Organizing for America | Obama HQ Blogger: GOTV Call Report: Day Two

rough day today so far in calls to OH... | Report to Admin

By Terri from Princeton, NJ Nov 1st 2008 at 4:44 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 4:44 pm EDT)

I have been calling OH today. list of 25 first, + now about halfway through an add list of 50 numbers.
I have made lots of GOTV calls before for state and local campaigns (NJ), so I know how that goes. But I know when we call for GOTV, it is always to known supporters. We would never make a GOTV call to someone if we weren't at least fairly confident was a supporter.
Before these OH calls today, I made calls using the Obama website 3 previous times. I can't even rremember now where I called those other times -- (PA maybe?). Those calls usually went pretty well - but they were voter id and persuasion calls not gotv.
Today it has been quite rough slogging on these OH lists. Many disconnected phones. Some outright wrong numbers. And many answering machines.
I have been leaving messages with a one sentence persuasion, plus polling place info when I get a machine.
But based on the % of Obama vs McCain supporters I am reaching, I am feeling concerned that these efforts are counterproductive -- (I don't want to be reminding mcCain voters to go to the polls/energizing the opposition!)
For example,among the voters I am reaching, I think I have had two obama supporters out of 50 calls or so. I have had several McCain supporters.
Then I had 2 or 3 people who refused to say, but were hostile, and I feel convinced they were McCain supporters. [I have been filling in "other" for these calls -- suggestion -- should there be a box for "hostile/refused to say who they were voting for"?]
Finally the most recent call was the most upsetting. The wife answered and I asked to speak to the husband. Before he got on I could hear them talking in the background, giggling that the ccall was from the Obama campaign. "Why are they calling here?" they were saying. When he got on the phone, I went through the script, and the guy said "oh yeah, I'm voting for obama!"
But I am pretty sure he was lying.
They are just trying to waste our time.
There is no place on the form for comments, so I used the "uncomfortable contacting this voter" box to describe what had happened.
What are these people doing on my GOTV list to calls if they are mccain-ites?

Re: rough day today so far in calls to OH... | Report to Admin

By mary4change Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:52 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:52 pm EST)

I've gotten some McCain supporters and hostile people too, so I think I'll do what someone later on is doing and not leave messages but put "not at home" instead.

It is challenging when you ask for someone and the person answering insists you identify who you are. They may not be a supporter but the person you are calling may be...

Re: rough day today so far in calls to OH... | Report to Admin

By sks Nov 2nd 2008 at 3:13 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 3:13 pm EST)

This sounds somewhat similar to my experiences today and yesterday. I've been getting more rude and/or irritated people, people who just don't want to be called anymore, McCain supporters, and fewer Obama supporters. I've been calling NV, PA and OH (from my local headquarters and from home). One woman in OH said that she's been called 4 times already this week (2 times today) and the polling place we're giving her is wrong, so she filed a complaint with her local elections office b/c we're giving "deceptive" information. That's a good idea not to leave a message b/c people seem less supportive this time around...

You lost my call count! | Report to Admin

By Toni L from Westwood, NJ Nov 1st 2008 at 4:48 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 4:48 pm EDT)

I'm disappointed! I've been calling several times and have enjoyed getting high ratings for how many calls I've made. But today when I clicked in to make more calls, the list page for me showed ZERO CALLS. I know this isn't really important, but I miss the extra incentive!

Re: You lost my call count! | Report to Admin

By Terri from Princeton, NJ Nov 1st 2008 at 4:55 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 4:55 pm EDT)

I think they reset the front page call count (the one with the little graph?) for the gotv calls, starting yesterday?
I think your "dashboard" page might have your full number of all your calls on it, updated daily.
that's what it seems like for my calls anyway.

more | Report to Admin

By Terri from Princeton, NJ Nov 1st 2008 at 4:53 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 4:53 pm EDT)

I ran out of space on my post above... :)
Bottom line, any feedback here? (anything you can tell me to convince me I am helping not hurting the campaign by making these calls?)
At a minimum it seems like I should stop leaving messages on answering machines on a list that does not seem to be necessarily obama supporters - do you agree?
*Thanks*

Re: more | Report to Admin

By Cindy Nov 1st 2008 at 5:46 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 5:46 pm EDT)

I agree with you Terri and posted something downthread. From now on, I will not be leaving messages but will mark 'Not Home' instead and then call them back again til I get them in person. That way, I can confirm support for Obama.

