GfD will undertake two main endeavors in 2020. The first will be the recruitment of volunteers to perform voter registration and GOTV work. The second will be the staging of a National Grandparents Day of Action (NGDA) to inspire and mobilize previously uninvolved or marginally involved grandparents—and their grandchildren—to become actively involved in the 2020 elections.
In mobilizing volunteers, we will emphasize research demonstrating that volunteerism promotes mental and physical health, especially for older adults. (Indeed, some research even suggests that volunteering can extend life spans!) We also foster a sense of community among our grandparent generation volunteers, as well as nostalgic reminders of our social activist past.
Our research regarding political campaigns has led us to focus upon voter registration and get-out-the-vote (GOTV) efforts as the most effective tactics to bring votes to progressive candidates. This work will include phone banking in the early months of 2020 to streamline existing voter lists. Then in late summer and autumn, our on-the-ground volunteers working with our affiliate Field Team 6, will register voters in and around “hot spots” in our Key States such as college campuses. Finally, in the weeks preceding Election Day, GfD will be “all-in” on GOTV.
Our other major enterprise, NGDA, is being planned for Grandparents’ Day (9/13/20). This event will be designed to mobilize a new wave of volunteers to help take the presidency and the U.S. Senate. Grandparents will be invited to celebrate Grandparents Day with their grandchildren, by volunteering for Key Race support work. Participants will be incentivized to continue working through the remainder of the election season.
To help promote and stage NGDA, we will be retaining a PR firm and partnering with Field Team 6, DC Action Lab, Swing Left and other progressive groups to mobilize as many volunteers across the country as possible. We will also use NGDA to help grow GfD and fulfill its potential as a key player in progressive politics.