The concept of phonebanking goes way back, but now there are specialties: for example, some phonebanks target supporters to make sure they’re registered, plan to vote, and know how. Others are nonpartisan and are countering the efforts of some states to purge voter rolls, especially of voters who are People of Color.
Every phonebanker has her/his preferred style, and Kami Seligman and Stephen Sherman have completely different approaches to Get Out The Vote.
Kami, a member of the Communications Coordinating Committee, along with Elizabeth de Bethune and Caroline Stern, reckons she may have started phonebanking during the Bush years. Steve, who chairs Resistance Mondays from 7:30-9 p.m., started his phonebanking in January 2017, on behalf of the Jon Ossoff campaign in Georgia. He’s now working with the New York for Biden campaign.
Both Kami and Stephen would rather be door-knocking, but the coronavirus pandemic has put an end to that style of canvassing.
“In-person canvassing is more of an effort, but it’s said to be the most effective,” Kami notes. “Postcards can be tedious but they’re straightforward.” Instead, she’s homed in on the most efficient and impactful GOTV work right now: phonebanking.
The Edgemont resident likes setting her own schedule. “I prefer the flexibility of working on my own time,” she explained. “Even prior to the pandemic, I found it difficult to commit 3 hours to a phone bank once a week; it worked better for me to sit down for about an hour each day when I could.”
Steve likes canvassing in his own neighborhood in Scarsdale, and when he’s phonebanking he likes a group environment, but Covid-19 has cramped his style. Now he’s doing virtual phone banking, on Zoom.
During their outreach, Steven and Kami have each had memorable moments, positive and negative. Steve’s bugaboo is “encountering technical glitches with the phone banking system.” He’s had run-ins with the Robokiller app, which blocks calls that seem to be telemarketers or spam. And a small number of people who support Trump have been abusive or hostile.
Asked what was the best response he’s ever received from a call, Steve said, “Most memorable, if not best — a voter who told me that Alessandra Biaggi would NEVER win, because Jeff Klein had all the money and all the backing of the establishment. Ha!!!”
Biaggi is now a New York State Senator; Klein is an ex-senator.
Kami remembers a response she received during the previous general election. When she called on behalf of Hillary Clinton in 2016, she encountered one person who replied, “Well, I can’t vote for her because she’s a criminal.” That’s when Kami fully realized the impact of disinformation campaigns.
The time drags for Kami when people don’t answer their phones, but she says that rarely will someone be hostile. Sometimes she’s impatient about asking too many questions of the person she’s calling, because “I’d rather get to the point, get the facts we need, and deliver any useful information.”
Steve explained why GOTV phonebanking is so crucial: “People need 8-10 touches from a campaign to ACT. A phone call the day before, or day of, an election can be that 8th touch that reminds a voter to go to the polls.”
Though people can’t phonebank together, they have options. Kami reports that many organizations are running virtual phonebanks, and some NYCD16-Indivisible members are working with them. Some groups such as Swing Left (swingleft.org/take-action?location=10522&s=u) and Reclaim Our Vote (actionnetwork.org/forms/reclaim-our-vote-signup) work together, and sometimes run training sessions for those who want a refresher.
“There are website links that you can use any time and sign in with your Action ID,” Kami elaborated. “There are also automatic dialers that can be used during certain hours.”
During Resistance Mondays, despite the limitations of Zoom, there’s still a sense of camaraderie. Callers share results from the prior week and get Call Crew Training if they want it. Also, any time between 10 a.m. and 11:30 p.m., callers can use an autodialer. There’s no need to sign up for a specific shift, and moderators are available to answer questions. If you speak Spanish, sign up for Tuesdays, 3-5 p.m.
To work for the Biden/Harris campaign, you can contact the Westchester for Biden & Harris Virtual Campaign Office and Phone Bank, and sign up for Sundays at 5 p.m.
If you’ve been considering phone banking, be happy that one size does not fit all. There’s a niche for everyone, early or late in the campaign.