A pair of politicians seeking a Metro Council seat in southeastern Baton Rouge have turned to the humblest of campaign materials to push their message across, though they’re using different styles of postcards as Election Day approaches.
It costs 35 cents or less to mail a postcard to a specific household, depending on bulk rates available. Hitting each of the 21,744 registered voters in District 8 would cost less than $8,000. Targeting just voter residences would cost even less.
Incumbent Denise Amoroso has gone glossy, packing both sides of a 6-by-11-inch postcard with bullet points touting her conservative credentials. Each bears a Baton Rouge postmark.
Challenger Brendan Csaposs’ messages come handwritten and with stamps canceled in faraway places. The feel is decidedly grassroots, even if it makes one wonder why someone in Hawaii or Washington is interested in Baton Rouge politics.
“Aloha. I’m writing from Hawaii to ask you to vote because we’re all in this together!” an unidentified writer pleas with the “Crucial Voter” in the Carrington Place subdivision. A writer from Yakima, Washington, sends a similar message to an “Awesome Voter,” saying “a balanced Council will see Baton Rouge at its best.”
Republicans currently hold a 7-5 edge on the Metro Council. Should Csaposs win, the panel would be split evenly politically.
Csaposs is benefiting from the work of postcardstovoters.org, a Georgia-based group of volunteers that backs Democrats by mailing postcards to like-minded voters in the days leading to an election.
It has done similar work for candidates in other states. According to its website it notes that it started two years ago and now has 59,000 volunteers in every state.
“Postcards to Voters are friendly, handwritten reminders from volunteers to targeted voters giving Democrats a winning edge in close, key races coast to coast,” it says. It did not return telephone calls seeking comment.