Also, don't leave messages through another person, ESPECIALLY a parent. The two parents I spoke with (2 diff calls) were quite hostile and told me either to leave the kid alone or that it was none of my business. So the kid might be for Obama but the parent is clearly not so they won't let you have access to their kid! I wish we had the college kids cell number directly.

PA calls from RI | Report to Admin

By Rene from Wakefield, RI Nov 1st 2008 at 4:59 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 4:59 pm EDT)

I made 15 calls
After many calls to the same #'s I had:
6 No answer.
5 left messages.
3 for Obama
1 against Obama

Calls to VA | Report to Admin

By Judy from Gwynn Oak, MD Nov 1st 2008 at 5:19 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 5:19 pm EDT)

I just completed 25 calls to Virginia from Maryland and it was the most fun I've had in 5 weeks of calling. Every person I spoke with was an Obama supporter. Several were older voters and were incredibly cordial about my call. I'm going on to the next 25 with a new script.

calling in to VA today | Report to Admin

By Cindy Nov 1st 2008 at 5:36 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 5:36 pm EDT)

I agree with another person who posted that she was not certain that the people we are calling are indeed Obama supporters. I got one nasty response which made me wonder. After that,I was VERY hesitant to leave polling locations. I did leave the info, but it didn't feel right.

When I got my second batch of numbers, I noticed that the script had changed and that now it included a blurb for asking them who they were supporting. Several times I got a "None of your business" response.

I thought these were supposed to be supporters?!!

talk to anyone | Report to Admin

By Jennifer from Geneva, IL Nov 1st 2008 at 5:40 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 5:40 pm EDT)

I know the script says to talk to the person listed but If I can actually get anyone on the phone I start talking! I still ask for the person afterward too but it's rare to get a human voice so I chat away asking if they too will vote!

Calling Ohio | Report to Admin

By Tuyet Nov 1st 2008 at 5:48 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 5:48 pm EDT)

I've found some people who are voting on 11/4 for Obama. The script's change makes it easier to identify those who have already voted and who they supported, depends on how friendly they are.
The polling address is helpful to some, although many of the voters that I called didn't have any polling address.

There were several people who had moved away and the telephone numbers that were listed turned out to be their parents. There's no place to write these bits of information down.

On my part, I'm making as many calls as feasible today.

Calling Ohio from NYC | Report to Admin

By Tuyet Nov 1st 2008 at 5:49 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 5:49 pm EDT)

I've found some people who are voting on 11/4 for Obama. The script's change makes it easier to identify those who have already voted and who they supported, depends on how friendly they are.
The polling address is helpful to some, although many of the voters that I called didn't have any polling address.

There were several people who had moved away and the telephone numbers that were listed turned out to be their parents. There's no place to write these bits of information down.

On my part, I'm making as many calls as feasible today.

General Advice | Report to Admin

By Cindy Nov 1st 2008 at 6:00 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 6:00 pm EDT)

Here are some tips that you may want to consider when making your calls.

1. If you are calling a southern state like VA, talk SLOWLY. I'm from Chicago and I talk at NY speed but that doesn't work in the South.

2. Check over the person's age before you start talking. I had a list of about 5 people in their 90s, so not only do you have to speak slowly but you have to speak clearly and loud enough.

3. If the person you are trying to reach is in their 20s and an adult answers, it is probably a parent. Do NOT leave a message through them Ask when the person you want will be home and call later. Often, the parent is really ticked that the kid is voting for Obama when they are not, and they will be rude to you.

4. Remind people to bring a photo ID and IF they are definite supporters, tell them to bring along a couple of friends to pass the time along as they wait in line.

5. Have separate tabs open in Windows with all the voter info that you may need in order to answer any questions,e.g. One tab could be the voteforchange site, another is Obama site, etc.

