Take Action!
There are so many ways that you can take action in Pennsylvania.
Check out our list below and submit a form telling us what you’re interested in and we’ll reach out when opportunities come up. Some of these activities might seem out of your comfort zone, but you’ll always have support of other TPAB members, so don’t be nervous.
You can always reach out to us at info@turnpablue.org if you have questions. Turn PA Blue and Pennsylvania need you!
Canvassing
Not all superheroes wear capes. Some wear comfortable shoes and save our democracy one door knock at a time. Here’s why you should give it a try: canvassing is the most effective way to identify support, persuade undecideds, and increase voter turnout. We understand that it’s also intimidating for many volunteers. Turn PA Blue wants to give you the information you need to master the art of the door knock and match you up with campaigns where you’re needed most. We promise, these face-to-face conversations with your fellow citizens will be meaningful, rewarding, and fun.
Text Banking
Become a virtual canvasser!
This election season, if you don’t have the time or energy to knock on doors or make calls, consider virtual canvassing via peer-to-peer texting with our partner, Red2Blue. It’s really effective and doesn’t require a lot of time or effort. And you do it from the comfort of your own home.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. You’ll be reaching out to voters via “text” messages.
We’re texting voters in states and districts all across America in support of Democrats trying to defend their seat or flip them from red to blue. Our goal is to inform voters about our candidates and most importantly encourage them to vote. They’ll receive the texts on their mobile phones, but you’ll actually be “texting” from your computer. (We use an online app called Relay. Learn more about it here.)
- Join the texting sessions when it’s convenient for you.
We’ll send you a weekly email letting you know the dates and times of upcoming texting sessions. Drop into a session when it works for your schedule. The sessions typically run 10 – 12 hours, but the minimum commitment is only 30 minutes. (You’ll also need to check back in a few times to answer late replies.) So it’s realistic to squeeze in some couch activism, even if you don’t have large chunks of time to dedicate. - We’ll help you with what to say.
Through the Relay dashboard, you’ll get all the information you need for each session. We’ll give you some pre-typed responses to make things more efficient. You’ll also have access to talking points and information from the candidates. And there will be plenty of opportunity to connect with voters on a personal level. (That’s the fun part!) - None of your personal information will be revealed.
You’ll be using the Relay app on your computer to “text.” The messages will look like they come from a generic number. Only your first name will be used. Your phone number, last name, address, etc. never enter into the equation! And because you’re doing it from a computer, no texting fees apply. - Most important, you’ll make a difference.
We’re using the most effective and efficient form of canvassing available—peer-to-peer texting. (More on that hereand here.) And there is So. Much. To. Do. between now and the November election. There are voter registration deadlines and primaries. And critical State House elections we must win in order to stop the GOP’s gerrymandering. And, of course, the big House and Senate races. Your armchair activism can make a real difference!
So, are you ready to lie on your couch and save our democracy?
- Click HERE and fill out the form.
- Soon after, you’ll be invited to join our Slack group.
- Once you’re in there, click on “Channels” in the left-hand column and join the “#texting” channel.
- Once you join, you’ll have access to our training materials and our friendly moderators can explain everything we do in detail.
Phone Banking
To help Conor Lamb win the special election in the PA 18th Congressional District, volunteers from outside the district made more than 35,000 phone calls and sent countless texts. These are extremely helpful when attempting to amplify the ground game of a campaign. If you’re interested in phone or text banking, please fill out this form.
Campaign Fundraising
Whether we like it or not, our candidates need to raise a lot of money just to compete with the GOP money machine. We are looking to unseat a lot of incumbents in 2018. In order to win these tough fights, our candidates need to raise money for staff, campaign literature, digital ads, lawn signs and more. Turn PA Blue is looking for volunteers willing to host simple fundraisers, which can be at someones home or at a local establishment. It’s fun, easy and we’ll tell you everything you need to know to put on a successful event. If you’re interested in learning more about hosting a fundraiser for a candidate, please fill out this form.
Postcards Program
Wanna help Turn PA Blue from the comfort of your own home? Wanna help while socializing with friends? Writing postcards to send to voters to inform them about candidates, upcoming elections, and other campaign activities is proving quite effective. Fill out this form to learn about opportunities to help with postcard writing activities.
Candidate Petitions
Candidates for most elected offices, including PA House and Senate races will be canvassing neighborhoods and hosting events to gather signatures from voters for their petitions. They need enough signatures to get on the ballot for the May primary election. If you’re interested in helping these candidates, please fill out the following form and we’ll match you up with local candidates. Please include your street address, as it is necessary for Action Network to know exactly which legislative district you are currently residing.
Technology Volunteer
As Turn PA Blue expands their operations throughout southeastern PA, then to the rest of Pennsylvania in future elections, there will be many opportunities for volunteers with technology-related skills to help move towards our goals. This includes:
- website design and content
- graphic design
- mobile applications, including social media
- conference software
- podcast recordings
Absentee Ballots Program
We saw it in 2017 and we just saw it again with Conor Lamb. Every single vote counts! Turn PA Blue is working on an Absentee Ballot Program (with some amazing partners) to help increase absentee turnout for Democrats in our targeted districts in 2018. If you are interested in volunteering to help with this program, please fill out this form.
Election Day Volunteering
On election day, volunteers are needed for a variety of activities at all precincts. This includes working at the polls, canvassing, phone banking, transporting voters to the polls, and more. However, the greatest of the activities needed for Election Day in CANVASSING!! If you are interested in volunteering, fill out this form to learn about opportunities as they become available.
If you’re not sure what PA State Legislative District (Senate and House) that you live in, you can find out here: http://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/legis/home/findyourlegislator/
Register Voters
Being registered to vote is where it all starts. We can’t win elections without enough voters who are registered and willing to go to the polls.
If you’re interested in registering voters, fill out this form to learn about voter registration opportunities when they are available.
BlueBNB
Turn PA Blue is committed to flipping house and senate seats in November 2018 by not limiting ourselves to the gerrymandered boxes that Republicans have put us in. Our BlueBnB program is designed to match up hosts in flippable areas and volunteers from other areas that are safely blue. These volunteers would stay in the host homes for various lengths and times from now until the election.
Hosts are only required to provide the volunteers with a place to stay, a bed and the appropriate accommodations. Then, hosts should also help connect volunteers with the local candidates or groups helping the campaigns.
Volunteers are responsible for their own expenses such as food and travel, but hosts are welcome (and encouraged) to help volunteers with these expenses as much as possible. Volunteers should make every attempt to reach out to campaigns ahead of time to get specific instructions for how to help with the campaign.
If you are interested in hosting or volunteering, please fill out the appropriate form and we will try to match you up with hosts/volunteers over the next few months.
Any questions, email us at bburychka@TurnPABlue.org