Recently, the Obama campaign arrived in Ohio and staffers set up shop for the upcoming primary. Last night was the first organizational meeting for campaign volunteers and I have to say, I have a GREAT feeling about this race. The level of excitement and enthusiasm was incredible. Never have I seen so many people fired up about an election in this part of the state and even long time activists in the area said this was unprecedented. Literally HUNDREDS of volunteers showed up on only 24 hours notice to show their willingness to lend a hand.
The event was hosted at a traditionally black Baptist church, but the crowd was as diverse as you could get. And believe me, CROWD was the way to describe it. The campaign staff just arrived a few days ago and only got the heat turned on in the campaign office yesterday. They didn't want to waste any time in getting started though, so they set up an organizational meeting for last night for volunteers. Notice was sent out by email to potential backers and we were asked to forward the info on to anyone we thought might be interested. We were only given 24 hours notice of the meeting, so I wasn't sure what kind of turnout to expect.
I got there around 5:45 for a 6pm meeting and was SHOCKED. There were traffic jams around the church for over an hour and I ended up parking on a side street 5 blocks from the church itself because everything else was packed. The staff said they had printed up 600 volunteer forms, figuring that would be more than enough, and were scrambling by the end of the event to find any unused forms for people. Yes, somewhere north of 500 volunteers showed up last night on 24 hours notice. Every pew was packed with people. The balcony was packed. People were sitting in the choir loft and standing in the aisles. News crews from the local stations were all there as well, covering the excitement.
The campaign right now in Cincinnati consists of just about 10 staffers and we were introduced to them last night along with the person running the Cincinnati efforts, Katina Tsongas (Yes, that Tsongas). They were all experienced from past races and all commented that they had never seen this big of a turnout for the first event. (One of the volunteers commented that when she was with the Kerry campaign in 2004, they had never had event during the entire race that even came close to the numbers that showed up last night). Paul Tewes, the staffer that directed Iowa, has been sent in to run the overall Ohio campaign, so you know the campaign is sending its varsity to seal the deal here.
We were also told that this was just the beginning. More staffers are on their way to Ohio and Cincinnati right now from the Potomac Primary states and State Senator Eric Kearney commented last night that he had secured commitments for organizations in Louisville, Minneapolis, and Indianapolis to send up 100 volunteers each in the next few weeks to assist in GOTV efforts and canvassing.
This is huge news for Cincinnati. For those of you who don't know, while the city itself is fairly Democratic leaning (as most cities are), the Cincinnati Metro is bright red. Southwestern Ohio is every bit as conservative as the Cleveland area is progressive. Unfortunately, we are a big reason Bush won Ohio. People here are incredibly excited about this race, and its not just the Democrats. When Sen. Kearney asked for Independents and Republicans to raise their hands, I'd estimate 50-75 did so. He used that demonstration as an example of what our strategy would be... not only would we talk to Democrats and get them out to vote, but we are going to be talking to every Independent and every Republican out there as well, getting them excited and fired up about voting for Barack. Ohio is an open primary and we are going to be going for every vote out there.
If you are in the Cincinnati area, here is how you can help:
ACTION ITEMS
Sign up to receive updates from the Ohio staff at http://my.barackobama.com/...
Stop by the local Cincinnati campaign office and ask how you can get involved. The first office is already open in DeSales Plaza at 1524 Madison Road and the campaign has just announced that they will be opening a second office in Forrest Park, but the exact location hasn't been announced yet.
Stop by the Obama "Honk and Wave" tonight for an hour or two. Volunteers will be out on Fountain Square in downtown Cincinnati tonight beginning at 5:15pm to show some Valentine's Day "love" for Obama.
Help out with the first big Canvass Event this Saturday, February 16th! Meet at the campaign office at 1524 Madison Road at 10am to get an assignment and help kick this thing off right. Plus the weather should climb all the way into the low 40's with lots of sunshine that day, so why not spend the day outdoors?
The "Run for Obama" event will also be taking place on Saturday, with runners decked out in Obama gear making themselves visible around lunch time in the Hyde Park area. Runners, joggers, and walkers interested in the event can meet at 12:30 in Hyde Park Square.
Go here and type in your zip code for links to a TON of other great events going on in the coming weeks.
Fired up! Ready to go!
UPDATE: Michelle Obama will be in town tomorrow for a rally!
PLEASE JOIN
MICHELLE OBAMA
WIFE OF SENATOR BARACK OBAMA
FOR A CAMPAIGN RALLY
IN CINCINNATI
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, AT 6 P.M.
MUSIC HALL BALLROOM, 1241 ELM ST.
ADMISSION FREE
DOORS OPEN AT 5:15
UPDATE II:
EARLY VOTING HAS BEGUN! You can request an early ballot from your local board of elections, or you can go in person and vote any time the office is open. Get your vote in early and beat the rush! Bring friends along as well. The more votes in the bank early, the more effective GOTV can be on election day! Remember, Ohio is an open primary and all votes are welcome at the Obama campaign, so bring your Independent and Republican friends too!