In midterm elections, Democrats may surprise everyone -- by activating the black and Latino base

[woo me with science]

http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2010/10/28/2010-10-28_in_midterm_elections_democrats_may_surprise_everyone__by_activating_the_black_an.html

In midterm elections, Democrats may surprise everyone -- by activating the black and Latino base

Errol Louis, NY Daily News
Thursday, October 28th 2010, 4:00 AM

The very bad day Democrats are expecting next Tuesday might not be as terrible as feared, according to some analysts not known for wishful thinking. There's abundant evidence - often ignored or discounted by mainstream media outlets - that the organized base of the Democratic Party is stirring in ways that pollsters and pundits are likely to miss.

....

President Obama and the Democratic leadership, in fact, have been quietly firing up the black base. In recent weeks, the President has invited black bloggers and columnists to the White House and appeared on the national radio shows of Al Sharpton, Joe Madison and Tom Joyner.

...

The Democratic National Committee has allocated $3 million to turn out black voters, which more than quadruples the highest amount they've ever spent. Jamal Simmons, a top D.C. operative, recently wrote that the DNC helped state parties contact more black voters in September of this year than in all of 2006.

....

Another potential shot in the arm for Dems could come from Latino voters turned off by the harsh anti-immigrant rhetoric championed by many Republican candidates....."I think that the Latino vote is going to be the October surprise," says Maria Teresa Kumar, executive director of Voto Latino, a nonprofit advocacy organization. Kumar's group, which makes aggressive use of social media and technology, is organizing lunchtime flash mobs tomorrow to get voters to the polls in the early-voting states of Florida, California, Arizona, Texas and Colorado.

...

We'll know in a few days whether these below-the-radar turnout efforts save the Dems from a debacle. It will play a great role in shaping strategy for the 2012 presidential election contest, which begins in earnest the morning after the Tuesday midterms.

[virtualobserver]

1. I believe it

the added bonus is that the Republican party will implode and then rip itself to shreds

[prodigals0n]

2. "In midterm elections, Democrats may surprise everyone

-- by activating the black and Latino base"

Is there a switch or something?

I hope everyone gets out and votes. We can't lose if we all vote.

We can't seem to really win either but we're miles better than the alternative.

[Hawkowl]

3. I won't be surprised

I've said the same thing as the OP weeks ago. After carefully reviewing many of the polls "likely voter" pools, it is clear that African American and Latino voters are being way, way, undercounted, and angry white people over 50 are being overcounted.

If Obama can continue to energize minority voters, the dems should squeak by in many races giving them solid majorities in both houses. Now, what they do with it is another story.

[oswaldactedalone]

4. Here's the piece of the rock that I'm chipping in over the next

four days. You might consider using one or more of these.

Tomorrow, I'm taking voter guides to every black-owned barber and beauty shop in my town of 260,000. They're mostly concentrated in a four mile radius so it's not that hard to do. Voter guides can be obtained at your local party headquarters.

Saturday, I'm handing out voter guides for two hours at a polling place in a heavy A-A section of town. Why do I have that particular place? Couldn't get anyone else to go there. Then, I'm taking four voters to early voting who otherwise wouldn't go, two white, one A-A, and one Hispanic.

Sunday, I'm going to the parking lot of the largest A-A church in our city, and placing the guides on windshields.

Monday, I'm going to the five busiest convenience stores in the A-A community for one hour at each, giving out guides, and answering questions about their polling place, time they're open etc.

Tuesday, driving folks to the polls from the Headquarters.

Any of you can do these things. It's mostly a stealth effort on my part, but perfectly legit to do.

Not bad for a 55 yo white guy, right?