Alison Park-Douglas - Bringing my Community to Obama

At-Large National Delegate Candidate

One thing is clear- we are going to send an amazing delegation to Denver for Obama. As we have gotten to know one another, it has been obvious that each of us is qualified, experienced, and passionate about Barack Obama.

So why should you choose me to represent Washington State in Denver?

The answer is the extensive, nationwide network of people that I can mobilize.

For example, less than a week after I launched my campaign website,VoteAlison.com, I had over 200 people sign on as supporters.

A network like this isn't something that can be done overnight. I've been active online since 1992, and it has taken me years to build this kind of social network. I've had an online business for 10 years that now has a mailing list of over 7,500 opt-in subscribers. In addition, I have a blog that is read by about 400 people regularly, and an additional 3,000 or so contacts that I can reach through other networks like MySpace and Facebook.

Each of my contacts has their own networks. For example, if I send an email out to 400 of my contacts, and they each send it out to 400 of their contacts, then I've reached 160,000 people across the country in just a few minutes. I've been using this reach to get these people mobilized to act locally, to go out and raise money, canvass their neighborhoods, and register voters.

Throughout the nomination process, I've been using this far-reaching network to build up support for Obama, get out the vote in primaries and caucuses across the country, raise money for the campaign, and encourage my network to volunteer for Obama. However, now that the nomination is secure, I've enthusiastically turned my attention to voter registration.

Recently I met with the Obama campaign, and they assured me that voter registration should be our top priority right now.

With the help of my community, I have made a commitment to register 1,000 new voters by November.

I'm using my extensive online network to get people registered to vote all across this country, including voters in many potential swing states like Pennsylvania, Florida, Michigan, Colorado, Ohio, New Hampshire, North and South Carolina, and others. My reach extends well beyond Washington to a lot of states where registering new Democrats will be really important for the November election.

If you elect me as a National Delegate, you will be adding an enormous amount of energy to this extensive network of people. You will allow my voice to carry much more weight with them. I will be the link between them and Obama, and having that sort of connection will make them feel much more involved with the Obama campaign and the Democratic Party.

Even if I'm not elected, I will continue to work hard on voter registration efforts, but if you do elect me, you'll be bringing thousands of people into a more active role in the Democratic Party, and that will pay off amazingly in new voter registrations across the country, and Obama's victory in November.

To find out more about me, or my campaign, please visit VoteAlison.com

Thank you for your time and support!

Alison Park-Douglas
VoteAlison.com




1. In what ways have you been instrumental in getting Obama nominated so far?

Throughout the entire nomination process, I was blogging regularly about Obama (my audience is around 400 regular viewers), detailing the specific policy differences between the candidates, and actively encouraging my nationwide network of contacts to attend their primaries or caucuses and vote for Obama. I donated the ad space in my business newsletter, which goes out to over 7,500 opt-in subscribers, to promoting Obama and encouraged my contacts to become more actively involved in politics. Through my actions, the network of Obama volunteers increased in many states beyond Washington.

I've only lived in Washington for the last 3 and 1/2 years, so this February was my first caucus. It was an amazing experience! While I'm normally a little bit shy, I was very excited about the prospect of being able to convince people to vote for Obama. I had done in-depth research on policy specifics ahead of time, so when it was time to give speeches, I stood up on a table and explained to the crowd the real differences between the Clinton and Obama healthcare plans. In the end, I managed to convince 7 undecideds, 2 Edwards supporters, 1 Kucinich supporter, and even 1 Clinton supporter to change their votes to Obama! Many others came up to me afterwards and thanked me for my speech, saying that it cleared up a lot of details about the healthcare issue for them. They also encouraged me to run as a Legislative District delegate, and that's what has set me on the path I'm on right now.

2. What do you plan to do going forward to ensure Obama gets elected?

Voter registration has become a very important part of my life. I recently met with the official Obama for America campaign who assured me that voter registration should be our top priority right now. With the help of my community, I have made a commitment to register 1,000 new voters by November. I will spend the next 5 months getting new Democrats registered to vote, and ready to deliver a stunning victory for Obama in November.

I'm taking a very active role in local voter registration efforts. Specifically, some of the areas that I’ve been focusing on are public events, such as Artwalk, Pike Place Market, and farmers markets. I’ve found these sorts of events to be very effective for getting registrations. My supporters and I have been doing voter registration multiple times per week.

