IL-12 Field Plan General Election, Nov. 6Th 2012
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IL-12 Field Plan—General Election, Nov. 6th 2012 Jordan Jones—Field Director
District Description
Illinois’ 12th Congressional District lies in the southwest portion of the state and borders both Kentucky and Missouri. It comprises all or part of 12 counties, the most populous of which is St. Clair (more than 270,000 as of the 2010 Census). Other population centers include Jackson and Williamson Counties to the southeast and the eastern portion of Madison County to the northwest. The bulk of the voting population resides in the Metro East, a collection of small cities and St. Louis suburbs located on the eastern shore of the Mississippi River and spread out over three counties (St. Claire, Madison, Monroe) within the district. The area has historically leaned Democratic but has been trending conservative. Nevertheless, outgoing Democratic Rep. Jerry Costello handily won re-election in 2010, garnering over 58% of the vote. The district also contains three of the four counties won by Democratic Governor Pat Quinn (St. Clair, Jackson, Alexander) that same year. The district was recently redrawn but retains 93 % of its previous territory African-Americans are by far the largest minority group, numbering one of every seven people. Hispanics comprise less than 5 % of the population. The district could best be described as “conservative Democratic.” Its economy has undergone major changes over the decades. Agriculture is still a major component, especially in the southern portions. However, the industrial sector has declined severely and the mining industry has collapsed. Accordingly, many of the older towns have suffered severe reductions in population. Overview
This field plan is designed to persuade and motivate the voters of IL-12 to cast their ballots for Congressional candidate Brad Harriman and other Democrats up and down the ticket in the general election to be held on Nov. 6th, 2012.
General Profile
Voting Eligible Pop. 547,728
Registered Voters 472,536
Expected Vote 314,812
Win Number 157,407
Vote Goal 163,702
Vote Deficit 75,946 The Expected Vote was tabulated using data from the 2004 and 2008 Presidential elections. As calculated by the Expected Vote and the 52% benchmark, our Vote Goal for IL-12 is 163,702. How we reach that number will of course depend on the make-up of our universes.
The Universes
Baseline 87,756 Persuasion 45,439 GOTV 1 65,398 GOTV 2 40,216 Vote Goal - Baseline = Vote Deficit 163,702 - 87,756 = 75,946 As you can see, Baseline eliminates over half our Vote Goal, leaving us with two-tiered Persuasion and GOTV universes to close the Vote Deficit of 75,946.
Path To Victory
Universe Universe Size % Needed MOV Added Persuasion 45,439 49% 22,265 GOTV 1 65,398 55% 35,969 GOTV 2 40,216 45% 18,097 Unregistered 75,192 0% 0 Margin of Victory 76,331
Within the Persuasion universe, we will persuade at a rate of 49% . Collectively this should add 22,265 votes to our total. The GOTV universe is much larger and yields similar rates of persuasion. GOTV 1 will be persuaded at a rate of 55% and Turnout 2 at 45%. The total votes added from GOTV 1 and GOTV 2 will be 54,066, bringing our Margin of Victory up to 76,331. This exceeds our Vote Deficit. It should also be noted that there is a large population of unregistered voters. They are not currently a part of our field plan but may be included as events warrant.
Below are the sizes of our contact universes. Our phone universes were comprised of everyone with a phone number on file in the voter file within our targeted universes. Our canvass universe is comprised of everyone within Jackson, Madison, Monroe, St. Claire and Williamson counties within our targeted universes as those are the only counties dense enough for canvassing. Universe Phones Doors Persuasion 45,439 41,924 GOTV 105,614 88,401
Breakdown of Shifts
To achieve our vote goal we will make 3 passes through our Persuasion universe on the doors and the phones. We will make 2 passes through our two-tiered Turnout universe with volunteer capacity. With the addition of a paid canvass we will make another pass of our GOTV universe on the doors. The breakdown of “Attempts/Contacts/Shifts” is detailed below for volunteers. Our plan will assume a 20 percent flake rate. Finally, the shifts below for can reflect universe sizes that remove the Field Organizers’ own personal canvassing on the weekends.
