View this email in your browser ([link removed])


**

Happy Thursday, Fellow Democrats! And Happy 4^th of July!!! As we celebrate the anniversary of the founding of our country, let us renew our commitment to secure our democracy and take back the White House in November to restore decency, honesty, empathy, respect, and racial and cultural sensitivity to our Presidency.

We are now 124 days away from electing a new President of the United States!


------------------------------------------------------------


** MAY VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH
------------------------------------------------------------


**
Our May Volunteer of the Month is Bob Bruner. Bob is a Precinct Captain in Precinct 9, a member of the Democratic Club, and a phone banking extraordinaire! Since we began making phone calls in April, Bob has made over 500 calls! He is always up for a challenge and always has a smile on his face. Thank you, Bob Bruner, for all you do for the Democrats of Indian River!



------------------------------------------------------------


** YOU NEED TO KNOW: FLORIDA DEMOCRATIC PARTY VOTE BY MAIL UPDATE
------------------------------------------------------------


**
Since the March 17 Presidential Preference Primary (PPP), Democrats have enrolled 350,000 Democrats into vote-by-mail (VBM) compared to Republicans enrolling 160,000 GOP voters into VBM. Democrats now have more than a 302,000 voter lead in vote-by-mail enrollments.


------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


**

For the first time since 2012, in a state always won on the margins, Florida Democrats have built a strong and well-trained volunteer corps ready before the launch of the general election. We currently have 19,876 active volunteers who have completed more than 80,000 volunteer shifts. Last week alone, more than 4,000 volunteers and staff made one million calls and texts to Florida’s Democratic voters and enrolled more than 15,000 Democrats into VBM. For comparison, in June 2016 the FDP had 1,500 volunteers who had completed fewer than 1,000 volunteer shifts. Thank you to our volunteers who are phone banking to register Indian River County Democrats to Vote by Mail. Our efforts are succeeding!

Data shows more voters are likely to cast their ballot when they are mailed a ballot in advance. Historically, the party that is able to harness the power of VBM has a major advantage because barriers to voting are removed, allowing more voters to exercise their right to vote. Plus campaign get-out-the-vote efforts improve when voters have ballots in hand a month in advance, as there are fewer voters left to persuade to vote on Election Day.

From 2012 to 2017, we increased emphasis on VBM, narrowing the divide in enrollments by enrolling warm voters into VBM. But Democratic turnout still lagged, and the GOP was successful in winning VBM and the top of the ticket elections in 2014, 2016 and 2018.

In 2018 we adjusted our strategy and began enrolling cold voters – voters who don't turn out – into VBM. This is notable for two reasons: (1) this is a much larger pool of Democratic voters than sporadic voters; and (2) these voters have been largely ignored by campaigns for nearly a decade due to their non-voter status. In 2018, we enrolled 218,000 non-voters into VBM and more than 40% of them voted. In fact, 1 in 4 Democrats who voted by mail in 2018, voted in a midterm election for the first time – and more Democrats voted in 2018 than in 2016, thanks to the expansion of the electorate due to VBM.

This year we are continuing our outreach to cold Democrats, ensuring a high Democratic turnout for Joe Biden this November. Of the voters we’ve enrolled in VBM since the PPP, 103,000 are Democrats who definitely support Joe Biden, but according to voter trends, these voters are not likely to turn out unless they are approached by Democrats and the Biden campaign. By acting now to enroll them into VBM, we can ensure they will be reached through our voter outreach and VBM chase programs.

Our down-ballot candidates are also going to benefit from our VBM enrollment efforts. In Florida, hundreds of thousands of Democrats vote top of the ticket and leave the rest of the ballot blank. But VBM voters tend to vote all the way down the ballot. In 2018, as a result of VBM enrollment, Florida Democrats flipped two Congressional seats, secured our first statewide cabinet victory in more than a decade, sent the largest Democratic delegation to Tallahassee in over 20 years, and flipped the county governments in Miami-Dade, Orange, and Hillsborough Counties. Take a look at the comparison of drop-off decreases between 2014 and 2018:


------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


**

The increase in Democratic VBM enrollments is a result of tens of thousands of volunteers making calls, mailing enrollment forms, sending text messages and emails, and posting links to sign up online -- and this level of volunteerism indicates enthusiasm for Biden and Democrats. Our massive field effort to enroll Democrats into VBM has not been countered by the Florida GOP. Their failure to act, coupled with the President’s war on VBM, has had a chilling effect on Republican enrollment. The fact that a large number of Democrats who are not traditional voters are enrolling in VBM indicates Democratic voters' enthusiasm to vote. We know our 302,000+ VBM enrollment margin will only grow. This spells trouble for Republicans on Election Day.



