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A Comprehensive Campaign Approach

  • The Human Rights Campaign brought a unique combination of resources, access and experience to the 2008 election cycle.
  • HRC leveraged its muscle to reach millions of supporters in the “Year to Win” campaign.
  • HRC’s Year to Win campaign invested more than $7 million in an unprecedented effort to ensure that we elect a fair-minded president, protect and increase the number of the fair-minded lawmakers in both chambers of Congress, elect new fair-minded leadership to select state legislative chambers and beat back discriminatory ballot measures.
  • Organized more than 40 candidate fundraising member events across the country.
  • HRC mobilized thousands of its members, from general members to our largest donors, as hard-working volunteers in communities across the nation. They rolled up their sleeves and participated in strategic campaign operations of endorsed candidates and ballot measure campaigns.
  • We ran a comprehensive campaign thanks to our structure and resources:
    • HRC’s PAC, which contributed more than $1 million to House and Senate candidates
    • Strong national grassroots structure
    • Sophisticated media strategy
    • Fundraising expertise
    • Staff and volunteer leadership presence on the ground
    • State PACs, which contributed more than $4 million to state legislative candidates and the California ballot campaign.

 

Online Community

HRC promoted the following resources to more than 900,000 members of its online community:

A special website devoted to LGBT election issues: www.hrc.org/yeartowin

  • A side-by-side comparison of McCain’s and Obama’s positions on key LGBT equality issues
  • A candidate guide released in June
  • Two reports on McCain’s anti-LGBT record
  • HRC’s 2008 Congressional Scorecard was released, rating members of Congress on their support for issues of LGBT equality
  • Five issues of a national election-focused online newsletter
  • Easy opportunities to contribute to Obama and key endorsees through online fundraising program

 

Campaign College

Our unique “Campaign College” program trained 25 grassroots organizers to serve for 12 weeks on campaigns. HRC PAC then placed these volunteers in selected races.

 

 

 

 

Communication Strategies

HRC focused communication strategies to inform and moblize supporters in our nine key battleground states for the 2008 election: California, Florida, New York, Texas, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Arizona, Minnesota and Ohio. Each newsletter gave up-to-the-minute news on federal and state campaigns, as well as state ballot initiatives, volunteer opportunities and local events.

  • By Election Day, HRC had more than 70 staff members working on the ground in key elections. Staff worked in 25 states, including all four ballot initiative states. States with the most staff were Virginia (close to DC headquarters), California (ballot initiative), and Ohio (state and federal campaigns).
  • Our final online Get-Out-the-Vote efforts included an extensive 50-state-plus-D.C. strategy to move more than 725,000 HRC members and supporters to the polls on Election Day and provide information on HRC’s endorsed candidates, ballot initiatives and local polling information.
  • In a groundbreaking use of technology, HRC launched more than 30,000 text message reminders Election Day morning to HRC Mobile Action Network subscribers, HRC supporters and their friends and family as part of our extensive GOTV efforts.