Volunteer Voter Contact Universe Total Attempts Total Contacts Total Shifts
Persuasion Phones 93,880 10,327 1,444
Persuasion Doors 80,911 16,182 2,023
GOTV Phones 190,105 20,912 2,925
GOTV Doors 142,552 28,510 3,564
Persuasion Phones We will make three passes through the Persuasion phone universe: Pass Persuasion Persuasion Persuasion Persuasion Phones* Phone Shifts Phones Shifts Phone Shifts Actual/FO Scheduled/ FO Pass 1 45,439 699 78 94 Pass 2 25,495 392 44 53 Pass 3 22,946 353 39 47 * A 10 percent depreciation rate is assumed between each pass
Persuasion Doors We will make three passes through the Persuasion door universe Pass Persuasion Persuasion Door Persuasion Door Persuasion Door Doors* Shifts Shifts Actual/FO Shifts Scheduled/FO Pass 1 41,924 1048 116 139 Pass 2 17,699 541 60 72 Pass 3 14,159 433 48 58 * A 20 percent depreciation rate is assumed between each pass
GOTV Phones We will make two passes through our GOTV (Turnout) phone universe. This table combines both GOTV tiers for the purposes of simplification. Note the increased depreciation rate compared with Persuasion. Pass GOTV Phones* GOTV Phone GOTV Phone GOTV Phone Shifts Shifts Actual/FO Shifts Scheduled/FO Pass 1 105,614 1625 181 217 Pass 2 84,491 1300 144 173 * A 20 percent depreciation rate is assumed between each pass
GOTV Doors We will make two passes through our GOTV (Turnout) door universe. This table combines both GOTV tiers for the purposes of simplification. Note the increased depreciation rate compared with Persuasion. Pass GOTV Doors* GOTV Door Door Shifts Door Shifts Shifts Actual/FO Scheduled/FO Pass1 88,401 2,210 246 295 Pass 2 54,151 1,050 150 180 * A 25 percent depreciation rate is assumed between each pass
Paid Canvass As previously stated, a paid canvass program will be put into place to complete the third and final pass of GOTV doors. Number of Number of Number of Number of TOTAL TOTAL Canvassers Doors/Shift Shifts/Week (6 Weeks Number of Number shifts/canvasser Doors of Shifts ) 20 90 120 6 64,800 720
Field Organizer Door and Phone Shifts: Below the shifts to be completed by the FOs themselves are detailed. During the Persuasion phase the FOs will complete one phone shift and three canvassing shifts (45 doors) each per week: Staff Shifts per shift Shifts Total Persuasion Attempts Phones 175 88 15400 Doors 45 264 11,880
The required phones shifts are eliminated during the Early Vote phase, allowing the FO to build their organizations. The 3 canvass shifts remain: Staff Shifts Early Vote per shift Shifts Total Attempts Phones 175 0 0 Doors 45 270 12,150
Individual FO Goals: Week By Week Breakdown Number of Door Shifts Doors Phone Phones Week Dates FOs Recruited/ Actual Shifts Actual FO/Week Recruited/ FO/Week Week 1 6/3-6/9 4 5 4 5 4 Week 2 6/10-6/17 4 12 10 10 8 Week 3 6/18-6/24 4 17 14 14 12 Week 4 6/25-7/1 4 24 20 14 12 Week 5 7/2-7/8 9 26 22 20 17 Week 6 7/9-7/15 9 29 24 24 20 Week 7 7/16-7/22 9 29 24 26 22 Week 8 7/23-7/29 9 31 26 26 22 Week 9 7/30- 8/5 9 31 26 28 23 Week 10 8/6- 8/12 9 34 28 28 23 Week 11 8/13-8/19 9 34 28 29 24 Week 12 8/20-8/26 9 36 30 29 24 Week 13 8/27-9/2 9 38 32 30 25 Week 14 9/3-9/9 9 38 32 30 25 Week 15 9/10-9/16 9 43 36 32 27 Week 16 9/17-9/23 9 43 36 34 28 Week 17 9/24-9/30 9 46 38 34 28 Week 18 10/1-10/7 9 46 38 36 30 Week 19 10/8-10/14 9 48 40 36 30 Week 20 10/15-10/21 9 53 44 38 32 Week 21 10/22-10/28 9 55 46 41 34 Week 22 10/29-11/2 9 60 50 43 36 Phases of the Field Plan
Phase 1: Organization 5/11-8/19
This phase will serve as a period for the field director to organize and make contact with existing political stakeholders and supporters. There are several local races that could serve as points of cooperation. Also during this time the FD will begin interviews with potential field organizers, most likely the ones that will be assigned to the St. Clair region. On June 1st, two field fellows arrive. After a period of training, they will immediately begin with volunteer recruitment.