6. Keep a glass of water handy (and some chocolate helps too!)

Way to return the numbers back to the pool? | Report to Admin

By Cindy Nov 1st 2008 at 6:05 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 6:05 pm EDT)

Question for HQ:

Is there a way to put back the numbers assigned to us back into the pool so that others can have them right away? I am tired now of VA and was not having the best of luck but I don't want to leave these numbers hanging till Tuesday. In other words, I don't want to be hogging these numbers which would be irresponsible.

Some have been contacted multiple times. | Report to Admin

By Tyla in Angwin Nov 1st 2008 at 6:20 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 6:20 pm EDT)

I have not been calling very long, to PA, and I already have had two people say they have been contacted multiple times. I will still call, but I thought someone should know. Cheers.

had trouble reporting | Report to Admin

By shirley Nov 1st 2008 at 7:14 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 7:14 pm EDT)

I Called voters in Florida. Could not report them though. Anyway I had a great time and one lady made me laugh. All had voted early for Barack it was awesome. Will keep going until victory.

Misc Call Problems | Report to Admin

By MRA - Mary, NY - SO VERY PROUD OF MY COUNTRY! Nov 1st 2008 at 8:42 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 8:42 pm EDT)

I was first calling Ohio, finishing off a list from the other day. One woman I reached said she will be voting on Monday! There is no place to mark this early voting option (only 'already voted.' 'voting Tues' or 'not voting). I figured I'd just mark 'voting Tues' but then realized this problem: AFTER noting her polling location and getting off the line, I realized early voting locations are often different than Tues. polling locations! If I run into any others doing early voting, I will not bother with the polling info.

Then I moved on to a Virginia list. One woman I got is voting Tues. When I mentioned the polling location, she said that was wrong. She gave me her address and I checked voteforchange.com - of course, she was right. It really concerns me as I leave a lot of messages with polling location/hrs info - I would hate to direct even ONE person to the wrong voting location.

PS - as long as you are looking at this feedback, would like to suggest that two other options on the contact list be 'no answer' and 'number disconnected'. I use 'not home' and 'wrong number' respectively, and am comfortable with that, but I know it was distressing not to have a real matching option when I first started calling.

Also, I would suggest that you have a place for NOTES. In the past, I have used e-mail address fields to put notes in! It would be helpful to have in instances like I read upthread where one might not feel the person is being honest or where a parent is hostile, etc.

Re: Misc Call Problems | Report to Admin

By Paula Nov 1st 2008 at 10:00 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 10:00 pm EDT)

I agree about the need for a place to put notes. One woman told me that her son, who I was calling, had moved, and she gave me his new phone number. (I called and couldn't reach him, so I left a message.) But there was no place to put his new number.

Re: Misc Call Problems | Report to Admin

By Debi Nov 1st 2008 at 11:19 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 11:19 pm EDT)

absolutely agree!!! I was concerned when I left messages that I could be giving people the wrong polling information. I also agree that two other options on the contact list should be 'no answer' and 'number disconnected'. I also use 'not home' and 'wrong number' respectively, but they are not really indicative of people either not answering at all or the number not going through.

There should also be a "notes" section for extra comments or opinions about the call that could be used at a later time.

PHONE BANKING | Report to Admin

By Cynthia, NY -- I TOLD YOU BARACK WOULD WIN! NOW Let's Get Our Leader to 1600 Penn. Ave. Nov 1st 2008 at 8:53 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 8:53 pm EDT)

What a thrill it was to make some calls today to help get our future President to 1600 Pennsylanvia Avenue.

I went to one of the Phone Banking locations here in New York with the intention of putting in about two hours work, but ended up there for another two hours making calls to Pennsylvania.

I must say that the experience was very encouraging. I did 130 calls; spoke to about 40 people who will be voting for Barack; one person claimed they were voting for McSame; about 3 or 4 hangups, which indicated they were for McSame... all the others were voicemails, or numbers that were no good. I left detailed information about their polling places, starting and closing time for the polls, and a number to call if they needed a ride to the polls. I even got two call backs on my cell from people who were not at home, after they saw my number and wanted to know who was calling, all for Barack.

