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Hi folks,

Election season is in full swing! So for this month’s newsletter, I wanted
to write to you about a subject that’s very close to my heart: doing voter
contact when you’re an introvert.

If you’ve met me or seen me speak, you’ve probably noticed that I’m a shy
person. Back when Indivisible went viral in 2017, I was terrified of
public speaking (sometimes I still am). I’m an open introvert. I’m
happiest at home with a book.

But I LOVE voter contact. I’ve been canvassing since I was fourteen. I
logged 25,000 steps a day for Hillary in Philly in 2016. I hopped on
Indivisible’s phonebanking system to call voters while I was taking care
of my newborn in 2020. And this year, I just got back from knocking doors
along with southern California Indivisibles for two key House races.

Here are the three reasons why I, as an introvert, love voter contact (and you
will too):

 1. When I do voter contact, I’m on a mission. If you drop me into a party
where I don’t know anyone and ask me to mingle for an hour, I’m going
to run away. But if you hand me a walksheet and tell me to go knock on
the doors of thirty low-propensity Democratic voters, I’m in. What’s
the difference? With voter contact, I’m not just having idle social
interactions. I’ve got a job. I’ve been trained up to do my job. And I
can make it into a game. How many doors can I hit? Can I have at least
three good conversations, the kind that seem like they really might
make the difference, in a shift? That’s when things get fun.
 2. Voters are interesting and I learn stuff from talking to them.  Real
people -- their life stories, their ideas, their decisions -- are so
much more fascinating than the caricatures we often reduce them to in
politics. When you have a conversation with a voter, you’re watching
in real time as they grapple with competing needs, pressures, hopes
and fears -- often in ways that will surprise you. Connecting to other
humans, and fully appreciating how weird and complicated and
delightful they are, is really rewarding. And you don’t need to be a
charismatic social butterfly to do it well -- you just need to be
curious, empathetic, and a good listener. (We introverts are great at
that!)

What’s more, talking to voters gives you the chance to test your own
approaches, to see for yourself what works and what doesn’t. You might
be out there trying to persuade people, or to get out the vote -- but
at the same time, you’re learning yourself. 

 3. Nothing breaks the cycle of election anxiety like doing the work. If
you’re a politically engaged person (and you’re on this list, so you
probably are), you’re probably in an increasingly nervous state right
now. You know that this election is do-or-die for democracy. You’re
following the polls. You’re doom-scrolling through updates on social
media. You’re bouncing between a confusing combination of hope, fear,
and helplessness.

Voter contact is the cure. When you’re talking to a voter, you’re not
on the sidelines anymore -- you’re taking action. And the data is
really clear: having conversations directly with voters is the single
best and most important thing you as a volunteer can do to win an
election. Taking action will make you feel powerful, connected, and
like part of the solution. It’s kind of like going to the gym -- you
know you’re going to feel better afterwards (and hey, if you canvass,
you also do enough walking that you get to skip the gym!).

That may all sound nice, but I know canvassing and phonebanking can still
feel intimidating.

So, here are a few top tips for those of us who want to do the work, but still
find it hard:

 1. Find the activity that works best for you. If you want to be outdoors,
getting exercise, and having face to face conversations, canvass! If
you’d rather do stuff in your own house, in your spare time in the
evenings, go with phonebanking. And if you’d feel more comfortable
having longer, deeper 1:1 conversations about an issue instead of
trying to reach as many voters as possible, check our our deep
canvassing phonebanks, where we call independents and
Republican-leaning pro-choice voters in swing states to talk about
abortion.
 2. Check out our prep resources and trainings. We heard from Indivisibles
nationwide that there was demand for strategic messaging guidance and
talking points, and we’ve got you covered. We’re partnering with the
Protect Our Freedoms coalition to distribute shared strategic
messaging and intel on the state of the midterms -- you can join our
regular, weekly [ [link removed] ]Messaging to Win in 2022 calls on Mondays at 4pm
ET/1pm PT. And we’re producing regular resources, called
[ [link removed] ]Indivisible Unpacked to provide messaging guidance and talking
points for some of the biggest and most important issues of this
cycle. With all that said…
 3. Remember that you don’t need to be an expert to be convincing. I used
to be scared that a voter would stump me with a question about the
candidate that I wasn’t prepared for. That was silly! When you’re
volunteering, you don’t need to have memorized your candidate’s full
biography and issue page to be a persuasive ambassador for them. The
biggest endorsement you can offer for your candidate is that you’re
giving up your own free time to put them in office. You have
legitimacy precisely because you’re not a political hack -- you’re a
regular person who cares about this. Feel good about that.
 4. Make it a shared activity. If you’re canvassing and nervous about
being on your own, bring a friend (or connect with your local
Indivisible group and go together!). They can hit houses with you, or
you can split up your list and compare notes. If you’re phonebanking,
join one of our phonebanks so that you can chat with fellow
phonebankers, share stories, and get your questions answered in real
time. 
 5. Report out! Like a lot of shy folks, I find it easier to write a
social media post than to strike up a conversation with a stranger.
And when you’re doing voter contact, you should absolutely share it
with your own network -- because you want as many people as possible
thinking about the election, and you want as many people as possible
to get involved. Social media helps create that “everyone is doing it”
echo chamber that recruits the next wave of volunteers. Take pictures,
tag us, and we’ll amplify!

