\u201cI love that a group of people who want changes in Congress or any public office seat can go out there and hand-make postcards to send to potential voters,\u201d Maddy tells Teen Vogue. \u201cI want people to vote.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The party Maddy went to was inspired by Postcards to Voters, an effort started by Georgia resident Tony McMullin, aka \u201cTony the Democrat.\u201d Tony, who works in banking and heads up Postcards to Voters on the side, started the group in March 2017 to get the word out about local elections via snail mail to registered voters. He shared five addresses apiece with five volunteers on Facebook, who then wrote and mailed postcards to potential voters in Jon Ossoff\u2019s Georgia congressional race. Word of his efforts quickly spread, and one month later, Tony had 1,200-plus volunteers nationwide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Today, Postcards to Voters counts more than 20,000 volunteers, spanning every state (including Alaska and Hawaii), who have written more than half a million postcards to voters in dozens of key, close elections. Tony uses publicly available lists of registered Democrats in districts that have elections coming up and shares those addresses \u2014 plus guideline scripts highlighting the date of the election, the Democratic candidate\u2019s name, and a few key facts \u2014 with volunteers like Maddy and her group. These local and special elections are often on random Tuesdays, and most voters don’t even know they’re happening \u2014 unless they get a nice, handwritten reminder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not only is the initiative valuable to potential voters, but it\u2019s also an impactful way for the under-18 set to get involved in supporting candidates they admire, from anywhere. \u201cWriting postcards is something even the youngest among us can immediately do,\u201d Tony tells Teen Vogue. \u201cThey have more time and, some might say, more creativity for this craftivism.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And just as it did early on, word about Postcards to Voters continues to reach many of those young volunteers in various ways. Spring Hill, Tennessee, resident Maggie McLane,18, found out about Postcards to Voters from the Strong Women Action Network (SWAN), a civic and social action group she\u2019s been involved with since Donald Trump\u2019s election. Jane Laurence, 11, a sixth grader in Clemson, South Carolina, tells Teen Vogue her mom introduced her to the effort. Ally Barrett, 17, from Norwell, Massachusetts, heard about it from a friend; while 14-year-old San Franciscan Piya Rao learned of Tony\u2019s group via her aunt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From writing parties with snacks and art supplies, like the ones Maggie and Ally host with friends, to Jane\u2019s solo postcarding sessions in front of Stranger Things, these girls are flexing their political muscles with every 35-cent stamp they affix. And while they follow scripts provided by Postcards to Voters, they also add personal touches. \u201cIf the person I\u2019m campaigning for has a website or a hashtag, I\u2019ll write that on the front,\u201d Jane tells Teen Vogue. \u201cI also like to sign them with \u2018Thanks, Jane from S.C.\u2019 to prove that an actual person wrote it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maggie gets creative with the design. \u201cI like to draw on mine and put words of encouragement like, \u2018Every vote counts!\u2019\u201d she says. \u201cI feel like my efforts can help get more people to the polls for candidates I believe in.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n