In addition, I'm also activating my extensive online network to get people registered to vote all across this country, including voters in many potential swing states like Pennsylvania, Florida, Michigan, Colorado, Ohio, New Hampshire, North and South Carolina, and others. My reach extends well beyond Washington to a lot of states where registering new Democrats will be really important for the November election.

My online efforts center on a "Rock the Vote" voter registration tool that allows people to fill voter registration forms online, print them out, and mail them in. It also allows me to track the people who register using my link, and gives me some statistics on their registration, such as which state they live in.

3. What unique contribution have you made as a delegate that would make the delegation stronger because of your participation in it?

One of the important things that sets me apart from the other candidates is the incredible network of people that I can mobilize. Extensive networking, both online and offline, is one of my greatest strengths, and I that's something that no other candidate can offer at the scale that I'm talking about. Less than a week after I launched my personal campaign website [VoteAlison.com], I had over 200 people sign on as supporters. I've had an online business for 10 years that now has a mailing list of over 7,500 opt-in subscribers for my weekly updates. In addition, I have a blog that is read by about 400 people regularly, and an additional 3,000 or so contacts that I can reach through other networks like MySpace and Facebook.

My network of supporters is already getting involved in voter registration in each of their states, but if I'm elected as a National Delegate, my voice will carry much more weight with them. They will feel like one of their own will be representing them in Denver, and that will inspire them to become even more active in the Obama campaign, as well as other Democratic Party activities that I bring to their attention. If I'm elected, it will bring an enormous amount of energy to an extensive network of people.I will be the link between them and Obama, and having that sort of connection will make them feel much more involved in the process, and willing to work for his election.

This vast network is what I can offer our delegation, and one of the things that really distinguishes me from the other candidates.

4. In what way have you "challenged the status quo and pushed for excellence" rather than "continuing to embrace and accept 'politics as usual'"?

One of Obama’s unique qualities is his ability to mobilize people online, this is one way that he’s been changing the status quo. I’ve been inspired to follow his lead. Prior to the Congressional District Caucuses, I pushed for excellence and broke with the status quo by creating a campaign website [VoteAlison.com] to spread the word about Obama and my campaign, and to register new voters. I was surprised that so few of the other WA State Delegates had an online presence, and I think I was the only one with an entire devoted website. Creating the website was a lot of work, but I had an amazing team of supporters to help me, and it's a medium that I'm comfortable with. I would love to see future campaigns become less dependent on paper products and more friendly to the environment.

In addition, I've spurned 'politics as usual' by reaching out to the other At-Large Candidates, ostensibly my competition, to invite them to an event that I hosted on June 4th with some of the WA National Delegates. I thought that by taking the initiative to organize this event, I would be helping the other At-Large Candidates have a more visible presence to the National Delegates, and I'd be giving the National Delegates the ability to make a more informed decision about who to vote for. All of the other At-Large Candidates who attended told me that they saw this as a great opportunity for them to network, and they were grateful that I organized it.

However, my biggest break with the status quo is that I represent the huge numbers of Obama supporters who are actively engaging in politics for the first time. As a delegate, I'll be able to inspire and activate this community of people - and the thousands more I will reach through online organizing on blogs, websites and mailing lists. Sending me to Denver will harness the energy and creativity of people who have been on the sidelines of the political process for too long. Your vote will help me keep this network of people engaged between now and the general election. And it's my goal to continue to keep them involved in the years to come.

5. How do you plan to use what you experience and learn in Denver leading up to the general election?

I'll return from Denver fired up and ready to do more voter registration and then get out the vote in November!

In Denver, I'll use all of the online networking tools at my disposal (blogging, Facebook, Flickr, Twitter, etc.) to keep my nationwide community of supporters involved and engaged in the process while I'm there. I see this as a great way to educate people about the nomination process. Most of the public will only be aware of the main event, but I’ll use this opportunity to get my network excited through the entire week, and give them an inside look at how things are happening.

I'll also use my time in Denver to make new contacts, exchange voter registration ideas, and learn from the other delegates. It will be amazing to have so many devoted Obama supporters gathered together in one place. We’ll have so much to learn from each other!

Even if I'm not elected, I will continue to work hard on voter registration efforts, but if you do elect me, you'll be bringing thousands of people into a more active role in the Democratic Party, and that will pay off amazingly in new voter registrations, and Obama's victory in November.

I hope that you will support me as an At-Large National Delegate at the State Convention.

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