Staff Time Table: Field Director 5/15 First Wave of FOs (4) 6/3 Second wave of FOs (5) 7/1 Canvass Director 9/1 Paid Canvassers (20) 9/27
I hope to hire 4 field organizers by June 1st. After training, they will begin volunteer recruitment with the aim of increasing voter contact in their respective turfs. One-on-ones will be an important component of volunteer recruitment--especially during the first two phases of the campaign—and will be monitored by the metrics below.
Note: Individual FOs will be expected to hold 4 one-on-ones per week until mid-July, when the goal will be increased to 5 one-on-ones per week per FO. In addition, individual FOs will be expected to organize one house meeting every other week. The goals in the “House Meetings Held” column are displayed according to this “every other week” schedule, though in practice they will take place every week.
Voter contact during this period will focus on the Persuasion universe.
1:1 Recruitment
House Week Dates # FOs 1:1s Recruited/FO/Week Total 1:1s Mtgs Held Week 1 6/3-6/9 4 4 16 0 Week 2 6/10-6/16 4 4 16 4 Week 3 6/17-6/23 4 4 16 0 Week 4 6/24-6/30 4 4 16 4 Week 5 7/1-7/7 9 4 36 0 Week 6 7/8-7/14 9 4 36 9 Week 7 7/15-7/21 9 5 45 0 Week 8 7/22-7/28 9 5 45 9 Week 9 7/29- 8/5 9 5 45 0 Week 10 8/6- 8/12 9 5 45 9 Week 11 8/13-8/19 9 5 45 0
Phase 2: Persuasion 6/18- 9/23
The field program will continue to grow both its staff and its volunteer base. If needed, the St. Clair FOs will be given additional office space identified by the field director. Interviews begin for the Alton FO and the Jackson County and Williamson County FOs. The final wave of FOs should be hired by July 1st. After a short period of training they will move into their field offices, where they will begin volunteer recruitment and voter contact. Also during this period the relevant FOs based in St. Clair and Madison Counties will identify and recruit their phone bank and canvass captains. These captains should be locked down by Aug. 19th. The other Jackson and Williamson FOs will be working closely with their county coordinators to best meet their goals. The field fellows will complete their terms at the end of August. Three passes through our Persuasion universe will also be completed at the end of August and we will begin working through our GOTV universe. The canvass director will be hired by September 1st and he/she will interview applicants
Phase 3: Early Vote 9/24-11/1, Vote By Mail 9/27
The full field team should be in place and continuing to expand its voter contact efforts. Special trainings, events and days of action will serve to grow and improve the volunteer base. One-on-ones will still take place but there will be less emphasis on them. Final issues concerning turf, office locations and personnel will be resolved in this phase. Paid canvass applicants will be interviewed in this phase so that they will be ready to go by the start of early voting With the beginning of absentee ballot applications (9/27) every day will be Election Day in IL-12 and we will shift our efforts entirely toward our GOTV universe. The campaign will solicit and collect absentee ballot applications by door and by phone. To augment this effort, a paid canvass program will be put in place from the end of September through the GOTV program. Vote By Mail Requests--Staff Week VBM Number of VBM VBM Weekly requests/ door shifts/ requests/FO Requests/FO/phones total FO/door FO/Week doors (with 9 shift FOs) Week 5 3 15 10 225 17 Week 5 3 15 10 225 18 Week 5 3 15 10 225 19 Week 5 3 15 10 225 20 Week 5 3 15 10 225 21 Week 5 3 15 10 225 22 TOTAL VBM Requests 1,350
In the six weeks the campaign will be focusing on Vote By Mails, staff should be able to generate a minimum of 1,620 requests.