One woman told me that even if she had to ride her bike to get to the polls, she will do so, when I asked her if she was O.K with transportation to get to the polls.

If you have not picked up the phone to make calls, yet... just try it, its a great experience.. and I must say that I was surprised at the responses.

THREE more DAYS... Let's GOTV...

PHONE BANKING | Report to Admin

By Cynthia, NY -- I TOLD YOU BARACK WOULD WIN! NOW Let's Get Our Leader to 1600 Penn. Ave. Nov 1st 2008 at 8:55 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 8:55 pm EDT)

What a thrill it was to make some calls today to help get our future President to 1600 Pennsylanvia Avenue.

I went to one of the Phone Banking locations here in New York with the intention of putting in about two hours work, but ended up there for another two hours making calls to Pennsylvania.

I must say that the experience was very encouraging. I did 130 calls; spoke to about 40 people who will be voting for Barack; one person claimed they were voting for McSame; about 3 or 4 hangups, which indicated they were for McSame... all the others were voicemails, or numbers that were no good. I left detailed information about their polling places, starting and closing time for the polls, and a number to call if they needed a ride to the polls. I even got two call backs on my cell from people who were not at home, after they saw my number and wanted to know who was calling, all for Barack.

One woman told me that even if she had to ride her bike to get to the polls, she will do so, when I asked her if she was O.K with transportation to get to the polls.

If you have not picked up the phone to make calls, yet... just try it, its a great experience.. and I must say that I was surprised at the responses.

THREE more DAYS... Let's GOTV...

VA & OH GOTV calls | Report to Admin

By Desia "One Woman's Voice" Nov 1st 2008 at 9:08 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 9:08 pm EDT)

My call list for Virginia was pretty positive...lots of enthusiastic Obama supporters.
Ohio has not been quite as positive. Like a caller from a previous post I got a lot of people who didn't want to tell me who they were voting for although they were not hostile I felt pretty sure they were McCainites so I wasn't sure what to mark. I marked other or undecided. I did get a few hostile people who either hung up as soon as I identified myself or dismissed me quickly. I quickly apologized for the interruption and wished them a good evening. I marked these as refused to talk. I previously made calls to PA and most of those were all positive. Now I'm going to move on out west and try calls to Colorado. No matter what I'll keep calling because I know we can't afford to be idle or complacent.

Reporting calls | Report to Admin

By ASC Nov 1st 2008 at 9:21 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 9:21 pm EDT)

I left 10 messages on PA phones Friday and the other calls went unanswered - I was unable to report that these calls were made to the website. My list was gone. Overall the experience has been great calling in PA so I am going to make more calls Monday and hope to be able to report these!
On to victory Tuesday

Too many calls? | Report to Admin

By Maya Nov 1st 2008 at 9:22 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 9:22 pm EDT)

I made calls to my home state of VA today, and had three people tell me I was the third person to call today. Now, I don't know if they got two voice mails, and I was the first one to catch an actual person or what, but they weren't too happy. I assumed that the call database was updated in real time, and a person isn't given to more than one volunteer, but maybe that's not right? I'll try again tomorrow and hope for a better list.

Re: Too many calls? | Report to Admin

By Margaret from Florence, MA Nov 1st 2008 at 9:32 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 9:32 pm EDT)

I just made 25 calls to Montana and was also told by someone that this was the 3rd call she had gotten and she was getting tired of it; then hung up. Don't want to turn off potential voters!!

Re: Too many calls? | Report to Admin

By Cindy Nov 1st 2008 at 10:45 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 10:45 pm EDT)

Yes, I had a woman in VA tell me that I was the 4th person from the Obama campaign to call her today! She wasn't nasty about it, just annoyed a tad. This surprised me as well. I apologized and told her I would do my best to get her name off the list.

