I’ve been volunteering with the Clinton campaign here in Vegas. It is a full throttle GOTV operation. Several of the staffers are in their twenties and were brought in from out-of-state. Some have been here since May. All of then routinely work 10-12 hours day 7 days a week.
Considering the Republican Party is fractured and at war with itself, I’m certain Trump campaign staffers have not been in Nevada since May. This is where Hillary has a huge edge. Because it’s all about Get Out The Vote.
It starts with voter registration. Volunteers stand outside stores and libraries signing up new voters. By law, they must accept registrations for all parties. New registrations are entered into the Democratic voter tracking system and sent to the Secretary of State. Then, Democrats are called using voter registration lists, and asked who they support, are they planning to vote the day of or early (Nevada has early voting at voting booths), and do they want to volunteer. This is a crucial part of the GOTV push. Thousands of calls are made each day in Vegas to Democratic voters. Likely Democratic voters are identified and later will be asked if they want rides to polls.
Then, neighborhoods are walked, contacting Democrats who did not give a phone number or who are never home when they are called. The whole point of this is to get Democrats to the voting booths. Never in any of this are they asked for money.
I’ve been spending a couple of hours a day doing deeply boring but crucial data entry. Happily, the software is well-thought-out and easy to use.
It’s paying off. Clinton and the Democratic ticket is now ahead in Nevada. And I’m quite sure the Trump campaign has nothing close to the sophistication of the GOTV effort and number of staff and volunteers that Clinton has.
Because on the ground is where races are won.