Postcards To Voters

{{Short description|U.S. political volunteer organization}} {{infobox organization | name = Postcards to Voters | type = Volunteer organization | logo = Postcards_To_Voters_logo.png | logo_size=100% | formation = {{start date and age|2017|3|11}}  | founder = Tony McMullin | location = Kennesaw, Georgia, U.S. | website = {{URL|postcardstovoters.org}} }}

'''Postcards To Voters''' is a group of American volunteers who write postcards to targeted voters in the hope of increasing Democratic turnout in close, key elections across the country.<ref>{{Cite web |title=About |url=https://postcardstovoters.org/about/ |access-date=2025-02-04 |website=Postcards to Voters |language=en-US}}</ref>

==History== Founded and registered in 2018 as an LLC by Tony McMullin, the group started informally in March 2017 with a handful of volunteers who wrote postcards in support of Georgia congressional candidate Jon Ossoff. By November 2018 it had grown to nearly 40,000 volunteers<ref name="nyt">{{cite news |newspaper=The New York Times |title=Writing Postcards Brings Voters Back From the Edge: 'It's Sharpie Therapy' |date=November 1, 2018 |last1=Tackett |first1=Michael |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/01/us/politics/postcards-democrats-midterm-elections.html}}</ref> from every state in the U.S., including Alaska and Hawaii.<ref>{{cite web |website=Teen Vogue |title=Teenagers Are Helping Flip Seats in 2018 Elections With Postcards to Voters |date=May 16, 2018 |last1=Walker |first1=Melissa |url=https://www.teenvogue.com/story/teenagers-are-helping-flip-seats-in-2018-elections-with-postcards-to-voters}}</ref> By March 2020, according to the founder, it had grown to more than 70,000 volunteers and had sent almost 7 million postcards.<ref name="power-of-the-pen" /> While not every volunteer who signed up for Postcards To Voters is still actively participating, approximately 9000 unique volunteers request addresses each month.<ref>Mariotti, Renato, host. "Making a Difference: How Can We Get Involved This Election Season? (with Tori Taylor and "Tony the Democrat")" Stitcher Podcast, 25 July 2020.</ref> Volunteers write and often decorate the postcards by hand, paying for their own supplies and postage.<ref name="wapo">{{cite news |newspaper=The Washington Post |title=Postcards from the left: Resistance groups take aim at Trump, one letter at a time |date=November 2, 2018 |last1=Wan |first1=William |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/postcards-from-the-left-resistance-groups-take-aim-at-trump-one-letter-at-a-time/2018/11/02/699df7e0-c1ba-11e8-a1f0-a4051b6ad114_story.html}}</ref>

McMullin uses technology to keep the organization running smoothly. He has an interactive texting system, called Abby, that was created and donated by a volunteer. Additionally, address lists are "seeded" with addresses belonging to members of the group to verify that the postcards are being written as prescribed.<ref name="power-of-the-pen">{{Cite web|title=The Power of the Pen with Tony McMullin of Postcards to Voters {{!}} Episode 433|url=https://www.resistancedashboard.com/node/692|access-date=2020-07-29|website=Resistance Dashboard|language=en}}</ref>

Operational costs for Postcards To Voters are funded through the sale of postcards and monetary donations. There are more than a dozen postcard designs available for sale on Amazon, Etsy, and on the Postcards To Voters website; however, volunteers are free to buy postcards from other vendors. Free downloadable templates are also available.<ref name="templates">{{cite web |website=Postcards to Voters |title=Templates |url=https://postcardstovoters.org/templates/}}</ref> Further funding is provided by MyPostcard<ref>{{Cite web|title=Postcards to Voters - Shop Unique Postcard Sets {{!}} MyPostcard|url=https://postcardstovoters.mypostcard.com/|access-date=2021-07-28|website=MyPostcard & Postcards To Voters|language=en}}</ref> and the Out Loud Shop,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Out Loud Shop - Look Good and Feel Good in our clever Resistance Ts|url=https://outloudshop.com/|access-date=2020-07-29|website=Out Loud Shop}}</ref> where a portion of their merchandise sales benefit the organization. Campaigns pay nothing for the service, but if a candidate is happy with the service they are asked to be a reference for future campaigns. Additionally, in an effort to help candidates, Postcards To Voters teamed up with Ragtag, an organization that can assist candidates build an online presence.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Partners|url=https://ragtag.org/partners|access-date=2020-08-07|website=Ragtag|language=en-US}}</ref>

