Pennsylvania Republicans push new strategies to gain mail-in votes
Republicans in Pennsylvania are approaching the upcoming election with a new strategy: pushing for more mail-in voters within their party.
Election day is less than a month away, and for those campaigning, it's crucial both parties get every vote they can, especially in one of the most crucial battleground states; Pennsylvania.
CBS 21's TJ Anthony spoke with Lancaster County Republicans about their efforts to secure the win this election cycle.
They say they are working to put more boots on the ground, whether it's neighborhoods like the ones in Lancaster or rural areas.
It's an effort to draw in mail-in voters while making sure those that request a ballot send it back, a strategy that looks different than years past.
"I think there's one problem in PA for Republicans and that's mail-in voting," said Cliff Maloney, the CEO of Citizens Alliance and founder of the PA Chase Organization: an organization focused on driving up the number of GOP mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania.
Maloney said it's done so in phases. The first phase being speaking to Republicans not likely to vote and encouraging them to get a ballot sent to their home. The second phase focuses on Republicans or Independents they model as conservatives that have a ballot, motivating them to send it back.
"In 2020, Trump lost PA by 80,000 votes, but 141,000 requested a mail in ballot and never sent it back. Nobody talked to them, nobody went to their door," said Maloney.
Republicans are even renting out Airbnb rooms across the Commonwealth to hold 120 full-time "ballot chasers" who are working for the cause across the state.
"We're giving people housing, giving them gas cards going to get them trained up," said Maloney.
Maloney said the goal is to knock on 500,000 doors to chase Republican ballots.
So far, that number is around 259,300 door knocks.
"This is what the Democrats do. The Republicans are finally where we need to be," Maloney added.
As of October 16, the Department of State said around 1 million Democrats have applied for a mail-in ballot in Pennsylvania. Nearly 408,000 returned them. Meanwhile, around 478,000 Republicans applied for a mail-in ballot and about 152,585 have returned it.
"Our math shows we don't have to get to 51% of the mail-in vote. If we get to 33% it's a landslide win for Trump," said Maloney.
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There are different groups that do something similar in other states across the country.
Those groups can be found in battleground states like Michigan, North Carolina and Georgia.
