No "What Ifs" Allowed

October 29, 2008

No "What Ifs" Allowed

Below the Belt: A Column by NOW PAC Chair Kim Gandy

Let's face it, you're probably not undecided at this point. If you're reading this column, you don't need another comparison of the candidates' voting records and policy positions. You don't need to be warned about the fate of the Supreme Court and women's reproductive rights. You don't need to be reminded about the candidates' efforts (or lack thereof) on issues like violence against women and equal pay.

In my estimation, however, there is one caution that feminists definitely need to hear: Do not, I repeat, DO NOT pay attention to the polls.

Okay, for a few precious moments you can revel in the apparent trend in favor of Obama-Biden and the dozens of women-friendly candidates for Congress. Now stop -- that's long enough!

We cannot afford to get complacent. All those new registered voters we keep hearing so much about -- will every one of them turn out to vote? Or, since things look so good, will they avoid the long lines and let everyone else take care of business? Or maybe those who have stood in line election after election might be tempted to sit this one out, thinking the conclusion is foregone?

Reject this line of thinking immediately. Your vote and the vote of every other women's rights supporter is crucial in creating a margin that can't be denied, stolen, challenged or ignored.

Each and every one of us needs to work our butts off until the final moments. None of us wants to wake up on Nov. 5 to another 2000 or another 2004. Remember, those elections were decided by a single state. Could that state be yours? Even if your state is as blue as they come, nobody wants to wonder . . . what if I had done just a little more? What if I had just logged in and made a few more calls to undecided voters in Ohio or Virginia that last weekend . . .

And I'm not just talking about getting out the vote for Obama-Biden. We need to elect a pro-woman Congress, with a filibuster-proof Senate, and we must defeat dangerous ballot measures in states like California, Colorado, South Dakota and Florida.

Which brings me to another concern -- if Obama is reported as the likely winner before the polls have closed in the West, will progressive voters in the Mountain and Pacific time zones break open the champagne instead of going to the polls? If they do, we risk losing the critical ballot measures on abortion and marriage in Colorado, South Dakota and California.

What can you do? Here's an easy one -- send emails to everyone you know reminding them to vote, especially if they live in a swing state. And even if you assume they're voting for your candidate, make your best pitch anyway and encourage them to call you if they want to talk about it. Then, move on to volunteering with a campaign - make phone calls, knock on doors, drive voters to the polls, whatever you are capable of doing. In addition, I want to urge you to take this weekend to volunteer with Obama or a local campaign. Heck, take off Monday and Tuesday if you can afford it -- you don't want to miss the fun and excitement!

NOW PAC has specific action ideas and links posted online. And if you do just one thing from that list, and then one thing more, and then something else, and I do one or two or three more things, heck, we could push this election right over the top.

As you track Tuesday's returns -- on TV, the radio, the internet, your cell phone -- into the wee hours of the next morning, you'll want to be able to say to yourself proudly: This was my election. I have no regrets, I did everything I could.