With a close contest for Russ Feingold’s U.S. Senate seat and polls showing Democrat Tom Barrett trailing in the race for governor, party leaders are hitting the streets and phone lines this weekend to try and rally voters to their candidates.
Democratic Party of Wisconsin Chairman Mike Tate says over 4,000 volunteers will be out knocking on doors and making phone calls in the final days before next Tuesday’s election.
Tate believes it’s one of the largest get out the vote efforts in state history, and one of the biggest in the country right now. He says the effort will demonstrate that the so-called “enthusiasm gap” between Democrats and Republicans is a myth.
Republicans have been predicting a major turnout by GOP voters for the midterm elections. Tate argues though that Republicans don’t have any more votes to dig up, and motivating more Democrats to get out on Election Day could be key to winning.
Earlier this month, the state Republican Party announced it had made over 1.5 million phone calls reaching out to voters.