Pre-Election Efforts
< < Back to ?p=172435By Nick Lantz
ATHENS, Ohio – The town of Athens is buzzing with people making phone calls, knocking on doors, and handing out pamphlets. Many local activists are working harder than ever as the election approaches. This particular election gives activists a difficult challenge to overcome. Only nine percent of voters wanted either Trump or Clinton as their nominee, which is expected to lead to extremely low voter turn out rates.
According local activist Michael Tedesco, his biggest goal is persuade people to go out and vote. Many people are refusing to choose sides or are planning on leaving the presidential section of the ballot blank. This challenges activists to convince people of the importance of voting in order to prevent a candidate like Trump from being elected. For them, there is no greater concern.
Early voting has also been a major point of emphasis for many activists. Obama lost Ohio on election day in 2012. It was the early votes that gave him the numbers needed in order to gain the electoral votes. According to Tedesco, “We were really emphasizing early voting also because of lines on election day. People may be planning to vote and drive by the court house and decide to not wait in line.”
With very little enthusiasm about either candidate among most Americans, activists have worked harder than ever to generate some level of excitement. Whether its a simple reminder, information on whats at stake, or a persuasive effort to encourage voting, activists dedicate all their time even with the possibility of their candidate loosing. Local activists hope that their hard work pays off and that there is a high voter turn out rate on election day.