Vote By Mail Requests--Paid Canvass (20 Canvassers/6 days a week) Wee VBM Number of Number Number of Total Numbe k requests/ shifts/canvasser/wee of paid Doors/Canvasse doors r of canvasser k canvass r per VBM / shift shifts/wee week request k s generat ed Wee 10 6 120 90 10,800 1,200 k 17 Wee 10 6 120 90 10,800 1,200 k 18 Wee 10 6 120 90 10,800 1,200 k 19 Wee 10 6 120 90 10,800 1,200 k 20 Wee 10 6 120 90 10,800 1,200 k 21 Wee 10 6 120 90 10,800 1,200 k 22 TOTAL VBM 7,200 Request s
Vote By Mail Requests--Volunteers Week VBM requests/volunteer/shift* Number of Vol door Number of VBM shifts/Week Requests Generated Week 4 288 1,152 17 Week 4 306 1,224 18 Week 4 342 1,368 19 Week 4 342 1,368 20 Week 4 378 1,512 21 Week 4 405 1,620 22 * Based on 40 doors for a volunteer shift TOTAL VBM 8,244 Requests
With the paid canvass fully up and running at six shifts per week—and combining their VBMS with those gathered by staff and volunteers--we should be able to generate 16,668 VBM requests. Assuming a 15% non-return rate, that leaves us with 14,275 votes. Number of requests Less 15% non-return Number of Votes rate Generated 1,350 staff + 7,200 paid+ 8,244 vol =16,794 16,794-15%(2,519) 14,275 Votes
Phase 5: 11/3—11/6—GOTV A separate GOTV plan will be written to lay out how the campaign intends to turn out its supporters on Election Day. Strategy and Tactics
Turf Assignments and Regional Identity
In the district there are two main population centers: the Metro East, dominated by St. Clair County, and the Carbondale-Murphysboro-Marion area of Jackson and Williamson Counties. During the first FOs will be assigned to the St. Clair region. The first two FOs will handle central St. Clair; a third FO will cover Belleville, the largest city in St. Clair, along with Monroe and Randolph Counties to the south; a fourth FO will be responsible for northern St. Clair and southern Madison Counties, including the northern portion of E. St. Louis and the southern portion of Granite City.
During the second wave of hiring an FO will be placed in Alton in Madison County. He/she will be responsible for Alton, Wood River, northern Granite City and surrounding small towns. Two FOs will be placed in Carbondale in Jackson County. One FO will be assigned the whole of Carbondale and the southern rural counties of Alexander, Union and Pulaski. The other Jackson County FO will have Murphysboro and the northern rural counties of Perry and Randolph. The final pair of FOs will operate out of Marion in Williamson County. One FO will handle the Marion-Herrin corridor and surrounding towns. The other will take northern Williamson county along with Franklin and Jefferson counties.
Field County Towns Description Organizer FO 1 St. Clair, Monroe Belleville, Belleville-Urbanized, Swansea, candidate’s hometown Waterloo —Monroe -rural, sparsely populated FO 2 St. Clair Shiloh, Contiguous towns of O’Fallon, moderate size in Metro Fairview Hts. East FO 3 St. Clair E. St. Louis, Overwhelmingly Cahokia, African American, low Centerville income, very Democratic FO 4 Northern St. Clair, Southern Madison East St. Louis, Large African Granite City, American pop., mix of Madison, small towns and Fairmont industrial/urban FO 5 Madison Alton, Wood Industrial, blue collar, River, northern unions in area Granite City FO 6 Jackson/Perry/Randolph Murphysboro, Declining industrial Du Quoin, economy, generally Chester rural, Perry has an important Italian immigrant community FO 7 Jackson/Union/Alexander/Pulaski Carbondale, Carbondale contains a Anna, Cairo large state university, history of Democratic support. Southern Counties very sparsely populated, with severe poverty FO 8 Williamson Marion, Herrin Second population/economic center in SE Illinois, new development FO 9 Williamson/Franklin/Jefferson West Many small towns, Frankfort, Mt economy dependent on Vernon, Marion-Herrin corridor Benton
There will be four FOs in total assigned to the east-southeast portion of the district. Two FOs based out of Carbondale will be responsible for Jackson County, as well as the sparsely populated rural counties of Perry, Union, Alexander and Pulaski. The final two FOs will handle adjoining Williamson County and the denser counties to the north, Franklin and Jefferson. Currently four offices are planned: 1) a main office in Belleville 2) a satellite office in Madison County (most likely Alton) 3) a satellite office in Jackson County (most likely Carbondale) 4) a satellite office in Williamson County (most likely Marion). Regional Identity and Messaging
Regionality matters in IL-12 and the political attitudes differ depending on location. St. Clair and Jackson Counties are quite liberal but they are relative outliers. The district as a whole could be described as “conservative Democratic,” meaning conservative views on social issues balanced by more liberal view on economic issues. The state of the economy will play a big part in how we approach persuadable voters. Rep. Costello has done an excellent job steering federal funds into the district and voters have historically recognized this. Therefore a message of job creation and federal re-investment could be quite effective.