Re: Too many calls? | Report to Admin

By still hoping after all these years Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:35 am EDT (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:35 am EDT)

Sounds like a problem! That certainly doesn't speak well for the people organizing these calls. People on the lists should obviously be Obama supporters at this point, or at least the vast majority should be. And, yes, other volunteers should not be calling them more than once, especially in one day! People do get highly annoyed if you call several times. And it's embarrassing to us, the callers. We've had problems like that in local phonebanks to NH.

Obama staffers, you need to get a handle on this! We need to hang on to our dwindling lead in PA.!

Calling North Carolina . . . | Report to Admin

By Tyler from Costa Mesa, CA Nov 1st 2008 at 9:27 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 9:27 pm EDT)

I spent about 4 hours today making calls to North Carolina. There were many answering machines at which I left information regarding their polling place, early voting information, and where to call if they had transportation issues. Out of over 100 calls there were only two or three outright McCain supporters. Most of the people I actually spoke with were Obama supporters and, better yet, at least half of them had already voted and took their families with them to do so. When I offered the transportation information, most said they live two to three blocks from their polling site and could walk if they didn't have a ride. It was a wonderful experience and I'm going back for more tomorrow and before work on Monday and Tuesday.

Are the calls helping? | Report to Admin

By Trina Nov 1st 2008 at 9:29 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 9:29 pm EDT)

I have been making calls the past few nights.
Called Colorado , Ohio and Virgina last night 125 calls 20 were for Barack just 3 hangups left a lot of messages and 5 for Mccain and 3 wouldn't say, so we know what that means. I had 14 disconnected numbers and there is no where to record it, I had the same problem in the primarys. There needs to be some where to record the disconnected numbers.
Tonight I called 25 in Va. 6 Obamas 3 disconnected and 3 very hostile hangups. I am still stinging from the 3 older women that yelled and slammed the phone down on me, it has made me discouraged.
Also I don't know whether to keep leaving messages or just mark no answer?
I am beginning to wonder if this is helping or hurting.
I have been getting my numbers from my home page, does it matter where I get them?

Re: Are the calls helping? | Report to Admin

By Jan Nov 2nd 2008 at 7:37 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 7:37 pm EST)

I, too, am getting mostly answering machines making calls in Ohio, but I talked to one man who really made me wonder if we're not putting too much pressure on these people. He said he'd received numerous calls from the Obama campaign already today and that he'd never seen a presidential campaign like this one in all his 60 years. He's been inundated by Obama mailings and when he leaves his house his answering machine fills up with messages. I assumed he is a Democrat because he didn't say he was getting calls from the McCain campaign. At that point I decided to stop calling. I don't want to make anyone so mad they don't vote or vote for McCain out of anger at the Obama campaign. I also had one call where the person used extremely foul language and said he was with the Green party and he wasn't voting for a Democrat or Republican and hung up on me and another who just said she was voting and hung up.
The rest were wrong numbers or I left a message on their answering machines. It seems very counterproductive in a state as targeted as Ohio.

GOTV suggestion | Report to Admin

By Desia "One Woman's Voice" Nov 1st 2008 at 9:55 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 9:55 pm EDT)

I'm now calling my Colorado list and have a couple of suggestions add a comment space for things such as changed/new numbers which I ran into a couple of times and also had one request to be taken off our call list. I marked this as a wrong number for a lack of a better choice.

Give more state-specific info for callers? | Report to Admin

By Paula Nov 1st 2008 at 9:57 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 9:57 pm EDT)

I called 25 people in Ohio this afternoon (in between family interruptions). I made calls for moveon.org for Kerry in 2004, and I remember that they provided information about the state/region you were calling, which was helpful for thinking about the concerns voters there might have.

But more importantly to the calls I'm making this weekend, I wondered if we should be giving out more state-specific info about voting policies? For example, I looked at the Ohio elections website and found that everyone has to bring an I.D. but this fact wasn't part of my script.

Shouldn't we be giving voters this information? Also, what about reminding voters that they have the right to fill out a provisional ballot if needed?

Thanks!

Calls to Colorado Sat 11/1 | Report to Admin

By Mikayla Nov 1st 2008 at 10:06 pm EDT (Updated Nov 1st 2008 at 10:06 pm EDT)

've been calling people from the lists in Colorado, about 40 so far, and I'm not finished. I plan to make more calls tomorrow and Monday.

