ABSTRACT
The successful getting out the vote (GOTV) effort focuses on surgically precise activation of lazy supporters. Before the days of ubiquitous caller identification (ID) and wireless phones, GOTV was primarily an exercise in phone banking. The neighborhood captains (NCs) assigned to turfs within mixed zones will ID the non-affiliated voters on their voter list. In the weeks leading up to the election, each NC will canvass or call the voters on his or her list to make sure they vote—on average, activating twenty lazy voters per week. That might sound like a big lift, but feedback questionnaires after the election indicated an overwhelming preference for the NC-approach GOTV over traditional phone bank and canvassing efforts. Voters who get their ballots at home will have more time than voters in a polling booth to reflect on lesser-known candidates and issues. Not listing candidates or issue-based campaigns on the door hanger expands the volunteer base as supporters of noncompeting campaigns join forces.