The Community
The candidate is well-known in St. Clair County, having served as its Superintendent of Schools for many years. He has many friends and contacts, especially in Belleville, where the campaign will be based. It will be the job of the field director and the organizers to harness these supporters and incorporate them into the standardized campaign structure. In the wake of Rep. Costello’s departure there are several local candidates who are apprehensive about not being able to rely on him to carry the ticket. These local campaigns could serve as another source of manpower and perhaps office space. Additionally, labor is still a significant political force in the area. Their relationship with Costello was strong and they have endorsed our candidate. Local unions could be good areas for volunteer recruitment and their offices could provide good staging locations for GOTV. Volunteer Recruitment and Structure
As previously mentioned, the campaign already has a large pool of supporters to draw from. While these potential volunteers could be reached by phone, many of them could be recruited face-to- face, as the candidate is planning on doing many public appearances from now until Election Day. The field director and the organizers will strive to make these personal connections. The following tactics will be used:
Call Time: Evening call-time will of course be the primary way volunteers are recruited. The FOs will be expected to make 150-200 recruitment calls per night. Additionally, the FOs will be trained in the best recruitment practices and will make volunteer retention a priority. These calls will be directed towards the baseline universe and will allow the FOs to build a rapport with potential volunteers. The FOs will use this time to recruit for 1 on 1s, voter contact shifts and, occasionally, special events. As the campaign progresses, the FOs should have three distinct groups to draw from: 1) active volunteers who have completed a phone or door shift 2) Yes/Maybe volunteers who at one time expressed interest in volunteering 3) the remainder of the Baseline universe.
1 on 1s: From mid-June to late August a heavy emphasis will be placed on one-on-ones. FOs will have specific one-on-one goals throughout this period (detailed earlier), though these benchmarks could be revised depending on how recruitment is progressing. These meetings should be 40-60 minutes long will help the FO build a personal relationship with the potential volunteer. The FO should be able to get a phone or canvass shift out of every 1 on 1.
House Meetings: House meetings will be incorporated into the campaign, with a general goal of one house meeting every other week per FO. These meetings will be informal gatherings of potential volunteers and supporters and will be designed to recruit volunteers for phone or door shifts. As the campaign progresses, they could serve as a way to share the progress of the campaign with its supporters
Events: In addition, special events, such as candidate appearances, office openings, days of action and volunteer trainings, will serve as recruitment opportunities as they arise. Due to the unpredictable nature of these events, the FOs will not be given recruitment goals. However they will be expected to attempt recruitment.
Confirmation Calls: All FOs will be expected to confirm their scheduled volunteer shifts. The primary method for doing this will be confirmation calls, though e-mail may also be used if the volunteer is amenable to that. Ideally the FO will complete two rounds of confirmation calls during the day for their shifts on that date. If the flake rate becomes a problem, staff should adjust to doing calls one or two days out from the scheduled shifts.
Potential Problems:
To many voters Mr. Harriman is not a familiar figure compared to the retiring incumbent, Rep. Costello. Therefore they may be less willing to engage in campaign work. Staff will strive to impart the importance of maintaining Democratic control of IL-12 and to present Mr. Harriman as a good fit for the district.
Volunteer Structure: Given the geographically diverse nature of our District we will have a two tiered volunteer structure that adapts to the urban and rural nature of our district. Urban Volunteer structure: In the urban parts or more densely populated parts of the district a voter contact captain structure will be put in place. This will be set up in FO regions 1-5. In the FO regions 6-9 there will be a county coordinator system where one volunteer leader works to set up remote phone banks and canvasses.