I'm getting about 25% wrong numbers, a few fax numbers, talking to a few people and leaving lots of messages urging them to vote for our guy. The majority of people I've spoken to are voting or have voted for Obama.

Several people have said they're not registered, which leads me to question who the people on these lists are. Are they, in fact, registered voters? Are they undecided? Many of them have already voted.

It seems that our remaining time would be better spent calling people who are registered and haven't voted yet.

Just my $.02. Go O!

Mikayla for Obama
Northern California

calling | Report to Admin

By Brooke from Middlesboro, KY Nov 2nd 2008 at 12:04 am EDT (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 12:04 am EDT)

Called VA and NV today. I'd estimate a fifth of my numbers were wrong ones, and at first I tried to be postive, that at least if was making the call, someone else didn't have to, but with so many it just gets demoralizing.

A lot of people not answering, both answering machines and not. I'd suggest an option of "not answered", I've keyed them as not home, but I suspect that a majority of them are home...

A few hung up, not sure if they are just of the calls though.

Only one outright McCain supporter, and several for Obama.

And I would say that while I do understand the annoyance with calls, do people not realize its the weekend before a major election? Although I guess not everyone has spent 3-4hrs a day for the past month keeping up on election news!

Thanks for the info | Report to Admin

By Candice from Chandler, AZ Nov 2nd 2008 at 12:19 am EDT (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 12:19 am EDT)

Based on comments, I will not leave messages with polling information if these are not for sure Obama supporters.

Called Pennsylvania | Report to Admin

By RDG515 Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:51 am EDT (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:51 am EDT)

I called 57 PA voters on my list and subtracting the 8 wrong numbers, 3 constant busy signals, 20 messages left, 5 who refused to talk and 1 person not registered to vote I actually spoke to 21 people. The results:

16 for Obama
2 for McCain [I may have convinced one to vote Obama]
3 Undecideds [who I made the Obama case to]

While I don't know why these folks were on my list it was certainly encouraging to get such an overwhelmingly positive response. On Sunday I'm bringing my 14-year-old daughter and 77-year-old mom to Democratic HQ to make get-out-the-vote calls with me. This is the most important election in our lifetimes...help get out the vote and make sure Obama wins---our future is at stake. Bob

Problems sending in results | Report to Admin

By RDG515 Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:54 am EDT (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:54 am EDT)

I reported my results in the post above but cannot find a way to reply with the details on the call lists....we will need this info for 2010 and 2012....help!!!!!

Problems sending in results | Report to Admin

By RDG515 Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:54 am EDT (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:54 am EDT)

I reported my results in the post above but cannot find a way to reply with the details on the call lists....we will need this info for 2010 and 2012....help!!!!!

Calls to young people living at home-problems | Report to Admin

By human Nov 2nd 2008 at 12:15 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 12:15 pm EST)

I don't know why it says I'm "unregistered" here because I am.

Anyway - I made about 200 calls yesterday to battleground states and on the list were clearly couple of young folks living at home. For a couple of these listings - mom would answer and ask me to ID (with notable suspicion-understandable) and when she heard "I'm ____ a volunteer from the Obama campaign for change...", she was off and running w/everything from "...we're Christians and don't you understand that man will lead the country into socialism bla bla bla..." So - though I politely listened to a bit of it and then sort of just asked her to please let him know we called with his poll location etc. etc., I'm not so sure that kid will get the message. So...

- Be good to have a strategy/recommendations re these calls.
absolutely fantastic experience sitting at the phone bank with the diversity of folks on the same page. Looking forward to crossing the finish line with everybody here. YES WE CAN! Go Obama.

PS Reports in the media are that there will likely be a lot of $ left over unspent. Some of us, like myself, live on SSDI, etc. without cushion. We've given (like me) $5 here, $5 there to the campaign. Dear Barrack, how about considering returning what you don't use to us??? It's unprecedented - to do that but it sort of is in keeping with your whole stance.

