the support.
We have the chance to take a lot of CDs in IL this year and I won’t be going to sleep on election day until everyone of those is decided.
All quiet on the western front (southern CA)
As Frank Rich reminds us:
Doubt Mitt’s national campaign is being run out of a single fixed location. That is assuming that it’s not located in the bowels of the Mormon Tabernacle.
Well, not a fixed “adobe” anyway.
Local folk have gone up to Ohio to try to make a difference there…
Thank you, Kentucky!
Lowell is more or less ground zero in the Brown-Warren campaign. They are both chasing after endorsements here. It has a large number of exactly the segment of voters who will decide this election.
Elizabeth Warren doorknockers are all over, while the townie club where the old guard politicians get together is sporting Scott Brown signs.