Creating a Voter Engagement Plan and Timeline for Your Nonprofit Plan Ahead 2017: Creating a Voter Engagement Plan and Timeline for Your Nonprofit Audio for the webinar is available through your computer. If you have any difficulties call ReadyTalk support at 800-843-9166 We are live Tweeting today’s webinar using hashtag #npvwebinar. Log on to ask questions or comment. You will receive a follow up email on Tuesday with links to download the PowerPoint and watch the webinar recording. Presented by

Find out more about our mission and partners on our site at About Nonprofit VOTE Founded in 2005, Nonprofit VOTE partners with America's nonprofits to help the people they serve participate and vote. We are a leading source of training, materials and other resources for nonprofits doing nonpartisan voter engagement work. Find out more about our mission and partners on our site at www.nonprofitvote.org About Us

Director of Research & Training Today’s presenters Helena Berbano Special Projects and Field Manager Nonprofit VOTE Julian Johannesen Director of Research & Training Nonprofit VOTE Need LH’s new photo Presenters

What We will cover today Today’s webinar focuses on planning your nonprofit’s voter engagement activities in 2017 On Feb. 23rd, we will hold “Plan Ahead 2017, Part II: Nonpartisan Voter Engagement Tactics.” RSVP at bit.ly/Feb23rdWebinar In March or April, we will hold a webinar focused entirely on how to remain nonpartisan while doing your voter engagement work. Stay tuned. Agenda

Why VOTING matters Our voices are not being heard Voter engagement and advocacy work go together Nonprofits have unique access and assets When we do this work, we are extremely effective! JJ Bullet one is all about the “Who Votes Now” stuff. Bullet two is on the mutually beneficial relationship between voter engagement and advocacy work – this is RESEARCH BASED, what the people we work with tell us is that Bullet three is on the our size and reach and our special relationships with our clients, consumers, patients, etc. Bullet four is all about our study Why This Matters

What’s at stake Local elections are being held across the country this year. Hundreds of cities and towns will choose mayors, city councilors, county commissioners, etc. Many states and municipalities will decide ballot measures on everything from whether to raise the minimum wage to whether to fund a new middle school with a municipal bond. JJ Include examples of big elections this year. At Stake

Opportunity The voters you mobilize will have an outsized impact on the outcome of elections this year Voting is habit forming. Voter who voted in 2016, who can be persuaded to vote in 2017, will be that much more likely to vote in 2018 and beyond. Turnout in local elections is extremely low – in some case dipping into the single digits. This is unfortunate, but it means that every voter you help mobilize will have an outsized impact on the outcome of races and ballot measures. Retaining 2016 voters in 2017 and encouraging new voters just joining the voter rolls will encourage voting well into the future. Opportunity

Opportunity Boston Example: in 2015, turnout in Boston was just 14% of the voting eligible population. BOSTON At Stake

Making a Plan HB

HB

HB

Do you have buy in? Buy in from leadership increases odds of success Buy in from leaders and buy in from staff What does buy in look like? How do you get it? HB See slide notes in Word doc Buy In

Who will do the work? Who’s going to lead your efforts? Who’s going to take on this responsibility? Do you have close allies or sympathizers on staff who you can recruit? Get staff and volunteers excited about the work HB Make the case for the work Draw up a plan and timeline Adapt tactics for your nonprofit Educate themselves about voting & elections Recruit & train staff & volunteers Reach out to partners Leaders

How do you interact with clients? What are your organization’s points of contact with clients, consumers, constituents, and community members? HB Client Interaction

What tactics are a good fit? Broad categories of voter engagement: Voter registration & pledge to vote Voter education on the process of voting Voter education on candidates and issues Voter mobilization & Get-Out-The-Vote (GOTV) Ballot measure advocacy Work with candidates HB Extra Notes: Give examples of types of activities and times/locations: At your agency: In your lobby, in classes, at BENEFITS SIGN UP – make note on this one not being only tactic ACCESS, an Arab American serving nonprofit in Deerborn MI does quite a bit of voter reg in their jobs training program and classes – they make announcements and then follow up with individuals one on one throughout the course of the training sessions and curriculum In your neighborhood: A highly trafficked location like a bus station or a local super market. Many of our participating health centers last year found success incorporating voter engagement asks into their new patient outreach and education efforts at local schools, supermarkets, and shopping centers. Tactics