Calling | Report to Admin

By Lace; Yes We Did Nov 2nd 2008 at 12:20 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 12:20 pm EST)

I went to the office to make calls yesterday (Appleton, WI) and there, we called Wisconsinites and asked them to volunteer at their offices.

I didn't get a whole lot of people to offer to come to an office, but I did get a lot of folks to agree to make calls at home by going off-script and asking if they would.

--

Today, I'm back to calling New Mexico and so far so good. I called Colorado for 50 calls and 3/4 people who answered were for Obama and were voting on Tuesday. The last guy said he wasn't interested.

As for tips for the other callers, what I would suggest is that everyone who didn't want to make calls during the primaries make calls now! From what I can tell, most of the states are asking that we only call supporters and ask about their voting status. This is easy-schmeezy stuff! Those who call now will most likely not have to worry about getting nasty calls. If you were weary of making calls, now is the time to do it!

Question on wrong numbers | Report to Admin

By mary4change Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:48 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:48 pm EST)

Currently calling Ohio. When we get a wrong number, but someone actually answers the phone, should we just note it and say thank you or also try to talk to the person who does answer?

Encouraging comments in NC | Report to Admin

By RaeV Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:55 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 1:55 pm EST)

I was calling No. Carolina yesterday and heard some very encouraging comments from voters! Eg. when one voter was asked if she was supporting Obama she replied, "is there anybody else?"; also, I called a household of 4 supporters and was told the whole family of 11 have already been out to vote for Obama!

I am trying not to get too exited because of 2000 & 2004...but I've got the Champagne chilling!

Ohio voters | Report to Admin

By Tuyet Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:15 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:15 pm EST)

I've tried calling different hours of the day that I'm home, but most still have answering machine on. The number of hostile people answering phone has increased over the past two days though I didn't mention them earlier.

There are some voters who said that they'd vote or already voted, but refused to name their candidate. I've left those blank and indicated that they've voted.

There should be a box for comments from volunteer-callers to write down some information that might be useful such as in two instances, the named voters had passed away - though his wife said that she'd support Obama. I didn't have any place to write this information.

Script content vs. results window | Report to Admin

By Nancy in New York Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:17 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:17 pm EST)

I know others have commented on the need for additional options under the "Not contacted" portion of the window for recording our call results. I am calling NV voters, and the result form also doesn't include the question about which candidate the voter chose or will chose. The script does include this question and indicates that, if the voter supports McCain or "Other," the caller should politely end the call and move on to the next voter on his or her list. No way to record this result in the reporting window, though.

Cut-off time for entering results - EST or CDT? | Report to Admin

By Nancy in New York Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:20 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:20 pm EST)

Quick question about the cut-off time for entering results for the current round of GOTV calls: does the Monday night 10:00 p.m. deadline mean 10:00 p.m. EST, CDT, or the call recipients' time (e.g., 10 p.m. PST for NV voters)? Thanks.

Virginia calls | Report to Admin

By Alexandra from Dobbs Ferry, NY Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:49 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:49 pm EST)

I have been calling Virginia voters all afternoon. Whenever I actually reach someone in person who sounds enthusiastic, I deviate from the script and ask them if they have an hour or two to make phone calls from home, just like me.

I give them the Obama website address and explain how to download call lists and make calls from home. I also give them the phone number and the address of the local Obama field office near their home in Virginia. This information is available on the Obama Virginia home page, which I keep open on my computer as I make calls.

I have been able to persuade 3 Obama supporters to go above and beyond voting to working on the campaign for these final, crucial days. This is very rewarding, given the high percentage of wrong numbers and answering machines I have otherwise reached today.

If possible, I would encourage the Obama field director in Virginia (and other states) to modify the script to invite callers to encourage Obama enthusiasts not only to vote but to put in a few hours volunteering these next two days.

First calls today | Report to Admin

By AM-Essex Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:56 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 2:56 pm EST)

I made my first calls today, to CO.

For the most part I got machines, and I left messages... hopefully they're supporters!!

I talked to 3 people out of 25, they were nice. I was completely hung up on by 2 (I think hostile/hung up on should be an option in the list... it's quite different than "refused to speak").

