[candidate-development] [Platform-abwg] ABWG min & documents from 6-18

[Mike Heichman]

Mike Heichman wrote:

>ADVISORY BALLOT WORKING GROUP
>Wednesday, June 18, 2008
>Unapproved Minutes & Documents
>
>Present: John Andrews, Steve Randall, Mike Heichman (recorder)
>
>I. Next meeting:
>
>A. Getting ready for the June 29th StateCom meeting: We will need to do 
>a report about our 2 ballot questions/campaigns and be clear for what 
>kind of assistance we are asking from the State Comm. It was unclear at 
>the end of the meeting whether or not it would be necessary to have a 
>meeting before June 29 or would John and Steve be able to make both 
>reports. (Note: John is expecting to be at the StateCom and Steve is not 
>expecting to be able to attend.)
>
>B. At the next meeting, we will approve the minutes of our June 10th and 
>June 18th meetings.
>
>II. We discussed and approved 2 new ABWG Publications: “Which District 
>Am I In-Advice on Determining Voter Districts” and “Get Those 
>Sigs!-Advice on Determining Voter Districts
>A. Mike’s recommendation that we eliminate the advice that petitioners 
>not go door-to-door to get signatures, because that tactic might be 
>appropriate for some districts was accepted.”
>B. Thanks to John Andrews, Eli Beckerman and Bill Cunningham for their 
>work in creating these documents.
>
>III. Secure Green Futures-report by John
>
>At the June 15th event at Jill’s home in Lexington, about 15 people 
>attended. There were also others who could not attend, but have agreed 
>to gather signatures. So far, signature gathering is taking place in 3 
>towns. John is not sure how many districts we will be attempting to get 
>our question on the ballot. Lorenzo should be very close to opening the 
>checking account and then we can start to raise $. Outreach to other 
>organizations has begun including Alliance for Democracy, the Sierra 
>Club and Clean Water Action.
>
>IV. Health Care-report by Steve
>
>They are still working on the language. It was supposed to be worked on 
>at the MassCARE meeting, but it didn’t happen. The Franklin Hampshire 
>Healthcare Coalition (FHHC) is getting ready with the same language for 
>2 districts. There are plenty of volunteers from the FHHC and the GRP 
>members for these 2 districts. It is unclear what MassCARE will do and 
>whether or not it will choose the same language as the FHHC. Steve will 
>find out from Mr. Sacks whether or not a separate committee will be 
>needed for slightly different language. The FHHC doesn’t have the 
>capacity to have a website for the ballot question; the hope is that 
>MassCARE will put it on their website. There has been no further 
>progress in establishing the legal committee.
>
>V. Our meeting was adjourned by a machine! The long-distance group 
>calling service disconnected us when we ran out of time!!!!
>
>VI. Important documents are below
>
>
> >===== READING MATERIAL - ITEM 1 =====
> >
> >DRAFT TEXT OF "GET THOSE SIGS!" TRAINING MATERIAL
> >
> >
> >Get Those Sigs!
> >Tips for Gathering Signatures for Public Policy Questions
> >
> >(From the Advisory Ballot Working Group, Green-Rainbow Party,
> >adapted from an article by Jim Lindsay)
> >
> >1. Try to find spots where is a lot of foot traffic. Going door-to-door is
> >way too slow! Post offices, supermarkets, and even town dumps can be good
> >petitioning spots. Keep your eyes out for events such as concerts, town
> >meeting, or charity events where crowds gather. Remember not to block foot
> >traffic or stand in places where traffic safety is an issue.
> >
> >2. Carry multiple clipboards ñ while one person is signing, you can get
> >others to sign. At a table, you way want to have 6 or more clipboards! You
> >also need to bring a notebook, lots of pens, some light literature, and a
> >waterproof place to store extra petitions.
> >
> >3. Have one or two very fast "stopper" lines ñ lines you can use to get
> >people to stop. For example: "Hi! We're trying to get a question on the
> >ballot about global warming and green jobs. Would you sign a petition to
> >put it on the ballot?" If you are collecting signatures from only one
> >district, this is the time to find out if they qualify. If they aren't
> >sure, you should collect the signature anyway and let the town 
>registrar do
> >the checking.
> >
> >4. The registration option: If they aren't registered to vote, you can say
> >"Well, that's OK, I can register you to vote right now." You register 
>them,
> >then get their sig on the petition. Check with your petitioning 
>coordinator
> >to see if they want you to do this.
> >
> >5. Now you have about 30 seconds to make your pitch. You show her (or him)
> >the petition while you give an extremely brief explanation of the 
>petition.
> >After you give your pitch, then hold a pen out to her, at about chest 
>level,
> >inviting her to take the pen. If your petitions are divided by town, make
> >sure you give them the petition for the correct town.