Urban Volunteer Teams: In these regions each FO region will recruit 1 phone bank captain and 1 canvass captain. These volunteer leaders will take on the leadership role of helping recruit, train, organize and manage the other volunteers. They will be required to complete 2 voter contact shifts a week and have 1 phone bank or canvass every two weeks that they are responsible for building for. They will also be required to help train other volunteers when they are at the office.
Rural Volunteer Leaders: County Coordinators In the rural parts of the district one county coordinator per county will be recruited. The county coordinators will be required to complete at least two voter contact shifts a week, host a house meeting and build one voter contact event twice monthly. These county coordinators will be the face of the campaign in many of these areas without staff and offices.
Testing, Identification and Confirmation: Our volunteer leaders will be identified from county party members/leaders, local activists and our volunteer base. Before they are asked to be a volunteer leader they will be required to complete 3 voter contact shifts without flaking and be observed training other volunteers. County coordinators will be asked to host a house meeting as well. Once the FO determines they have met all these criteria they will have a 1 on 1 with the prospective PC or canvass captain to lay out the requirements and to make the ask. FOs will have a team meeting with their volunteer leaders every other week to talk about how the team is doing, progress to goals and where they need to improve. Their voter contact shifts will be confirmed like any other volunteers. All volunteer leaders will need to be identified, tested and up and running by the end of the organizational phase on August 19th.
FO Wave Phone Phone Phone Captain Captain Captain ID’d Tested Confirmed First Wave Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 FOs (6/3) 6/18-6/24 6/25-7/1 7/2-7/8 Second Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Wave FOs 7/16-7/22 7/23-7/29 7/30- 8/5 (7/2)
FO Wave Canvass Canvass Canvass Captain Captain Captain ID’d Tested Confirmed First Wave Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 FOs (6/3) 6/18-6/24 6/25-7/1 7/2-7/8 Second Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Wave FOs 7/16-7/22 7/23-7/29 7/30- 8/5 (7/2)
Many of the County Coordinators will already be selected/in place by the Field Director by the end of June. The second wave of FOs, who will be working the more rural areas, hit the ground the beginning of July. If some counties still lack County Coordinators, they will be selected by the FO using this timeline:
FO Wave County County County County Coordinator ID’d Coordinator Coordinator Coordinator Tested House Mtg Confirmed Second Wave Week 7 Week 8 Week 9 Week 10 FOs (7/2) 7/16-7/22 7/23-7/29 7/30- 8/5 8/6- 8/12
Volunteer Turf: Urban Teams Turf Phone Bank Captain Canvass Captain Belleville, Swansea (FO 1) 1 1 Shiloh, O’Fallon, Fairview 1 1 Hts.(FO 2) E. St. Louis, Cahokia, 1 1 Centerville (FO 3) Granite City, Madison, 1 1 Fairmont (FO 4) Alton, Wood River (FO 5) 1 1 Carbondale (FO 7) 1 1 Marion, Herrin (FO 8) 1 1
This will give us a total of 7 phone bank captains and 7 Canvass Captains County Coordinator Turf Alexander/Pulaski County Franklin County Jefferson Monroe Perry Randolph Union
This will require us to recruit a total of 7 County coordinators. (Alexander and Pulaski have been combined because of their low populations)
Volunteers and Voter Contact Tactics
Volunteers will be an integral component of our voter contact efforts. Volunteers will be utilized throughout the whole campaign for voter contact. With the proper training, they will engage in the following tactics:
Phone Banks: Phone banks based out of campaign offices will be a primary method of voter contact. These phone banks will be administered by the FOs and will be directed towards contacting Persuasion and GOTV voters. In select instances, volunteers may assist in volunteer recruitment and building for events.
Virtual Phone Banks: Staff may make use of virtual phone banks if volunteers are willing and if they reside in a sparsely populated area. FOs will be responsible for properly training volunteers and monitoring their progress through VoteBuilder.
Canvassing: Door-to-door canvassing will be tremendously important to our field campaign. Volunteers will engage in canvassing throughout the campaign and will contact both Persuasion and GOTV voters. With the beginning of the Early Vote phase, volunteers will solicit Vote-By- Mail requests up until the Get Out The Vote period.
