Dear MoveOn member,
We are at a tipping-point moment in American history, and what we do over the next six days and on Election Day will have implications for generations to come.
That is why I am writing to you today. If you are concerned about the Trump GOP's disastrous policies and the reactionary, right-wing, one-party rule that we currently have in Congress, then please click here right now to support MoveOn's critical work to win the election in November.
Eddie, we have got to ensure the largest voter turnout of any midterm election in the recent history of this country.
In the last midterm election, four years ago, the United States had its lowest voter turnout since World War II. Only 36% of eligible voters cast a ballot.1
And that low turnout is part of how we ended up with this extreme right-wing Congress, and why Mitch McConnell is in charge of the Senate. And if we want to get out of this mess, the ONLY way to do it is to increase voter turnout this time around. We need to get out the vote in support of bold, diverse candidates who will end the rigged economic and political systems we have now and build a country that works for all of us.
If there is high voter turnout this November, then we are very likely to have a decisive victory. But if there is low turnout, we will very likely lose, with catastrophic consequences.
And you do not have to take my word for it, because McConnell has made it absolutely clear: If Republicans maintain control of the House and Senate, they will again try to take health care away from millions of Americans and cut Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security.
I wouldn't ask you to donate if getting voters to turn out on Election Day weren't so critically important. But the fact is, MoveOn is in the final sprint of the biggest and most expensive elections program in its 20-year history—a program that is geared specifically toward increasing voter turnout by inspiring voters to show up. And I believe that is exactly what is needed in this important moment.
With your help, MoveOn will be able to reach out to millions of voters through volunteer-led efforts: sending millions of person-to-person text messages, one voter at a time; sharing personal, genuine videos from one community member to another; and doing old-fashioned door-to-door outreach with neighbors having conversations with each other.
By working together, on Election Day, we can end Republican control of the House and maybe even the Senate. Will you help MoveOn's voter turnout program by donating $3 or whatever you can afford?
Last year, I asked MoveOn members to help me go on the road to defeat the Republican "health care" bill—a bill that would have thrown as many as 32 million Americans off their health insurance. MoveOn members stepped up in a huge way. And together, despite all the odds, and with Republicans in charge of Congress and the White House, we won. That is an incredible accomplishment.
Why did we win? Because the majority of Americans believe that health care should be recognized as a right for every man, woman, and child. Polls show that 70% of us support a single-payer, Medicare-for-All system—and that number includes a majority of voters who identify as Republicans.2
So if Americans believe in this vision, then you might reasonably ask yourself: Why do American voters keep voting against the right to health care? It's a fair question. And here's the answer: They're not.
The majority of Americans are not voting for the Trump-GOP agenda—the problem is that Americans are not voting at all, particularly in midterm elections like the one coming up in just six days.
Why aren't they? There is not just one reason. It is a combination of things, ranging from racist voter suppression laws disenfranchising voters to the influence of Big Money to keep voters at home rather than participating in our democracy to the fact that many Americans have lost faith in our broken system and need an extra reminder of the issues that are at stake.
On issue after issue—whether it is health care for all, raising the minimum wage, pay equity for women, rebuilding our crumbling infrastructure, making public colleges and universities tuition-free, transforming our energy system, immigration reform, criminal justice reform, and many other issues—poll after poll shows the American people are not with the GOP.
Americans want public policies that will address the needs of all the American people, not just the ultra-wealthy 1% that the GOP caters to.
Those are the issues we're putting front and center in this election. And that's what we'll work on when we win. But to win, we need to get voters to the polls on November 6.
MoveOn is running an absolutely essential get-out-the-vote program this year—the biggest midterm program in its 20-year history. I am asking you to make a contribution now to support MoveOn's critical work. Will you chip in $3?
I still believe that we can level the playing field.
I still believe in a positive and hopeful vision for America, where together we will build a society where every man, woman, and child can thrive.
That's why I recently headed to Indiana, Michigan, South Carolina, Iowa, Wisconsin, Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, California, Maryland and Florida to talk about the critical issues that are at stake and the exciting candidates running for House, Senate, Governor and races up and down the ballot that can help make our vision a reality.
I hope that you will volunteer in the final stretch leading up to Election Day. I also hope that when you vote on November 6, you will bring your friends, co-workers, and family with you.
And I hope that you will join me in making a contribution to MoveOn's critical elections program aimed to get out the vote, because getting voters to turn out on Election Day will end the GOP's control of Congress.
In solidarity,
–Bernie Sanders
Sources:
1. "2014 midterm election turnout lowest in 70 years," PBS, November 10, 2014
https://act.moveon.org/go/56145?t=12&akid=219598%2E10220574%2EYXZBdd
https://act.moveon.org/go/55998?t=14&akid=219598%2E10220574%2EYXZBdd
Will you support MoveOn's efforts to win this election? Michael Moore says, "MoveOn is working around the clock to help organize and turn out volunteers to get out the vote in November. I know that MoveOn members like you are moving heaven and earth to win this election. We're the majority. But we need to rise up. That's the only way out of this mess." Will you stand with MoveOn?
Click here to chip in $3, or whatever you can afford.
PAID FOR BY MOVEON
This email was sent to Eddie Alfaro on October 31, 2018. To change your email address or update your contact info, click here. To opt out of MoveOn emails from Bernie Sanders, click here. To remove yourself from this list, click here.
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