Over the weekend, we got a great question from our Blue Ohio member Deborah. She said: I work full time and take care of an elderly mom. What can I do from my home computer starting NOW to help us out of this mess?
That’s such a great question – and one we know a lot of people have. So we wanted to share our response.
What You Can Do – Right Now
Register Voters
The deadline to register to vote for the August 2 primary is July 5. Encouraging people to register to vote – and to check their voter registration status – is an excellent action right now while people are engaged. You can direct them to https://olvr.ohiosos.gov/
You may or may not have a primary in your district, but those deadlines still give people motivation. Sharing voter registration information on social media is helpful, but it’s even better to send to people directly via email or by text.
Right now there may be people in your orbit that need that extra push, and personal contact with them will go further than a blanket social media post (although that’s good too).
Use Your Influence
Even if you work full time and have a busy schedule, there are probably places you frequent and spend money at – coffee shops, or grocery stores, or restaurants. Encourage them to provide voter registration information, too.
When Senator Sherrod Brown was the Secretary of State, he encouraged McDonalds to print over 1,000,000 voter registration forms on their tray liners. An organization called VotER encourages medical professionals to use voter registration QR codes, placed on the back of their hospital or clinic ID, to make it easy for every patient they encounter to register to vote. Those are just examples – there are plenty of creative ways to incorporate voter registration into your workplace or daily routine.
Ask your favorite restaurant to put a voter registration QR on the menu; ask your local grocery store to add a voter registration QR code on receipts. If you’re donating to a non-profit, give them a call and find out how they are helping register the people they serve.
Each of these things is doable, takes very little time, and if more customers and patrons ask/demand it, it will help our democracy.
Lobby Local Governments
From libraries to health centers, local government interacts with many members of the public. Each interaction is an opportunity to register voters or help them update their registration. Reach out to your local electeds and ask them what they are doing to help make sure their constituents can vote.
Phone a Friend
Now is the time to reach out to anyone in your network that might not be super political. People are describing interactions with independent voters or people who self-identify as a-political who are horrified at the Supreme Court decision and Ohio Republicans’ rush to the courthouse to eliminate rights.
These people may just need a safe space to come to terms with the reality of the current Republican Party. You can provide that space for your friends and family. (And then you can help register them to vote!)
Support State Legislative Nominees – Across the State – With Blue Ohio
That state legislators now have the power to make your private healthcare decisions for you highlights the importance of our statehouse – and of running and supporting Democrats in every district across the state.
Over Five Million Ohioans Live In Districts That Dems Didn’t Support in 2020
There are Democrats in every corner of the state, and they deserve a choice on their ballot. In 2020, 19 state house seats were left unchallenged. Another 27 were unsupported and didn’t have the resources to spread their message.
Over 5.3 million Ohioans live in those districts. Those folks didn’t hear from Democrats in 2020. But you can bet they heard from Republicans.
We can’t continue to give Republicans free passes.
Supporting All Democratic Nominees Boosts The Top of the Ticket
Not only does leaving those districts unchallenged leave Democrats in those districts behind, it leaves votes for the top of the ticket on the table. Our data shows that when we run supported Democrats – even in “red” districts – there’s a potential 2.5% vote share/turnout increase for the Democrats at the top of the ticket. That’s a lot!
This year we have the potential to elect a pro-choice Governor in Nan Whaley, and to elect a Senator Tim Ryan. Both races will be close, and we need to turn out Democrats everywhere.
Our Blue Ohio Community Makes Supporting Those Races Easy (and Fun!)
And the best part? Our Blue Ohio community makes it really easy (and fun) to support Democrats in every district. Our members kick in a few dollars a month (our giving average is $15/mo), 100% of which is distributed to the nominees. (Blue Ohio is sustained based on tips, which are optional, but appreciated!)
Anyone who joins at $10/month or more is automatically invited to our Blue Ohio monthly calls, where we talk about Ohio politics and hear from special guests (Tim Ryan, Jennifer Bruner, Allison Russo, Katherine Clyde, Erica Crowley, and Amy Cox have all been guests so far). We amplify each others’ efforts, celebrate successes, and talk about progress.
We’re pretty proud that a national activist emailed her supporters to tell them that our Blue Ohio monthly meetings are “[bleep]ing great.” We agree, and we hope to see you at the next one.
If you’ve been on the fence about Blue Ohio, now is the time to join.
We’d be honored to have you join us, and the nominees will be grateful for your support. Let’s get to work.