Volunteer led Phone Banks & Canvassing: If necessary and/or feasible, the campaign may set up volunteer administered phone banks and canvassing efforts. These volunteers must be well-trained and proven to be reliable. The FOs assigned to the turf of these volunteer-led efforts will be responsible for providing them with the proper materials, such as call lists and canvass packets.
Internships and Student Involvement
It will be a priority of every FO to recruit interns and student volunteers. High schools will be contacted, most likely through the counselors’ offices or through government and history teachers. Southern Illinois University is located in Carbondale and contains 20,000 plus students, serving as another good recruitment resource. The FOs stationed in Jackson County will make it a priority to reach out to the student population there. Note: Each FO will be expected to recruit two interns by the week of 8/19. The FOs will have discretion on how to best deploy them in order to meet their weekly goals.
Field Staff Roles and Duties
The Field Director: The FD will plan and execute the field program throughout the district, constantly revising the field plan as the situation warrants. The field director is responsible for hiring, training and managing the field organizers and any other field staff. The field director will keep the organizers on track and motivated to meet their goals. In addition, the field director will ensure that the campaign works effectively with other campaigns in the area. Finally, the field director will assist the field organizers in volunteer recruitment, helping to set up house meetings, 1 on 1s with key activists, and general call time when able.
The Field Organizers: The FOs will report directly to the field director. Their primary duty will be recruiting, training and managing volunteers, who will be used for voter contact. The organizers will be responsible for properly inputting data every night and keeping proper track of the voter contact efforts within their respective turfs.. They will be expected to meet the benchmarks set for them by the field director.
The Canvass Director: In conjunction with the FD the CD will be responsible for developing a detailed canvas plan that fits into the overall field plan and the goals laid out for the paid canvass in the field plan. The CD will be responsible for hiring, training and managing the paid canvassers. The CD will be responsible for keeping the canvass program on track and for making sure the canvassers are meeting their goals. The CD will report directly to the FD.
Paid Canvassers: The PCs will be responsible for completing their scheduled door to door canvassing shifts. They will be required to hit their door and early vote goals laid out in the field and canvass plan. They will report directly to the CD. During week days they will be canvassing in the evening, from roughly 4 pm to 9 pm. On weekends they will canvass beginning at 11 am and go until 5 pm. They will be expected to properly record the number of knocks, contacts and rated outcomes on both their paper forms and on a computer. They will be expected to knock at least 60 doors per shift, depending on time and geography. On the weekends they may knock over 100 doors each.
Reporting The campaign will use National Field for evening reporting. This reporting will always take place after call time. Field Organizers will be required to report the following: Volunteer Recruitment Total Phone Shifts Recruited Total Volunteer Total Door Shifts Recruited Recruitment Calls Total Shifts Recruited Total Contacts Volunteer Shifts Scheduled Total HM Attendees Today Total Volunteer Shifts Actual Today Total Volunteer Shifts Scheduled Tomorrow Voter Contact 1-on-1s and House Meetings Total Voter Contact Calls Total 1 on 1s held Total Contacts Total 1 on 1s recruited Total Doors Knocked Total 1 on 1s converted Total Contacts Total House Meetings 1s, 2s, 3s, 4s, 5s, 6s Recruited Total VBM request forms Total House meetings held collected Data Entry and Conference Calls There will also be a regular morning conference call at 9am. Field Organizers will check in with the FD and review goals for the day, priorities for the day and volunteer shifts scheduled. There will also be a nightly conference call at 9:30PM. During this call volunteer shifts actual, reason for flakes, progress to goals and upcoming events and action items for the next day will be reviewed. Field staff will also be responsible for diligently inputting data into VoteBuilder and for scheduling volunteers and events in My Calendar. All data entry must be completed before leaving the office. Some of this data entry may be performed by properly trained volunteers at the discretion of staff. Paid canvassers will be responsible for accurately inputting their own data at the office.
Training : Staff Training
Field Organizers: The field organizers will be trained by the FD through regular 1 on 1 coaching, staff trainings as they are hired and large all staff trainings as the campaign switches between phases.
