{"id":2273223,"date":"2024-06-21T06:12:02","date_gmt":"2024-06-21T10:12:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/we-have-the-army-pennsylvania-grassroots-eager-for-direction-as-rnc-trains-poll-watchers\/"},"modified":"2024-06-21T06:20:55","modified_gmt":"2024-06-21T10:20:55","slug":"we-have-the-army-pennsylvania-grassroots-eager-for-direction-as-rnc-trains-poll-watchers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/we-have-the-army-pennsylvania-grassroots-eager-for-direction-as-rnc-trains-poll-watchers\/","title":{"rendered":"Pennsylvania Grassroots Ready for Guidance as RNC Prepares Poll Watchers"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fwe-have-the-army-pennsylvania-grassroots-eager-for-direction-as-rnc-trains-poll-watchers%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2273223&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>In Newtown, Pennsylvania, \u2062a gathering filled with American flags and \u201cTrump 2024\u201d \u2064signs marked the second stop on \u2063the Republican National Committee&#8217;s \u201cProtect The Vote\u201d tour. The\u200d event attracted a passionate \u200ccrowd enthusiastic about former President Donald Trump\u2062 and the GOP&#8217;s efforts \u200din poll watching \u2063for upcoming elections. Dwayne \u200dMcDavitt, president of the Pennsylvania\u2064 Bikers for Trump\u200c chapter,\u2062 exemplified \u2063the proactive involvement of volunteers, who contribute in varied ways including organizing bike \u200brides to support Trump and the \u200bRepublican cause.<\/p>\n<p>Prominent figures like \u200dRNC Chairman Michael Whatley and Co-Chair Lara Trump spoke at the\u200c event, emphasizing the importance of poll watching. Local figures, such as Andy Meehan from RightForBucks and Keith Hoffman, who works with PAC WinAgain,\u200c highlighted their grassroots activities aimed at voter\u200d turnout and\u2062 expressed a desire for \u200bmore guidance and \u200bsupport\u200b from national leadership.<\/p>\n<p>Discussions at the event also touched on strategies like mail-in voting and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/new-hampshire-attorney-general-accuses-national-democrats-of-voter-suppression-over-primary-decisions\/\" title=\"NH AG accuses national Dems of voter suppression in primary decisions\">direct voter engagement<\/a>, with participants sharing their experiences and aspirations for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/coca-cola-ceo-condemns-ga-voting-law-amid-boycott-pressure\/\" title=\"Coca-Cola CEO condemns Ga. voting law amid boycott pressure\">ensuring <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/ga-poll-watcher-it-expert-non-trump-supporter-affidavit-sudden-surge-of-20000-mail-in-votes-for-biden-in-early-hours-on-nov\/\" title=\"GA Poll Watcher, IT Expert, Non-Trump Supporter Affidavit: Sudden Surge of 20,000 Mail-In-Votes For Biden In Early Hours On Nov\">election integrity<\/a><\/a> and GOP success. The RNC conveyed \u2063its commitment to organizing \u2064and\u2063 deploying trained volunteers effectively for upcoming \u2063electoral activities, reflecting ongoing efforts to adapt and refine \u2063their strategies based on past experiences and feedback from active members\u2064 like the\u200d crowd at Newtown.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"article-content\">\n<p>NEWTOWN, Penn. \u2014 The sound of 70s and 80s classic rock hits floating down the hallway toward the elevator bank helped guide me into a room filled with American flags and Trump 2024 signage. Within an hour, that same room would be oozing with palpable enthusiasm for former President Donald Trump, in the second stop along the Republican National Committee\u2019s \u201cProtect The Vote\u201d tour.<\/p>\n<p>Having arrived a bit early, I made my way over to a man who introduced himself as Dwayne McDavitt, president of the Pennsylvania Bikers for Trump chapter. What was a well-oiled biker doing at the RNC\u2019s training for poll observers?<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2-long d-flex justify-content-center\" style=\"margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center; \" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-1013959588\">\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-1379703300879-0\" class=\"mb-30\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-df3fc826b20070fb272aac3bf7b1bc22 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-2\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-df3fc826b20070fb272aac3bf7b1bc22\"><\/div>\n<p>\u201cI do what I can do,\u201d McDavitt told me, explaining that he helps \u201corganize bike rides, anything\u201d to help Trump and other Republicans win. This type of eagerness to get involved pulsated through the room as it quickly filled with supporters.