I talked to one woman who said she'd been called over 9 times this week, that made me feel horrible. She's a supporter and understood the issue, but I thought that would be a terrible thing for someone on the fence. If you're bothering them you could easily push them the other way just by annoyance.

Anyway, I feel better having done it, but I'm not sure I have the guts to keep going! :(

Every call counts! | Report to Admin

By Tracie Nov 2nd 2008 at 5:02 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 5:02 pm EST)

ONE ITEM I THINK IS MISSING IS A QUESTION ASKING IF THEY NEED A RIDE TO THE POLLS. MAYBE THE LOCAL OBAMA HEADQUARTERS NUMBERS CAN BE PLACED ON THE SURVEY INSTRUMENT OR A LINK ON THE INSTRUMENT WE CAN USE. THEN WE CAN NOTIFY THE LOCAL HEADQUARTERS ABOUT THEIR NEEDS TO ENSURE THEY HAVE A RIDE.

I made about 80 calls in NC yesterday, and I had some reservations about leaving messages on the answering machines as well, but, I did speak to several Obama supporters that thank me for my work. I even helped an 84 year old woman "Elizabeth" in Raleigh determine if her voting location was correct because she had never voting at that location. I went to the NC Board of Elections website and confirmed her location. We then called them and verified as well. She was not happy her location had changed without notifying her. She had been voting at the same location for 20 years. She was so grateful for the help from the Obama campaign. This could have been a lost vote! What if she waited at her age for hours to get turned away?

So, don't worry if we notify a McCain supporter of their polling location. If they are going to vote for him they will one way or another. I would rather make sure our supporters know where to go!

As far as leaving messages, leave them and be sure to give the hot-line for Obama if they have questions about the location. Maybe keep it generic state you’re a calling to ensure they know their polling location and then give the hot-line number (don't state it’s the Obama hot-line, just hot-line) if the location not the one they have been going to, and then just thank them in advance for participation in this historical election for change.

Keep in mind the lines will be long and if we can keep our voters informed we can prevent them from being turned away frustrated at 6:00 pm on Election Day. They may just go home.

Phone banking in Boston HQ, tips | Report to Admin

By Judy from Medford, MA Nov 2nd 2008 at 7:27 pm EST (Updated Nov 2nd 2008 at 7:27 pm EST)

HI
I was phone banking at HQ in Boston Ma
It does get very crazy in these last days,,

Comment: many many people we called in IN
had had as many as 4 calls that day,, which is too much
they were pretty irritated and upset

Suggestion: if you end up getting alot of people
who had been called , when first call
i say my name and i am volunteer for Obama
but i politely asked them if they had been called
today,, that really seemed to make a difference
and " hopefully they were taken then off list"
NA at this time , meant not going to be called
back,, they for most part were only calling
back people where coding said LM, left message....

Comment general: i was calling mixed Mccain and Obama supporters IN, mostly Obama
but i have found no matter who i call
just keeping simple, polite and to the point
is most helpful and always thanking them for their time and support,,,

I called alot of elderly yesterday, so looking at age, if you have that info, does help
depending on what your script is,,
Elderly needed rides and appreciated being called

Obama 08
Boston for Barack

Suggestions | Report to Admin

By Stephanie from New York, NY Nov 3rd 2008 at 11:53 am EST (Updated Nov 3rd 2008 at 11:53 am EST)

Lots of people on these lists have been contacted multiple times and are getting ticked off so it would be great to have a place to mark "Take Off Call List."

Also like other callers, I seem to be getting parents or other relatives of people on the list. Sometimes they say their kids are voting for Obama and they are too. Sometimes it's clear that they are upset their kids are on an Obama call list. Anyway to indicate this?

Also while we're calling, please add to the script any addtl info on what ID they should bring. Many seem to be first or very young voters.

Finally, many people say they've voted but refuse to say for whom. From their tone some have voted for McCain but many simply sound uncomfortable about revealing their choice -- could not want other family members to know, etc. Could we have a box for refused to say? It's not "refused to talk."

Thanks

Reader Comments	Comments RSS
Comments are closed for this post.