Posted on 11/05/2004 2:43:30 PM PST by HomeschoolGenealogistMom
Posted November 4 2004
Enthusiastic volunteers knocking on doors, staffing phone banks and driving Republicans to the polls won Florida for President Bush, even managing to dampen Sen. John Kerry's strength in traditionally Democratic strongholds of Broward and Palm Beach counties.
The state GOP reported that, in a burst of campaigning during the last four days before Election Day, 109,000 volunteers made 1.7 million personal contacts with voters. In comparison, four years ago Republican volunteers made just 77,000 such contacts -- telephone calls, door-to-door visits and buttonholing of voters in public places.
"Our folks just worked their hearts out," said Joseph Agostini, spokesman for the Florida Republican Party, on Wednesday. "They even enabled us to do better in Broward."
Broward GOP volunteers, who began Election Day at 4 a.m. placing signs in median strips before heading to the polls for campaigning, played a big role in keeping a lid on Kerry success in the county that turns out the most Democratic votes in Florida. Kerry won a margin over Bush of about 5,000 votes fewer than Democrats got four years ago….
Long-time Broward Republican Terry Arthur said the GOP's last-minute push was the best-run political effort he had seen. Volunteers were sent e-mails several times a day during the final week of campaigning with updated instructions….
The well-publicized effort by Democrats and their allies to get a huge turnout in southeast Florida failed.
(Excerpt) Read more at sun-sentinel.com ...
Alabama sent *ALL* of our volunteers down to Florida to go door to door, make phone calls, drive people to vote, etc.
Literally thousands of clean cut Alabama young men and beautiful Southern Belles flooded Florida with charming Republican volunteers.
They were welcomed with opened arms by both the Florida volunteers (who were *highly* motivated) as well as by voters.
Life is good.
I was wondering that isn't Ralph Reed the unsung hero in this GOTV effort after he did such a great job in Georgia in 2002? Maybe for 2006, they should put him in charge of the midwestern states GOTV e.g MI, PA?
Yeah for Alabama!!!!
Thanks! That's great! I live in Florida and was very active in the campaign - and we came very close to carrying my heavily Dem county (the only one in North Florida, alas). One interesting thing I found out in my precinct canvassing and phone work was that the Dems had to PAY their "volunteers," and in fact hired them from local temp agencies. People called us looking for jobs and couldn't believe that we used volunteers.
I VOLUNTEERED AND CAMPAIGNED MY HEART OUT DURING THE DAYS BEFORE THE ELECTION. I'm surprised by this sun-sentinel article as I've always thought of this newspaper as a liberal rag. But I think they're trying to change.
Who knows...we may even run him for some office!
He'd be a shoo-in IMHO because he's already a proven GOP asset.
Shhhhh...
Ditto for the PA volunteers. Even tho Bush didn't take the state, more residents voted Republican than in 2000. And our hard work contributed to the total popular vote.
I was a little surprised, too. But then again, even the odious NY Times paper, The Gainesville Sun, had to give a positive report on the almost 20,000 people who turned out at the airport to see Bush up here on Sunday. Sometimes even the press has to accept a little bit of reality.
Yes, we in Maryland feel that way, too.
Alabama wasn't the only one sending in reinforcements. I drove down to Pinellas Co. (from Atlanta) to help out (walking the vote, call banks, sign waving, driving voters to the polls) during the last 4 days of the campaign. Also, there was a group of ladies from Texas who flew in to help. I would like to think that we helped with W's victory. In 2000 Gore won Pinellas by 5000 votes. Tuesday W won Pinellas by 500. Great Job to all of the people who helped out at the Pinellas Co. Republican Office.
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