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The phone rings and the voice on the other end identifies himself or herself as a volunteer with the Democrats. You may be asked your opinion on the upcoming elections....are you likely to vote one way or the other? Do you know much about the democrat candidates for state and national races; are you familiar with their party’s philosophies?

If you are an “undecided” or swing voter you could very well get one of these tele-visits from a volunteer working out of the DFL phone center in North Branch.

The state DFL opened 16 of these centers recently and the North Branch site is at Pecan Street, in a small strip mall by the AmericInn and Perkins. It’s easy to find from the numerous DFL candidates’ campaign signs in the facade windows.

Coordinating the local activity are Amanda Abress and A.J. Duerr.

Abress said volunteer activity will continue out of this office until fall. Anyone who wants to come participate in all levels of campaign support can contact 651-674-0614 or call the DFL main office at 651-269-8077.

The goal for this group of volunteers is telephoning activity targeted toward reaching citizens that have previously not been one-party voters.

The 16 phone bank sites are coordinating what each is doing and who’s being contacted to avoid overlapping effort and to not intrude on people.

The aim is to build a base of people likely to vote and then to educate wanting to learn more about the DFL candidates. In a news release DFL Party Chair Mike Erlandson explained that this year’s organizational effort is the largest in DFL history, “...and signals an unprecedented level of energy and activism.”

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