The GOP’s Turnout Problem - NationalJournal

The GOP’s Turnout Problem
Austerity is in at the Republican National Committee, but big expenses are just around the corner.
BY REID WILSON - NationalJournal

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May 18, 2011 | 9:30 p.m.

DALLAS — Austerity isn’t only a phenomenon for cash-strapped European governments. Saving money is the new “it” thing for the Republican National Committee as well. After two years of profligate spending and shrinking revenues landed the party deep in debt, Republicans are doing everything in their power to stanch the tide of red ink and return the RNC to a strong financial footing.

But the GOP also faces a problem only rarely acknowledged among top party strategists: The Republican Party’s turnout operations, which can suck up millions in funds during the critical last days of a campaign, are much weaker than those of their Democratic counterparts. And without a serious investment soon, the turnout gap threatens to undermine Republican efforts to win key contests in the 2012 election cycle.

Thanks to rules that allow voters to cast ballots early, or by absentee, the new reality is that turning out voters is a monthlong process. Republicans once wielded a vaunted 72-hour program, which identified voters most likely to cast ballots for Republicans and whipped them into heading to the polls. Now, the parties must begin turning out voters weeks in advance of Election Day. At the moment, Democrats are much better equipped to get their voters to the polls over that stretch than are Republicans.

Though Republican operatives are loath to publicly acknowledge the shortcoming, it is common knowledge among senior strategists that turnout operations are underfunded and out of date. In a recent interview, new RNC Chairman Reince Priebus said he wanted his legacy to be a focus on identifying those who cast absentee ballots and implementing a program to make sure Republicans return those ballots on time.

“I believe that the 72-hour task force means the last month. My idea of a 72-hour effort includes the entire month of October and November,” Priebus said. “You cannot have a get-out-the-vote effort anymore in the last 72 hours, especially with absentee ballots and early voting going on around this country.”

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More: http://www.nationaljournal.com/columns/on-the-trail/the-gop-s-turnout-problem-20110518

:kick:

That was the Republican strategy of the 80's.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandbagging

Don't buy it for a New York Nanosecond.

"Your, um, 'work' at the RNC helped keep America somewhat quasi-safe from the deranged & depraved depredations of the Republicon Cabal O' Cronies.

"We salute you, Steeley Mike, for your total mastery of Republicon FAIL."

- Honorable American Citizens