------------------------------------------------------------


** WHAT ARE WE WORKING ON?
------------------------------------------------------------


**
Our volunteers have now made over 6,500 phone calls! Way to go everyone. We are so lucky to have such dedicated and hard-working volunteers. Thank you so much!

We currently have a volunteer working on a Candidate Information Sheet so we can make informed decisions for both the August Primary and November General elections.

As we get closer to the August Primary, we are revisiting our Precinct Action Plan and making fluid changes. Due to the Corona virus, many of our plans have changed and/or have had to be altered. But we have an important job to do (elect a new president) so we can’t and won’t give up!



------------------------------------------------------------


** INDIAN RIVER COUNTY CANDIDATE FORUMS
------------------------------------------------------------


**
Covid-19 has not only disrupted our ability to get out and talk to voters, but it also affects our ability to hear from candidates. Thankfully, many local organizations are making sure the candidate forums continue virtually. As always, our office will also provide brief bios for the candidates running for office.

This week, the Taxpayer’s Association of Indian River County held two online candidate forums. The first one was for the School Board Candidates. There are 4 candidates running for two seats.

District 3 Seat:

Laura Zorc – Incumbent
Peggy Jones

District 5 Seat:

Brian Barefoot
Alla Kramer

The school board races are non-partisan. You will vote for these candidates in the August 18 Primary.

To watch the School Board forum, click here: [link removed]


The second candidate forum was for County Commission. There are 5 candidates running for two seats.

District 3 Seat:

Tim Zorc, Incumbent
Joseph Earman

District 5 Seat:

Laura Moss
Stephen Boyle
Bob Auwaerter

All candidates are Republican. You will vote for both races in the August 18^th Primary. The top 2 vote getters in District 5 will then head off in the November 3^rd General Election.

To watch the County Commission forum, click here: [link removed]



On July 9^th, the NAACP will host candidate forums for the School Board and the Sheriff’s race. Details are in the flyer below.

------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


**


------------------------------------------------------------


** DEMOCRATIC CLUB TO MEET JULY 15
------------------------------------------------------------


**
The Democratic Club’s next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, July 15^th at 6:00 p.m. Once again, the meeting will be via Zoom. Jim Kennedy, the Democratic candidate for the US House of Representatives District 8, will be the guest speaker. He is opposing incumbent Bill Posey. The Zoom link will be sent out closer to the meeting date.



------------------------------------------------------------


** BIDEN AND DEMOCRATIC GEAR
------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


** We have Biden gear in our office! Currently we have:

T-shirts $15
Yard signs $10
Bumper stickers (rectangle and oval) $2
Buttons $1

If you would like to pick up some Biden gear from the office, Stacey will be in the office on Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Just knock on the door and she will meet you outside as our office is still closed to visitors.

------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


**

We also have "I give a Dem" signs available again! The signs are bright blue and feature the Democrats of Indian River County logo. The cost is $6 and includes a wire stand sign for outdoor use. To place an order and arrange pick up, contact Claudia Martino at
------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


**

And don’t forget our cute Democratic Facemasks! Lovingly made by a fellow Democrat, they are being sold for $10. Contact our office if you want one at:


------------------------------------------------------------


**
------------------------------------------------------------


**




------------------------------------------------------------


** DEMOCRATIC HEADQUARTERS UPDATE
------------------------------------------------------------


**
As COVID cases are still on the rise in Indian River County, our office will remain closed for visits and in-person meetings. We will continue to undertake essential activities with Operations Coordinator Stacey Klim on Wednesdays and Fridays 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Democrats coming to the office should knock on the door, social distance, wear a facemask, and provide their own hand sanitizer. Thank you as we continue to look after the safety of our fellow Democrats.


------------------------------------------------------------


** COVID-19
------------------------------------------------------------


**
Indian River County currently has 739 cases and 16 deaths. The number of cases is increasing both in our county and in the state at a high rate. Social distance and wear a mask!

To stay up-to-date on the cases of Covid-19 in Indian River County and the State of Florida, click on the link below. Updates are made every day at approximately 11 a.m. EST.

[link removed]


Indian River County has created a website dedicated to the Covid-19 virus that contains numerous resources and county information. You can access this information by going to: [link removed]



------------------------------------------------------------


** That’s all folks. Stay healthy!!!
------------------------------------------------------------

============================================================
** Twitter ([link removed])
** Facebook ([link removed])
** Website ([link removed])
Copyright © 2020 Democratic Executive Committee of Indian River County, All rights reserved.
You expressed interest in receiving information about the Democrats of Indian River County.

Our mailing address is:
Democratic Executive Committee of Indian River County
2345 14th Ave.
Suite 7
Vero Beach, FL 32960
USA
Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can ** update your preferences ([link removed])
or ** unsubscribe from this list ([link removed])
.
Email Marketing Powered by Mailchimp
[link removed]