> >
> >6. Once they take the pen, you need to give them clear instructions on 
>what
> >to do ñ you'd be shocked at how many signatures are lost if the petitioner
> >doesn't do this. E.g. "First sign here, then carefully print your name
> >underneath your signature just like you are registered to vote. Then put
> >your street address over here. Don't bother with the precinct line."
> >
> >7. When the person is done signing, they'll typically want to give you the
> >petition and pen and be on their way. Take only the clipboard, and leave
> >them with the pen for the moment. Then check to make sure they signed
> >correctly ñ you'll be quite surprised to see how many people screw up. For
> >example, they forget to put their address, or forget to print their name.
> >When this happens, I typically say something like, "HmmmÖ what is your
> >address, please?" Then I write it in for them.
> >
> >8. Once you've verified the signature, you take the pen back, and politely
> >thank the person.
> >
> >9. You must be unflinchingly polite, no matter what kind of yahoos you run
> >into.
> >
> >10. Don't be distressed when you get a series of refusals. These 
>things tend
> >to run in streaks. You'll probably get a whole bunch of sigs in a row 
>pretty
> >soon.
> >
> >11. On the other hand, if you regularly feel like you should be doing much
> >better, try something different. Ask a fellow petitioner how you could
> >improve. Maybe your wording or your technique could be improved.
> >
> >12. Don't get caught up in long conversations or arguments. You should be
> >trying for 15 or more signatures an hour in a normal petition 
>campaign. You
> >just can't afford to spend several minutes convincing a single person to
> >sign. If he (or she) wants to argue, or ask questions forever, give them a
> >copy of your literature and suggest they to read it and then decide if 
>they
> >want to sign. Tell them the website has more information.
> >
> >13. For enthusiastic people, ask them if they'd like to help gather
> >signatures or make a donation. If so, take their contact information. If
> >they want to donate cash on the spot, you should write them a receipt.
> >
> >14. If you have any problems, call your petition coordinator for advice.
> >
> >Remember, you are doing people a favor by giving them a chance to vote on
> >your question. This is democracy in action
> >
> >===== READING MATERIAL - ITEM 2 =====
> >
> >DRAFT TEXT OF "WHICH DISTRICT AM I IN?" TRAINING MATERIAL
> >
> >Which District am I in?
> >Tips for determining a voter's district
> >when collecting signatures for public policy questions.
> >
> >Signatures for each House district must be placed on a separate petition
> >sheet. Often voters do not know which district they are in. Here are
> >suggestions for how to determine this.
> >
> >PREPARATION FOR PETITIONING
> >
> >ï Decide which district or districts you are targeting. You don't want to
> >waste your time collecting a scattering of signatures in a large number
> >districts. Check to see if there is activity in a neighboring district. If
> >there is, you can exchange signatures with the district action group 
>in that
> >district.
> >
> >ï Consult the district definitions provided by the campaign (This can be
> >sent to you as an email attachment.). Find out which precincts (or wards)
> >of which town are in your targeted districts.
> >
> >ï Find out the name of the districts and who is the current incumbent
> >representative.
> >
> >ï Ask the town clerk where each precinct votes (Sometimes this information
> >is available on the town website.). Normally each precinct will have its
> >own voting place. Rarely, two precincts will vote at the same place.
> >
> >ï See if the town clerk can provide you with a precinct map showing the
> >boundaries of each precinct.
> >
> >ï Make out a table such as this one:
> >
> >======TOWN OF BELMONT
> >VOTING PLACE PRECINCT REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
> >Town Hall 1 Harris 7th Middlesex
> >Fire Station 2 Harris 7th Middlesex
> >High School 3 Nelson 8th Middlesex
> >Bowman Elementary 4 Nelson 8th Middlesex
> >Clark Elementary 5 Harris 7th Middlesex
> >===== TOWN OF ARLINGTON
> >VOTING PLACE PRECINCT REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT
> >McMillen School 2 Harris 7th Middlesex
> >DPW Building 3 Harris 7th Middlesex
> >
> >ON THE STREET
> >
> >ï Ask people "Which town do you vote in?"
> >ï Ask them "Where is your polling place?"
> >ï Look up the polling place and find their district.
> >
> >If they don't know where they vote (possible for new voters), then look up
> >their address on the precinct map.
> >
> >If nothing works, just have them sign for the most likely precinct. This
> >can result in a certified signature if you guess right.
> >---------
> >Prepared by the Advisory Ballot Working Group of the Green-Rainbow Party.