If you’re convinced, here’s a few ways to get involved:

* [ [link removed] ]Sign up for Give No Ground to get the most up-to-date information
on our phonebanking, textbanking, postcarding, canvassing, and all of
our efforts to win Nov 8. 
* [ [link removed] ]RSVP for our national Phonebank for Mark Kelly and Jevin Hodge on
Tuesday, October 11 at 6pm ET/3pm PT. Last week, an Arizona judge
ruled that an abortion law dating back to 1864 should be enforced,
effectively banning nearly all abortion across the state. Mark Kelly
and Jevin Hodge are on the front lines of the fight to protect the
right to choose in Arizona and they need our help.
* [ [link removed] ]Sign up for Using Artistic Activism to Win in November and beyond
on Thursday, October 13 at 7:30pm ET/4:30pm PT. Join Indivisible and
the Center for Artistic Activism to learn how to bring creativity and
innovation to your Indivisible work. We’ll inspire with the best
artistic activism examples; drill down to the details of the key
components of building an enduring creative campaign; share insights
from decades we’ve spent designing engaging, life-changing actions;
and leave with wild new ideas to make sure we Give No Ground this
midterm election season -- and beyond.
* [ [link removed] ]Join us for Indivisible’s Phonebank for Jamie Mcleod-Skinner on
Sunday, October 16 at 5pm ET/2pm PT. Jamie is an incredible rural
advocate in Oregon who beat Kurt Schrader in the primary -- a
conservative who blocked action on climate change and took over
$600,000 from Big Pharma. Now she faces MAGA Republican Lori
Chavez-DeRemer in the general who has dog-whistled support of election
denial and supports a near-total abortion ban, dial-in to Oregon to
support a true progressive. 
* [ [link removed] ]Register for our Deep Canvassing Phonebank for conflicted
Pro-Choice voters on Tuesday, October 18 at 5pm ET/2pm PT. Following
the MAGA Supreme Court’s reversal of 50 years of legal precedent
protecting the right to choose, Americans across the country have been
organizing to preserve bodily autonomy. Deep canvassing is a proven
technique to motivate voters who are conflicted or unmotivated to act.
Join us in our efforts to restore the right to choose for all
Americans (Bonus: This phonebank involves a 1hr training beforehand --
if you’re an introvert like me and want to feel fully briefed before
you begin, this is a great opportunity.)
* [ [link removed] ]Join Indivisible and partner organizations in the Protect Our
Freedoms coalition on Mondays at 4pm ET/1pm PT for our Messaging to
Win in 2022 briefings. In these sessions we’ll cover the latest intel
on key battleground races and share tested messaging on what it will
take to protect our freedoms. We’ll present up-to-date research into
attitudes of key voting segments, as well as talking points,
messaging, and calls to action to mobilize our base to the polls and
swing conflicted voters to our side. If you want to feel more prepared
to talk to voters, this is the place for you.

Whatever you do, pick something. We’ve only got 36 days left until the
election, and vote-by-mail is already beginning -- so if you haven’t
chosen a race or a way to get involved yet, this is absolutely the time. 

On November 9th, we’ll either have a bigger Democratic trifecta -- one
that can guarantee voting rights and democracy reform, codify Roe, and
pass a bold Democratic care agenda -- or we’ll have Republican election
deniers and insurrectionists sweeping into office nationwide. The stakes
are high -- and you’ll want to know that you did everything you could to
protect our freedoms and our democracy. 

Have you been out contacting voters already this cycle? What tips would
you give a volunteer new to voter contact? Have you got a great story
about doing voter contact, or a great conversation you had? Reply to this
e-mail to let us know. We’d love to get enough tips to compile an
“Indivisible Activists’ Tips and Stories For Voter Contact” email!  

Now let’s go find some voters,

Leah Greenberg
Co-Executive Director, Indivisible

P.S. Obligatory Zeke Photo
Zeke is turning two in October and he is an absolute delight. Here he is
enjoying two lollipops a few seconds after getting his second COVID shot
(friendly reminder: vaccinate your kids and get your booster!). He does
not like getting shots but he absolutely loves wearing bandaids, so this
day worked out pretty well for him.

[9]Zeke eating two lollipops after getting his second COVID shot

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