What are your goals? What’s a realistic goal? What should you measure? Establish some intermediate goals! HB Extra Notes: The number of staff and volunteers involved in your effort The number of trainings there were held and any new skills and knowledge gained by staff The number of constituents whom you assisted to register and vote The numbers of voters registered or pledged Give examples of types of activities and times/locations: At your agency: In your lobby, in classes, at BENEFITS SIGN UP – make note on this one not being only tactic ACCESS, an Arab American serving nonprofit in Deerborn MI does quite a bit of voter reg in their jobs training program and classes – they make announcements and then follow up with individuals one on one throughout the course of the training sessions and curriculum In your neighborhood: A highly trafficked location like a bus station or a local super market. Many of our participating health centers last year found success incorporating voter engagement asks into their new patient outreach and education efforts at local schools, supermarkets, and shopping centers. Goals

Do you know your stuff? Learn about voting and elections in your jurisdiction Be ready to refer clients elsewhere Meet with and establish a relationship with your local elections officials JJ Examples of things you need to find out: When is the election?! When is the registration deadline? When does early voting begin and end? Are there any requirements for those planning voter registration activities? When do completed voter registration forms need to be returned? Do folks have to show some sort of ID when they vote? Learning about Voting

Are you ready to train up staff? Create a curriculum and gather materials and resources Find out if partners can help with training Hold your initial training Plan for re-training and refreshers Be a model for how to do the work right JJ Extra Notes: When and where will your first training take place? Help them make connections to the org’s mission and why this work is important (let’s face it, sometimes this work can be difficult and we need to keep our batteries charged). STORY - Montana health center in 2012 set up a Facebook page for the staff engaged in voter registration efforts to share tips and funny stories, this helped them stay connected and positive Training

Who are your Partners & allies? What activities are a good fit for collaboration with partners and allies? How do you find partners and allies? Extra Notes: Good activities to do with partners? Co-sponsor a forum Join a phone bank effort Join a community canvass effort Find a partner who can train your staff on voting and elections Join a coalition working to pass a ballot measure Partner with other groups to offer rides to the polls Partner with other groups to do nonpartisan sign holding on Election Day Partner with the local LWV to create and distribute a candidate guide Partners

Do you have a plan for data How will you enter data into a database? Who will be responsible for data entry? How frequently do you plan to enter data? Do you have system for capturing voter registration information before returning forms to the elections office. JJ Extra Notes: If you plan to use the voter contact information that you’re collecting to contact voters before the election. HIPAA and our lawyer’s letter. We have a letter from an attorney. We have the factsheet. Partners

Planning on a Timeline Voter Registration Alter the graphic to show Good in June as well

When does voter registration end? Walking through some key dates. 30 days out is the first set of reg deadlines. Several states use 28 or 29 days. Different states handle these deadlines differently. Some will extend to a Monday if the day falls on a weekend. Check with your local elections office. Don’t forget about EDR Promote website Reg Deadline

National Voter Registration Day The 4th Tuesday in September is National Voter Registration Day! Every year! Talk about the fact that it’s endorsed by NASS Talk about massive success in 2012, ‘13 and ’14 (stats for ’14) 300k people registered in 2012, 50k in 2013 In 2014, 155k voters registered. 2,263 partners. A COUPLE SUGGESTED STRATEGIES REGISTERING STAFF FINDING A PARTNER TO FOCUS ON THAT DAY NVRD NVRD! 23

When should you GOTV? October and November Focus on the few days before the election When does absentee voting begin? When does early voting begin?

info@nonprofitvote.org 617.357.VOTE (8683) www.nonprofitvote.org 2464 Massachusetts Ave Suite 210 Cambridge, MA 02140 JJ Helena Berbano helena@nonprofitvote.org Julian Johannesen julian@nonprofitvote.org 25