Hi John,
Campaigns usually start talking to voters too late, target too narrowly, and rely on scripted, one-way interactions that do little to build trust. Ground Truth is designed to change that.
Ground Truth transforms how we connect with voters, including those left out of traditional outreach. Using a new canvassing app (that Swing Left helped design!) volunteers start early, knock on every door, and listen deeply to understand what voters truly care about. Then, we’re analyzing and sharing valuable insights campaigns can actually use to build trust, win votes, and defeat their GOP opponents.
This year, Swing Left volunteers launched 25 Ground Truth pilot canvasses across 12 congressional swing districts in Arizona, California, Colorado, Iowa, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. The results gave us a real look at what voters are thinking—and show opportunities for Ground Truth to move the needle in races that could decide the House next year.
Here are four key findings from the pilot canvasses:
1. Voters are eager to talk, and they want to be heard. Across the pilot canvasses, 2 out of 3 people who answered their doors had substantive conversations with Swing Left volunteers, often lasting more than 10 minutes. The barrier for real conversation isn’t disinterest—it’s distrust and fatigue with when and how campaigns normally show up.
2. Traditional voter contact methods often miss existing Democratic supporters as well as persuadable voters. By beginning earlier and utilizing the broad reach of this Swing Left community to knock every door, we can identify and engage voters who are often missed by traditional strategies due to time and resource constraints. Early analysis suggests that about 1 in 4 voters coded as Republican expressed either explicit concern about Trump, openness to voting for Democrats, or alignment with progressive priorities. Ground Truth can help campaigns identify these potentially persuadable voters.
3. Voters are disillusioned, and trust needs to be rebuilt. Across the pilot canvasses, the most consistent theme heard—from Republicans, Democrats, and Independents—was “the system is broken.” It signals a need to rebuild trust through sustained conversation, over a longer period of time than campaigns are typically capable of.
4. Ground Truth fills a structural gap in the Democratic ecosystem. It allows for direct conversations between voters that serves like a focus group at scale, providing free, structured, and early voter insights to swing district campaigns (that they often don’t have the resources or time to collect themselves). And it provides year-round trust-building that grows and sustains the Democratic Party’s brand.
These findings are why we’re expanding Ground Truth to swing districts nationwide—as part of our focus on flipping the House to Democrats next year. Growing Ground Truth is a collective effort. When we pool our time and resources—knocking doors, talking with voters, and sustaining the program financially—we make this work possible.
Thank you as always for everything you do.
— The Swing Left Team
P.S. Want to learn more about Ground Truth? RSVP for the “Inside Ground Truth” national strategy call on Tuesday, December 9th to hear how we’ll utilize Ground Truth in 2026, and for an exclusive look at Swing Left’s expanded House targets for the midterm elections next year.
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Since 2017, Swing Left has channeled the energy of grassroots volunteers and donors to elect Democrats, up and down the ballot, focusing on the most competitive races that can swing the national balance of power. Right now, Swing Left is investing in early grassroots organizing in key swing districts and initiatives across the country to lay the foundation to win back the House in 2026. If you’d like to help support our work, you can make a donation using this link. |
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Paid for by Swing Left, swingleft.org, not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.
