Yesterday I chatted with Gray TV’s Jillian Angeline about the Arizona Senate race and voter turnout, and a point I raised made it into the final segment. While many voters will be reluctant to open their doors to campaign volunteers in a pandemic, and campaigns themselves reluctant to ask them to canvass, other people may be hungry to talk with a human on the phone or via text. Will campaign contact rates actually go UP during social distancing? Let’s go to the tape:
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the ways campaigns reach voters. @JLAngeline looks at how Arizona senate candidates @CaptMarkKelly and @SenMcSallyAZ are adjusting their strategies. Take a listen to digital consultant Colin Delany @epolitics.https://t.co/UVnSoFIlVX pic.twitter.com/BJAvEHCXuO
— Gray Television Washington News Bureau (@GrayDCnews) August 5, 2020
One quick takeaway: I had about an hour to prepare, which was long enough to shave and find a shirt with buttons but not long enough to experiment with lighting more fit for Zoom calls than for a TV interview. Jillian suggested getting a ring light, which is now on my shopping list. You never know who might next come calling!
For more on pandemic-inspired campaign tactics that might become a permanent part of our political lives, see last week’s Campaigns & Elections column.
– cpd