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Spirited Stop on the Tour<\/h2>\n<p>Dozens of enthusiastic Pennsylvanians came out to Newtown on Tuesday to hear RNC Chairman Michael Whatley, Co-Chair Lara Trump, and others speak about poll watching. It\u2019s part of the RNC\u2019s initiative to \u201cProtect the Vote.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of those men, Andy Meehan, is the founder of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.rightforbucks.com\/about\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">RightForBucks<\/a>, a grassroots organization focused on turning out Bucks County voters. Meehan explained that his group is \u201cactually doing a lot of the efforts on our own\u201d to turn voters out but that he was \u201clooking for more direction from the [Trump] campaign.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image aligncenter size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters body-xs m-0 text-start\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-4\">Andy Meehan<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-8\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span>Brianna Lyman       <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI wanted to hear from the leaders of the campaign because there hasn\u2019t been any activity from the campaign that I know of yet in Bucks County,\u201d Meehan said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got a big army of door knockers, poll workers, committee people. We\u2019d like to hear what the Trump campaign is going to be doing, you know, as far as outreach to unregistered voters or the mail-in ballot people, all these kinds of things they have resources to drive that we don\u2019t. But we have all the people, <em>we have the army<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-7910e120d362d0dea95bc2441da7d739 fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-6\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-7910e120d362d0dea95bc2441da7d739\"><\/div>\n<p>Meehan wasn\u2019t the only one expressing a desire for more direction from national leadership.<\/p>\n<p>Keith Hoffman is a Bucks County committeeman who also works with <a href=\"https:\/\/winagain.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">WinAgain<\/a>, a Pennsylvania-based PAC focusing on increasing Republicans\u2019 use of mail-in ballots. Hoffman explained he is personally involved in campaigning and door-knocking for Republicans.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJust last week, we sent out another 1,000-2,000 letters to other mail-in voters in Pennsylvania and then this week and next week we will be knocking on their doors to get them to sign up,\u201d Hoffman said, echoing the need to focus on get-out-the-vote efforts. <\/p>\n<p>But like Meehan, Hoffman added he had not seen much involvement from the RNC up until this point. <\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-6541984a4e61c292fbb9e10e2779aade fdrlst__b89e9-paragraph-10\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-6541984a4e61c292fbb9e10e2779aade\"><\/div>\n<p>Joe Curcio, also a fellow Bucks County committeeman, told me that Republicans \u201chave the numbers\u201d to win back the state \u2014 it\u2019s just a matter of getting people to actually cast a ballot. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s our job to take it upon ourselves to go out and help\u201d turnout Republicans, Curcio said.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters body-xs m-0 text-start\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-4\">Joe Curcio<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-8\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span>Brianna Lyman       <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cMaybe they can\u2019t make it on Election Day, truck drivers for instance, they\u2019re with us, but if you\u2019re not in the state on Election Day, how will you vote?\u201d Curcio said.<\/p>\n<p>Curcio also emphasized the need for personal contact with voters. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI would say mail-in ballots and personal contact, there are a lot of people that want to be heard from, and unless someone goes out and talks to them, they might not get out on Election Day,\u201d Curcio said. <\/p>\n<p>Rusty Stadler is a former independent voter who signed up through the RNC last month to be a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-real-clear-politics-say-they-never-called-pennsylvania\/\" title=\"BREAKING: Real Clear Politics -- SAY THEY NEVER CALLED PENNSYLVANIA\">poll watcher<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m hoping to see how I can contribute to make sure elections are proper,\u201d Stadler told me, at times having to speak up so that his voice wouldn\u2019t be drowned out by the dozens of lively supporters huddled together in the room. \u201cIf the election is proper, Trump would have to win. And so I just want to see to it, anyway that I can be involved in this process.