About Community Change Action Voters
For almost 20 years, Community Change Action and our political committee, Community Change Voters, have redefined electoral organizing by focusing on a north star that usually goes ignored by traditional campaigns: Engaging hard-to-find, hard-to-reach Black, Latino, Native, AAPI, immigrant, women, and young voters to turn out for candidates that align with their values. This work has ramped up to a historical high in the past few months as November fast approaches, focusing on states with key swing districts where voters of color have been consequential to election results. The scale of Community Change Action/Voters’ Harris candidate ID’s is the largest from an independent expenditure program.
For the 2024 cycle, Community Change Action and Community Change Voters are investing the majority of our efforts into Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, co-implementing and co-strategizing with grassroots organizations with established community relationships as we run voter engagement programs with high-impact to our voters. Through this work, we alongside our partners plan to hold more than 2 million conversations with voters in our target states through multiple channels, including volunteer and paid canvass, phone calls, relational voter contact, mail, events, paid digital, and influencers
About our Michigan program
In Michigan, Community Change Action/Voters are focused on electing Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as President and Vice President of the United States, Rep. Elissa Slotkin to the U.S. Senate and defeating Mike Rogers, electing progressive candidates to the third, seventh, eighth, and tenth congressional districts, and securing Michigan’s 15 electoral votes.
To meet our goals of knocking almost 250,000 doors and making 1,175,000 calls to target voters in Michigan, we’re working with grassroots organizations Michigan United Action, a statewide organization of leaders working for economic and racial justice, and Michigan Liberation Action Fund, a statewide network of people and organizations organizing to end the criminalization of Black families and communities of color in Michigan. These organizations do deep voter and community outreach and organizing work in some of the most hotly-contested districts in the state.
You can learn more about our program and our partners’ programs here.
As of Oct 1, 2024, together with our local Michigan partners we’ve:
- Knocked 170,382 doors, reaching 253,081 people
- Made 440,339 phone calls
- 15,878 candidate IDs, 72.8% of those positive for Harris
The last week in Michigan…
On Sep. 26, Community Change Action hosted a ‘Michiganders Vote’ House Party in Lansing to talk about the issues facing voters and register friends and family to vote.
On Sept. 20, The ‘Big Steppers’ – Michigan Liberation Action Fund’s canvassing crew – and Michigan United Action’s team were out on the doors and attended reproductive freedom events with Kerry Washington and Sen. Stabenow.
Upcoming this week…
This first October weekend, Michigan United Action will be out in Lansing, Grand Rapids, Flint, and Saginaw with plans to knock 15k doors. And Michigan Liberation Action Fund will be out in Macomb County with plans to knock 4k doors.
On Thursday, October 3, Michigan United Action will host its weekly Virtual House Party to connect with community members who want to make a difference this election.
Voter stories
Jamie Beasley, a canvasser with Michigan United Action, highlights how her experience as a Black woman who has seen a lot of political strife in her lifetime has informed her work as a canvasser:
“I was born in the late 60s and what we’re seeing today reminds me of what I grew up with in the 70s. I know that this too shall pass, but it takes me to why I am here. I come from a father that worked in the Ford plant. He came from the south, was not formally educated and couldn’t read or write. My mother and father played a great part in inspiring me to do this work. My mother believed in voting and would take me to the polls, so I learned to vote from her. She would organize other Black women in our low-income housing community to improve conditions for everyone there. I vote because I want to protect people’s rights, I vote because of those who have come before us, and I also vote because I just believe in democracy.”
Hot state news
- Scoop: Rep. Elissa Slotkin warns Harris is “underwater” in Michigan, Axios, Stef W. Kight
- Michigan absentee voting begins this week. Clerks urge voters to return ballots quickly. Detroit News, Chad Livengood
- New bills are second shot across the bow of corporate influence on lawmakers in Michigan, Michigan Public Radio, Tracy Samilton
- A bloc of Trump voters in key swing states also backs Democratic Senate candidates. Here’s why that matters. Business Insider, John L. Dorman
- Republican group to spend $22.5M to help Rogers in Michigan Senate race, Detroit News, Melissa Nann Burke
- Mike Rogers wants voters to forget his record of backing abortion bans, Michigan Independent, Josh Israel
Michigan by the numbers, with 35 days until Election Day
FiveThirtyEight’s average of polls has Harris up by about 2.4 points in Michigan. The latest New York Times/Siena College poll has her up by just one. (Axios)
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If you’d like to join a canvass, or other voter outreach event, or get in contact with Michigan voters, please reach me at dghanem@communitychange.org.