> >806617a
> >
> >
> >===== READING MATERIAL - ITEM 3 =====
> >
> >SAMPLE OUTREACH LETTERS
> >
> >
> >---------------------------------------
> >
> >MODEL EMAIL TO MEMBERS OF AN ORGANIZATION
> >Version 90616a
> >
> >Dear [[Organization]] Member,
> >
> >Would you like a chance to vote on a ballot question that instructs your
> >local legislator to support a more vigorous effort to address global 
>warming
> >and create a healthy green economy?
> >
> >This November, voters in many places in Massachusetts will have such a
> >chance. A Secure Green Future (SGF) public policy question will call for
> >legislation that sets a goal of 80% reduction in greenhouse gas 
>emissions by
> >2020. It will also call for transforming our failing oil-addicted economy
> >into a sustainable green economy based on conservation, renewable energy,
> >and recycling.
> >
> >We thought you might be interested in helping assure that this question is
> >on the ballot in your community. Promotion of the SGF question could be a
> >useful part of your overall [[Organization]] work in the community.
> >
> >[[Organization]] may formally endorse the SGF question at a later 
>date. For
> >now, we just want to encourage you to make sure that it appears on the
> >ballot in your community. To help, you should contact the Committee for a
> >Secure Green Future, sgf-info at masschc.org, and offer to work with other
> >local volunteers who are collecting signatures in your community. Please
> >act now because signatures must be collected by July 9. More information
> >about the Secure Green Future question can be found at
> >http://masschc.org/Secure_Green_Future.php.
> >
> >Good luck!
> >
> >[[Signature]]
> >
> >--------
> >
> >---------------------------------------
> >
> >MODEL EMAIL TO FRIENDS IN YOUR COMMUNITY
> >Version 90617a
> >
> >Dear Friend,
> >
> >We have an opportunity to place a public policy question on the November
> >ballot that will call for a more vigorous effort to address global 
>warming.
> >It will also call for transforming our failing oil-addicted economy into a
> >sustainable green economy based on conservation, renewable energy, and
> >recycling.
> >
> >It is called the Secure Green Future (SGF) question. The question was
> >written by the Committee for a Secure Green Future, a nonpartisan ballot
> >committee that is offering the question as a vehicle for raising
> >consciousness and strengthening local climate action groups. To get it on
> >the ballot in our community, we need work together to collect 200 voter
> >signatures by the July 9 deadline.
> >
> >I'd like to see this question on the ballot in our community. Would you be
> >willing to work with me to collect the needed signatures? Let me know as
> >soon as possible, because time is short. More information about Secure
> >Green Future is provided in the postscript below.
> >
> >Thank you very much.
> >
> >[signature and email/telephone]
> >
> >P.S.
> >
> >The text of the Secure Green Future question reads as follows:
> >
> >Shall the representative from this district be instructed to vote in favor
> >of legislation that:
> >1) reduces greenhouse gas emissions in Massachusetts by 80% by 2020, and
> >2) phases out tax incentives for energy-intensive projects, while 
>expanding
> >job creation programs for locally-owned businesses and cooperatives 
>involved
> >in renewable energy, conservation, and sustainable agriculture?
> >
> >
> >More information can be found on the SGF website
> >http://masschc.org/Secure_Green_Future.php. To contact the Committee for a
> >Secure Green Future, email to sgf-info at masschc.org.
> >
> >---------------------------------------
> >
> >MODEL LETTER TO THE EDITOR
> >Version 90616a
> >
> >High gas prices are sending us a message we can't ignore: our oil-addicted
> >economy is on its last legs. If we are going to have an economic future we
> >need to build a new green economy based on conservation, renewable energy,
> >and recycling. We also have to solve the related problem of global
> >warming. If we push the Earth past critical tipping points, the 
>environment
> >will collapse and we won't be able to fix it.
> >
> >It is important to show that there is public support for decisive 
>action on
> >these issues. That's why we are collecting signatures to put a public
> >policy question on the ballot this November. It is called the Secure Green
> >Future question. It calls for a more vigorous action to reverse global
> >warming and for the creation of locally-based green jobs that give us an
> >economy that isn't so dependent on oil.
> >
> >We need signatures from 200 voters to put the question on the ballot 
>in the
> >House district in [[TOWN]]. Please consider signing if you see someone 
>with
> >a Secure Green Future petition on the street. If you are willing to
> >circulate the petition among your friends, let us know by writing to
> >sgf-info at masschc.org. The deadline for turning in signatures is July 9, so
> >please get in contact as soon as possible.
> >
> >Thank you.
> >
> >[[signature]]
>
>_______________________________________________
>Platform-abwg mailing list
>Platform-abwg at green-rainbow.org
>http://green-rainbow.org/mailman/listinfo/platform-abwg
>
>  
>