Connect! Unite! Act! is a weekly series encouraging the creation of face-to-face networks in each congressional district. Groups meet to socialize, support candidates, get out the vote, and engage in other local political actions that help our progressive movement grow and exert maximum influence on the powers that be. Visit us every week to see how you can get involved!
This week’s CUA Circle Assignment: Spread the word that there is still time to register to vote in all 50 states. The earliest deadline is October 9, and that is more than a week away. Find out when the voter registration deadline is in your state, and look for creative ways to share that message.
What is a CUA Circle?
CUA Circles are a way of mobilizing our already-existing social networks to encourage people to vote for Democrats. Developing these overlapping circles of political connection is essential for this midterm cycle, serves as advance planning for next year’s races, and helps prepare for the presidential fight in 2024.
YOU are already the center of a CUA Circle consisting of everyone who comes in contact with you: family, friends, coworkers, neighbors, and folks who follow you on social media. As you present a consistent message about why people should vote for Democrats, you help spread facts and good vibes that others will share in turn, reaching people who might not be reached by conventional political advertising. In time, they become the center of their own CUA Circles.
This action plan is designed to end frustration about a perceived lack of strong messaging by party leaders and officials. We are taking matters into our own hands, crafting messages and getting the word started on our own. It’s easy; anyone can do it. You can begin TODAY. All you need is (1) a desire to find and share accurate information, and (2) an awareness that the way you act and speak may be someone’s only opportunity to learn facts about who Democrats are and what we stand for.
Starting with the people you know right now, you can be the source of simple, powerful, Democratic messaging. We may not have the nationwide communications advantage right now, but as individuals, the Blue Team has a huge advantage, because we outnumber them. Everything is on the line and we have to start with what we have. Let it be here and now.
Each CUA Circle has three weekly action goals:
- get the facts
- spread the news
- encourage one another
Let’s dive into this week’s challenge: voter registration deadlines.
Get the Facts
There is still time to register to vote in ALL 50 STATES.
The earliest deadlines are coming up fast, though. The last day to register in Alaska and Rhode Island is October 9 (a Sunday), and the last day to register in Mississippi is October 10. The linked article above lists all the states alphabetically and is color coded: the darker the color, the sooner your registration deadline is coming. The Washington Post is making the linked article free, without paywall, so everyone can access this information.
Spread the News
Think of a place where you can share this information. If a political discussion comes up, can you mention “at least there’s still time to register to vote in this state” or something similar? If someone is not sure whether they are still on the voting rolls, you can suggest they check now while there is still time for them to re-register if necessary.
Can you post your state’s voter registration deadline on your social media accounts, or make it your pinned tweet, including a link to the iwillvote.com website to make it easy for people to follow through?
Perhaps you would rather create an eye-catching announcement and put a postcard on a bulletin board in a grocery store or laundromat or other gathering place where signs are allowed. Or you might design a poster and share it on Next Door or another neighborhood circulation list where anyone can post announcements.
Providing voter registration information is legal to do in churches, since it is considered nonpartisan activity. Can you put the registration deadline in your church newsletter or on the church website?
Of course if you have more time and energy, you can get the materials to set up voter registration at a high traffic location in your neighborhood. CUA Circle assignments are usually simple tasks anyone can complete without organization, helpers, or funds, but if you have the time and resources to host a voter registration table, go for it!
Encourage one another
This assignment is simple and the same every week. Find someone who is working on an issue that is important to you, and give them a word of encouragement. Tell a volunteer you are grateful for their long hours, thank a politician for voting the right way, or show appreciation to someone who gave you helpful information.
You can be as creative as you want: write a protest song that inspires people to be activists, draw a cartoon that helps us laugh at our adversaries, design a piece of art that fires people up, or one that is restful and relaxing to behold—but make sure you share it somehow, even if with just one other person. You can also find something encouraging that someone else created or shared and keep passing it along. This is hard work. We all need support for the journey.
Recap of this week’s challenge:
- Look up the voter registration deadline for your state.
- Start a conversation about it with someone: “Good thing there’s still time to register to vote”; or share the information on your social media feeds; or create an informational postcard/poster and leave it in a public place.
- Remember to offer an encouraging word to someone this week.
DOZENS MORE GOTV ACTIVITIES ANYONE CAN DO
Turnout is always essential, and this year it is even more important than usual. We must vote in numbers too big to manipulate, and win by the largest margins possible. We have 39 days left to pull out all the stops in Getting Out The Vote (GOTV) for the 2022 midterms. When Democrats vote, Democrats win.
Daily Kos has prepared a comprehensive list of GOTV activities at www.dailykos.com/gotv. If you have time to get more involved as election day approaches, this link has DOZENS of in-person and virtual projects anyone can do. Feel free to share this resource everywhere you can!
the ocean rolls like thunder / the tempest pulls us under / the dogs are howling / but it's not too late