1 st and 2 nd Wave All Staff Trainings: During each wave of hiring there will be a group training led by the FD for the training of new FOs. During this training the FD will start by giving an overview of the district, the candidate and the opponent. The FD will then discuss the overall campaign strategy and more specifically the field plan. The FD will lay out week by week goals for the FOs. Finally the FD will discuss volunteer recruitment, management and the VAN. These items will be the main focus of the training and the FD will discuss with them how best to recruit volunteers, how to train volunteers/manage them. This will provide the FOs the tools necessary to be successful.
Early Vote Training Staff will be trained in the procedures, best practices and importance of the Early Vote program. They will also be educated about state and county laws regarding Vote By Mails and In Person Early Vote. This will be done several days before the official beginning of Early Vote and will allow staff to modify their volunteer asks and office procedures.
GOTV Training The GOTV training will educate staff about the procedures and reporting structures of the four day GOTV period. Included will be training concerning recruitment goals, tic-tocs, cooperation with other campaigns, handling potential problems which may arise
Paid Canvass Training Paid canvassers will be trained on the doors by the canvass director or other, more skilled paid canvassers. They will be taught how to properly record their encounters both on paper and on computer. If needed, there may be periodic role-playing workshops to ensure that the canvassers are pitching properly and staying on script. The canvassers will not sit in on staff trainings but they will be informed as to the various changes in campaign focus if relevant to them. Volunteer Training
All volunteers will be well trained in proper recording procedures, voter contact pitches and general best practices. This training will be performed primarily by the FOs, excepting the volunteers who participate in the various training events. Volunteers will be educated as to the importance and purpose of their work. Regular or stand-out volunteers may be asked to take on leadership/mentoring roles. Ultimately, the FOs will be responsible for making sure their volunteers are properly trained and informed.
Kick-off Training (6/13) This training will be a getting-to-know you session designed to introduce the field team to the volunteer base. It will also have a utilitarian aspect, as it will allow us to train a large number of volunteers early in the campaign. This training, most likely presented by the field director, will discuss how best to contact and convince voters, both on the doors and the phones. The importance of proper recording practices will be stressed. Finally, the crucial role volunteers will play in the campaign will be discussed, with the aim of boosting recruitment and generating enthusiasm. This training event, like all subsequent trainings, will be an opportunity for the FOs to recruit shifts.
Early Vote Training (9/24) To re-energize and re-educate the volunteer base, there will be an Early Vote training at the end of September. This training will cover the procedures for obtaining and handling Vote By Mail ballots and various best practices concerning voter contact. The training will include role plays and a general q-and-a session on how to overcome voter resistance. If feasible, paid canvassers may be asked to attend before they officially begin their work for the campaign. Ideally, there will be an Early Vote training in every office.
GOTV Volunteer Training A GOTV training will give staff an event to build for as we head towards Election Day. Attendees will be trained in GOTV scripts, changes in recording procedures and voting rules. The progress of the campaign will be reviewed and celebrated. Staff will be expected to build heavily for this event and to recruit many GOTV shifts from the pool of attendees. Again, every office should have a GOTV training.
Timeline and Benchmarks 5/1--Organization Phase Begins 5/15—Field Director on the Ground 6/3—First Wave of Hiring (4 FOs) 6/4—First Staff Training 6/13—Volunteer Kick-Off Training
6/18—Persuasion Phase Begins 7/1—Second Wave of Hiring (5 FOs) 7/2—Second Staff Training 7/4—Fourth of July Parades 7/6—Jackson and Williamson Offices Open 7/22—First Persuasion Pass Completed 8/6—Second Persuasion Pass Completed 8/19- Third and Final Persuasion Pass Completed 9/1—Canvass Director Hired 9/22—Staff Early Vote Training 9/24—Volunteer Early Vote Training
9/27—Early Vote Phase Begins 9/27—Paid Canvassers on the Ground (20 Canvassers) 9/27—Vote By Mails Requests Solicited 10/8—First GOTV Pass Completed 10/15—In Person Early Vote Begins 10/22—Second GOTV Pass Completed 10/27—GOTV Staff Training 10/28—GOTV Volunteer Training 11/1—In Person Early Vote Ends
11/3—GOTV Phase Begins 11/6—Election Day!