During a 2018 interview, McMullin said he quit his job in order to run his group full-time in advance of the 2018 midterm elections.<ref name="nyt" /> In a 2020 podcast interview, McMullin stated that in the two months before the midterms, the group wrote nearly 2 million postcards for 32 campaigns. He said he was supporting himself by doing occasional consulting work and selling postcards.<ref name="power-of-the-pen" />

Since the group's founding, many other volunteer organizations have begun sending handwritten postcards and letters to voters in hopes of increasing voter turnout, in addition to phonebanking, textbanking, and traditional canvassing.<ref>{{cite web |website=WHYY-FM |title=Can Philly voters sway Iowa caucus-goers with postcards? |last=Conde |first=Ximena |date=January 13, 2020 |url=https://whyy.org/articles/can-philly-voters-sway-iowa-caucus-goers-with-postcards/}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |website=The Atlantic |title=A Throwback Way to Win a Pandemic Election: COVID-19 may have forced the 2020 campaign online, but progressives are trying out an old-fashioned turnout tactic for the fall: letter-writing. |date=April 30, 2020 |url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/04/2020-election-letter-writing/610879/}}</ref>

== See also == * Craftivism * Get out the vote

== References == {{reflist|30em}}

== Further reading ==

* {{Cite web|last1=Basu |first1=Shumita |last2=WNYC Staff |date=September 12, 2018 |title=Grassroots GOTV Campaign Sends 283,000 Handwritten Postcards To New Yorkers Ahead Of State Primary |url=http://gothamist.com/news/grassroots-gotv-campaign-sends-283000-handwritten-postcards-to-new-yorkers-ahead-of-state-primary |website=Gothamist |language=en}} * {{cite news |newspaper=Valley News |title=Rebuilding Our Democracy One Postcard at a Time |date=April 7, 2018 |last1=Nichols |first1=Bill |url=https://www.vnews.com/Column-Political-Postcards-16617018}} * {{cite news |newspaper=Davis Enterprise |title=Yolo activists connect with voters across the U.S. |date=March 2, 2018 |last1=Halprin |first1=Lyra |url=https://www.davisenterprise.com/local-news/yolo-activists-connect-with-voters-across-the-u-s/}} * {{cite news |newspaper=Star Tribune |title=Will November bring a 'wave'? |date=February 17, 2018 |last1=Keen |first1=Judy |url=http://www.startribune.com/will-november-bring-a-blue-wave-for-democrats-republicans-hope-tax-cut-means-no/473597813/}} * {{cite news |newspaper=Journal Sentinel |title=Postcards group looks to Magic Markers, not money, to win over wary voters |date=January 15, 2018 |last1=Stein |first1=Jason |url=https://www.jsonline.com/story/news/politics/2018/01/15/postcards-group-looks-magic-markers-not-money-win-over-wary-voters/1030129001/}} * {{cite web |website=Iowa Public Radio |title=Sioux City Voters Getting Out-of-Town Postcards in Special Election for Statehouse Seat |date=January 4, 2018 |last1=Russell |first1=Joyce |url=http://www.iowapublicradio.org/post/sioux-city-voters-getting-out-town-postcards-special-election-statehouse-seat#stream/0}}  * Wise, Christina (March 27, 2025). "Scotts Valley PerSisters mobilizes democracy one postcard at a time". https://pressbanner.com/scotts-valley-persisters-mobilizes-democracy-one-postcard-at-a-time/

Category:Postcards Category:Volunteer organizations in the United States Category:2017 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Category:Election campaigning