Difference between revisions of "2012trainingmanual chap2"

Latest revision as of 18:21, 13 January 2012

OTHER GROW WIKI DOCUMENTS: http://wiki.cagreens.org/index.php/Grassroots_Organizing_Working_Group

CHAPTER 2: FIRST STEPS

1. Set your local voter registration goal.

The General Assembly of the Green Party of California agreed to a goal of registering 100,000 new Greens in 2012.

Below are suggested goals for your county based on the percentage of all CA eligible registered voters in your county. If you live in an area that is especially progressive, feel free to increase your goal.

Alameda 9550

Alpine 50

Amador 250

Butte 1550

Calaveras 300

Colusa 50

Contra Costa 3350

Del Norte 150

El Dorado 950

Fresno 1650

Glenn 50

Humboldt 3000

Imperial 150

Inyo 100

Kern 800

Kings 150

Lake 400

Lassen 50

Los Angeles 10000

Madera 250

Marin 2100

Mariposa 150

Mendocino 1950

Merced 700

Modoc 50

Mono 100

Monterey 1100

Napa 800

Nevada 1100

Orange 7600

Placer 1300

Plumas 100

Riverside 2700

Sacramento 4200

San Benito 150

San Bernardino 3000

San Diego 7400

San Francisco 8600

San Joaquin 800

San Luis Obispo 1550

San Mateo 2550

Santa Barbara 1600

Santa Clara 4100

Santa Cruz 3150

Shasta 500

Sierra 50

Siskiyou 200

Solano 850

Sonoma 4550

Stanislaus 750

Sutter 150

Tehama 150

Trinity 150

Tulare 450

Tuolumne 250

Ventura 2450

Yolo 1150

Yuba 150

2. Calculate the number of tabling hours you need to reach your goal.

A volunteer tabler can get 4 to 7 registrations per hour; pick a number in this range and make your initial calculations. In a few weeks, update all your calculations using your actual average number of registrants per hour.

3. Calculate the number of tabling shifts (one person) you need to reach your goal, then the number of tabling-teams (two people) you will need altogether.

A tabling shift comes out to about 2.5 hours of actual "asking time". It's best to send volunteers out in 2-person teams, so divide your single-person tabling shifts estimate by 2 to get the number of tabling- teams you will need.

4. Calculate the number of tabling-teams you need to average per weekend from now to the end of the year, to end up with your total needed tabling-team.

5. Calculate the number of volunteers you need for each weekend Your goal will be to sign up at least this many for each tabling weekend.

6. Calculate how many core volunteers you need.

Core volunteers are highly dedicated registration-getters who will go out often.

Figure you'll need 4 core volunteers for every 100 (single person) tabling shifts you need (or for every 50 tabling teams).

Here's the logic: Applying the 80/20 rule, you can figure that 80% of your tabling shifts will be covered by 20% of your volunteers. Figure, too, that a core volunteer will probably do a shift on two-thirds of the weekends you send people out. For every 100 shifts, 80 will be done by core volunteers. If you have 30 weekends, a core volunteer will work approximately 20 shifts. So you will need 4 core volunteers for every 100 shifts it will take to reach your goal. You can also figure that the remaining 20 shifts will probably be covered by about 15 volunteers who will do 1 or 2 shifts each.

7. Figure out your tabling schedule. Set a date for the first orientation and action.

Start early on Saturdays, with a 10:00 a.m. orientation. Send people out to locations by 10:30. Tabling teams should arrive at headquarters between 2:30 and 3:00 for debriefing.

If your calculations require more than 5 tabling-teams per weekend, you may want to schedule an orientation for Sunday starting around 11:00.

If you find yourself needing more than 10 tabling-teams per weekend, you may want to schedule a second time-slot for Saturday; a 1:30 orientation would be good. But if your operation is getting that big, consider dividing the county up geographically and having someone else run a separate operation.

Consider selecting at least three dates and times to begin your drive. This will allow you to give volunteers multiple options when you invite them to participate.

8. Get blank voter registration cards from the voter registrar's office at the county building.

Sign them out under the name of the Green Party of your county.

9. Identify your volunteer prospects.

Include the following types of Greens in your pool of volunteer prospects:

(1) Current and former Green Party donors

(2) Current and former Green Party candidates and staff

(3) Current and former Green Party volunteers

(4) Greens in your are who are frequent voters. You can find this information on the voter file. If your county Green Party does not have access to your voter file, please contact Marnie Glickman at marnie@cagreens.org and 415.259.7121

10. Send an invitation to your voter registration orientation and action.

Send your invitation at least two weeks in advance and in at least two different ways.

(1) By email. If your county Green Party does not have access to your voter file, please contact Marnie Glickman at marnie@cagreens.org and 415.259.7121. Marnie can also help you send a bulk invitation if you want assistance.

(2) By snail mail. Make postcards.

(3) On your county party's website.

(4) On the state party's website. You can publish the event on the state Green Party's website. Go to http://cagreens.nationbuilder.com/calendar. There is a button at the bottom of the page that allows you to post.

(5) On your county party's Facebook page.

12. Follow up your invitations with phone calls a few days later.

This step is essential. Don't skip it. Most people never read their emails and social network accounts carefully. Don't underestimate the likelihood that your volunteer prospects did not read your invitation at all.

Figure that perhaps 2% of your invitees will actually show up for the orientation.

13. Choose your tabling locations.

Major grocery stores, farmer’s markets and other high- traffic areas are prime spots.

Look in the yellow pages; call all the local supermarkets and get the names and addresses of their regional managers.

Send each regional manager a letter stating your intention to send trained volunteers to do voter registration at their markets (list the locations) on weekends. This is merely a courtesy; you have a constitutional right to register voters at these places.

Put a copy of the relevant letter in with the materials sent to each tabling location; if a store manager tries to chase your volunteers away, it's handy for your volunteers to be able to drop the boss's name.

14. Find and equip ironing boards.

How many tabling teams will you send out at once? Get this many ironing boards plus a couple extras.

Equip each ironing board with:

(a) At least 6 clipboards; rubberband 20 registration forms and some literature to each clipboard. If you want, please download our special voter registration newsletter called "Greener Times." The Grassroots Organizing Working Group designed it especially for you. Greener Times will be updated each month and will soon be translated into many different languages.

(b) A coffee can (bolt it to the table) decorated to say "Donations to help build the Green Party".

(c) A nice, big, easily-readable sign saying "Register to Vote - Green Party". Hang the sign from the front of the ironing board.

(d) A bungie cord, or rocks, to hold down your literature.

(e) 7 or 8 pens that work.

(f) A volunteer sign-up sheet. Most volunteers will register (and be coded as volunteers on their registration forms); but some non-citizens, folks under 18, and an occasional felon who is not eligible to vote may wish to volunteer. They should sign up on this sheet.