Greg Rodriguez for State Chair

Along with the strengthening of what we have relied on in the past, the implementation of better technology will go a long way in assisting our original methods of developing the grassroots and will create a new and powerful tool for the future development and maintenance of grassroots democracy. The need for this has been so critical and evident in the Presidential campaigns of 2004, not just for fundraising but, perhaps more importantly, for volunteer and supporter recruitment.

The first step in technology development would be to address our walking lists and incorporate our PCO's feedback into those walking lists. There are fantastic programs available to enhance the process we utilize now. We must develop our technology to get the most out of our PCOs who do the walking and talk to the voters. We must utilize their work and feedback to our very best advantage. We have the ground force (PCOs), and with the compliment of a powerful technology system, we can use the large volume and quality of data to capture and attract more grassroots involvement. This will also be a tremendous advantage for our candidates, campaign committees, and friends in issue advocacy work across the state. The Party must also establish clear and consistent rules for public and candidate access to data so that everyone will know from whom, how and when they can access this vital information.

This type of technological system will also enable the Democratic Party in Washington State to have a greater impact year round. Instead of using walking lists and databases at election time, we can become a major factor in influencing ongoing legislation activities. I cannot tell you how many times I have heard elected officials say, "but we don't hear from the Democrats on this issue." By creating database systems that not only tell us how often a person votes or how they are graded, we can utilize our PCOs to help build a system that tracks issues and the stated priorities of our voters across the state. We can then tailor our message to certain segments. We can use this technology to work with labor, choice groups, environmental groups and all our constituencies to affect policy and increase the communication between the voter and their elected representatives. The Republicans have been masters at this and we can beat them at that game.

We must also develop our web presence on all levels of the State Party. As King County Chair, I have realized the benefits of and the desire of voters for having as much information on the web as possible. This was especially true during the caucus and convention cycles, and continues to be true for political events, volunteer opportunities, and information on registration and voting. We should implement technology at the State Party level that can be utilized by all members of the Party. This will enable local jurisdictions to save time and money and to have a much more coordinated, technology-delivered message statewide.