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Know your precinct. This month, take an hour and learn
important information about your precinct. (We've attached a
form that will help you keep the information organized and
handy for referencing.) Do you know your Congressional
District? Your Supervisorial District? Your City Council
District? Look on the back of your voter registration card or
check to see if your County registrar has the information
available online. For Maricopa County, for example, you can
locate some if this information by going to http://recorder.maricopa.gov/pollingplace/selectdist.asp
Once you know the districts you live in, make sure you know
who the elected officials are that serve your area. How do you
find out? Try the Arizona Blue Book and click on your County
in the table of contents.
http://www.sosaz.com/public_services/Arizona_Blue_Book/1999_2000/contents.htm
There's a lot of information in this book. Even long-time
activists may be unclear about the duties of certain elected
officials in Arizona. To learn about the state's elected
offices, the duties of the various branches of government,
general information and history about the state, state
agencies, boards and commissions, election data, and much
more, the link above will take you to the Arizona Blue Book
online.
Why keep track of the political jurisdictions you live in?
PCs should be knowledgeable and aware of local issues. If your
supervisor is in the news, what is he or she talking about? If
your city council person is speaking in public, what's the
topic of discussion? These are the issues that personally
effect you and the people in your precinct.
Once you know the districts you live in and your elected
officials, review your walking list and take a moment to study
data on age, occupation, and date of registration. What does
it tell you about the people in your precinct and issues they
are likely to be interested in? What's the percentage of
Democrats, Republicans, and Independents. If 20% or more of
your precinct is registered Independent or PND (party not
declared), you may want to do a targeted mailing to them
before the election. (Even Republican polls show the majority
of Arizona's Independents lean more towards Democratic issues.
Similarly, a PND may simply be someone who forgot to mark the
red line for party affiliation. It is confusing and even some
activists miss the blank!)
Some Democrats have wondered how to respond when someone
asks their opinion of President Bush in the wake of the
terrorist attacks. Here is one approach:
Make it clear that Arizona Democrats stand united with the
President against terrorism, but when it comes to domestic
policy issues, we still disagree with many of the
administration's proposals.
For example: "Like all Americans, I stand with the
President against terrorism. This is not a Republican or
Democrat issue. I do still disagree with the President on a
number of domestic issues, but like Democrats nationwide, I
stand with the President in fighting terrorism."
The PC Tip Sheet is produced by
Rick McGuire Joshua Weiss and Ron Owen
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