The Grafton and Merrimack County Democratic committees, along with Plymouth Area Dems
and Mascoma Forward, hosted a strategy session on Senate District 7 on Oct 25.
Steve Marchand, founder of the progressive advocacy group Move the Goalposts, provided analysis of the results from the 2022 elections statewide and in the 24-town Senate district, including six towns within Grafton County. Bristol, Alexandria, Bridgewater, Grafton, Hebron and Orange represent about 15% of SD 7 and are historically among the most Republican in the district, but Marchand suggested that there is some statistical evidence that at least some of them may be trending in a Democratic direction. He strongly recommended both a grassroots effort aimed at making personal connections with voters and messaging consonant with that approach.
When asked the question that is on everyone’s mind as to how we reach low-information voters, guest speaker SteveMarchand’s short answer was ‘personal connection’. Citing statistics, Steve said a piece of direct mail can “add half a point to a point for performance per piece.” A personal knock on the door that leads to a personal conversation “can result in an 18-20 point difference.”
The impact of personal connection is staggering, and speaks to the value of canvassing, because that is where you create that personal connection. Sign up for one of our final two conversation canvassing workshops in November, and join the team. http://www.conversationcanvassing24.org/
Following up on Steve’s comments about the importance of fundraising now and not late in the campaign season, David Bates, town chair or Warner, mapped out his strategies to build a fund to support the NH State Senate District 7 Democratic candidate. You can contribute to the fund here: Senate District Seven Citizens Fund.