Every day, I think about what will happen if Trump is re-elected.

I think about how many more animals will die as he ruthlessly raids our oceans and land for profit; women, people of color, indigenous peoples, and the LGBTQ community losing their rights; and how our planet will continue to be engulfed by climate change.

I think about people fleeing unthinkable violence who won’t be able to find safety in the United States; Trump lining billionaires’ pockets while ignoring the underprivileged; and his cruelty, divisiveness, lying, looting, apathy, ignorance, and corruption.

I feel sick every day over what Trump has done to the country, and I frequently find myself fighting unhealthy resentment towards the people who elected such an awful person.

But I also think about all the good in this country–the honesty, decency, courage, and selflessness, and I feel hope. Every day, we face a choice to be paralyzed by the current state of affairs or to work to reverse it. I choose the latter every day.

For the past several months, I’ve been engaged in what I believe is the most effective way to defeat Trump and flip the Senate: calling and texting voters, recruiting poll workers, and donating to campaigns. I took a three-month hiatus from social media and blogging to focus squarely on this effort because research indicates it’s how we can make the greatest impact.

I’ve decided to share my experience volunteering for the Biden-Harris campaign and for six swing-state Democrat Senate campaigns with the hope it may inspire you to get involved–if you’re not already–in the final month of the campaign. It’s not too late.

1. Calling and texting Democrat voters works. I’ve spoken with hundreds of voters who were either on the fence or hadn’t yet registered to vote. Millions of Democrats didn’t vote in 2016. We need to inspire them to vote, and that’s what you’re doing when you call and text. The scripts are short and easy to follow. HubDialer is my favorite campaign software for calling, and Spoke Texting is the best for texting, so I recommend requesting them as there’s often a choice. HubDialer dials for you, so all you need to do is talk, and your phone number isn’t used. You can text through your computer by clicking a button. You can visit any campaign site to volunteer, and a field organizer will get you started.

2. Donating to campaigns works. The campaigns need the cash to pay field organizers, buy campaign ads, fund oppo research, etc. Most campaigns use ActBlue, which makes it easy to repeat your donations with the click of a button.

3. I’ve developed an enormous appreciation for the field organizers throughout the country, working to energize volunteers and win. You’ll be inspired by them, and you’ll be heartened when you meet other volunteers if you decide to join optional Zoom sessions to discuss strategy, listen to presentations, etc.

Sometimes I get tired of calling–I spent hours on the phone yesterday, and then I think of how fortunate I am compared to so many people and animals negatively impacted by this horrifying presidency, and I keep calling. I call, and I call, and I call, reaching every voter I can to end this long national nightmare. I think about the struggles of previous generations, how hard they fought for our current freedoms, and I feel a moral obligation to keep going.

4. Before the pandemic, poll workers were primarily retired people. My father served as a poll worker and precinct leader for many years. He told me stories about World War II veterans who would tell him about what it meant for them to protect the democracy they risked their lives to save. Many retired citizens are taking extra precautions to protect their health this year, so we have a poll worker shortage.

In light of unprecedented threats to a fair election resulting from Trump’s pathological lying, inciting of violence, conspiracy theories, fear-mongering, and voter suppression efforts, I signed up to be a poll watcher on Election Day and to work the Voter Assistance hotline. Trump will cheat as he always does, so we need all hands on deck to protect the integrity of our election.

I’ll post a few links to the toss up Democrat Senate campaigns I’ve been helping and the poll worker sign-up in case you’d like to volunteer or donate. This is our chance to change the course of history and save American democracy. I hope you’ll join the cause. 

Theresa Greenfield for Iowa to defeat Joni Ernst

Sara Gideon for Maine to defeat Susan Collins

MJ Hegar in Texas to defeat John Cornyn

Jaime Harrison in South Carolina to defeat Lindsay Graham

Cal Cunningham in North Carolina to defeat Thom Tillis

Jon Ossoff in Georgia to defeat David Purdue

Power the Polls to sign up to be a poll worker on Election Day to protect our election.

Joe Biden for President and Kamala Harris for Vice-President to defeat Donald Trump.

If you live in Florida…
Please vote “No” to retain Florida Supreme Court Justice Carlos G. Muniz. A Republican appointed by Governor Ron Desantis, he was chief of staff to Florida AG Pam Bondi. He supported Bondi not taking action on consumer complaints against Trump University, which was later found guilty of looting. A New York judge ordered Trump to pay $25 million to his victims. It’s no surprise that Muniz was on Trump’s short list for the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Florida ballot has six constitutional amendments on it. Here’s how I voted in case you need help understanding them. I voted “No” on No. 1 because it’s xenophobic nonsense. I voted “Yes” on No. 2 because people deserve a living wage. I voted “No” on No. 3 for open primaries because I don’t want non-party affiliated people hijacking them. I voted “No” on No. 4 because it’s hard enough to get a constitutional amendment on the ballot once; twice is ridiculous and favors the wealthy and connected. I voted “No” on No. 5 because it makes it difficult for local governments to manage their budgets, but you’ll probably want to vote “Yes” if you’re a homeowner. I voted “Yes” on No. 6 because I support veterans’ families. 

No. 1 – No
No. 2 – Yes
No. 3 – No
No. 4 – No
No. 5 – No
No. 6 – Yes