For Immediate Release
Press Contact: Alex Morgan
313-580-9322
alex@turnoutpac.org
February 21, 2017
Progressive Turnout Project Launches Voter Turnout Program in GA-06 Special Election
National Democratic group making a substantial early investment in on-the-ground field efforts in GA-06
[CHICAGO, IL] – Progressive Turnout Project (PTP) is launching a voter turnout program in the special election to replace Tom Price in Georgia’s 6th congressional district. The group will put 5 organizers on the ground immediately and direct the volunteer capacity of their 1.6 million supporters toward engaging directly with voters at their doors and on the phone.
“The outpouring of support we’ve seen since November has been overwhelming,” said Executive Director Alex Morgan. “Our supporters are more engaged and more focused than we’ve ever seen them. They’re ready to start winning back seats now, not wait until 2018 or 2020 and they’re telling us they want to be on the ground in this race. We’ve had 80,000 new volunteers sign ups in the last month alone. If we can harness that energy and turn it into door knocks and phone calls and real conversations, we know we can win this seat and send a message to the Trump administration.”
Donald Trump’s deep unpopularity in this traditionally red district make this a surprising pickup opportunity for Democrats. The seat has been held by a Republican since Newt Gingrich was elected in 1978 and Mitt Romney won this district 61-37 in 2012. However, in 2016 Trump won just 48-47, a stunning 23-point loss of support from 2012.
For Democrats to win in this newly competitive environment, boosting turnout is going to be key. In the four special elections to the 114th Congress that did not coincide with existing municipal or federal elections turnout never exceeded 100,000 voters and was often markedly lower. And in recent special elections at the state level in Georgia, Democrats have been substantially underrepresented. If Democrats can successfully identify and mobilize their voters, this could be a hugely important early win.
Progressive Turnout Project is a grassroots Political Action Committee (PAC) with a single mission: get Democrats to the polls. They design, test, and execute specialized voter turnout programs targeting sporadic Democratic voters in the most competitive congressional districts in the country. In the 2016 cycle they raised more than 5 million dollars from over 93,000 donors and participated in 19 congressional races. Learn more at www.turnoutpac.org.