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Stadler explained he has already taken the RNC\u2019s Zoom training for poll watching \u2014 which meant he also had to formally register as a Republican. <\/p>\n<p>The RNC previously offered poll watcher training via Zoom during the 2022 midterms. Noah Boyd, an event-goer who also happens to be running for state assembly, told me that he took the RNC\u2019s training via Zoom in 2022 but was never actually deployed during the election.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters body-xs m-0 text-start\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-4\">Noah Boyd<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-8\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span>Brianna Lyman       <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cA few years ago in 2022 I went through RNC training for poll watching, the RNC of course never reached out to me about it so I never actually used it. More recently in 2023 I was able to observe the polls while working with RightForBucks,\u201d Boyd said. The RNC told The Federalist that this cycle, their poll-watching efforts are backed by more resources, staff, and volunteers. It\u2019s also conducting \u201cweekly virtual trainings for volunteers,\u201d an RNC representative said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think in 2022 the RNC was ineffective, not good at following up,\u201d Boyd said, adding the RNC\u2019s Protect the Vote tour is also the first time he\u2019s seen the RNC on the ground for this election cycle. <\/p>\n<p>I later asked Whatley how the RNC would translate their recruitment efforts to deployment efforts, noting concerns such as Boyd\u2019s. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cYeah so that is really, truly, part of what is being talked about upstairs,\u201d Whatley said. \u201cWe have staff that have already been deployed to Pennsylvania, both on the political side as well as on our election integrity teams, and we\u2019re gonna make sure we\u2019re working with the state party and with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pennsylvania-republicans-take-on-democrats-early-voting-gambit-with-new-bank-your-vote-campaign\/\" title=\"Pennsylvania GOP counters Dems' early voting move with 'Bank Your Vote' campaign.\">county parties<\/a> to make sure that we\u2019re getting people properly put into different shifts.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u2018Maximum Efficiency\u2019: Attendees Satisfied With Poll Training<\/h2>\n<p>After Whatley and Trump gave their speeches, the media were ushered outside for a brief press conference and were not permitted to watch the training.<\/p>\n<p>Boyd, in a follow-up interview via phone after the training, said the session did include mention from the RNC that they would be organizing and following up with individuals who were at the training session.<\/p>\n<p>The session, according to Boyd, involved three individuals who explained the process of poll watching. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve done similar training in the past so none of the information was too surprising to me but I\u2019m very glad they were doing that and that they would be getting people involved because this is exactly what we need to be focusing on with election integrity,\u201d Boyd said. \u201cWe need to have eyes and hands involved in every part of the election process.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Some of the topics discussed during the training were duties of a poll watcher and how to report any issues to the RNC on Election Day, Boyd said. The RNC confirmed to The Federalist that any issues on Election Day can be \u201creported immediately to our statewide hotline\u201d where a \u201crapid response\u201d would be provided. <\/p>\n<p>Hoffman, who has been a poll watcher in the past, emphasized those findings in a follow-up phone interview as well. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been lucky at my polls, we have some really good patriots at the polls, we haven\u2019t had anything go down and we all get along,\u201d Hoffman said, \u201cSo I wasn\u2019t aware of everything that I should be watching out for so it was definitely [useful training] for November so that when I go there at 6:00 a.m., I can verify these things. Before, I was never verifying, I was just assuming they were done correctly because I didn\u2019t know any better. So now I know.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">\n<div class=\"row no-gutters body-xs m-0 text-start\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-4\">Keith Hoffman<\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-md-8\">\n<div class=\"article-thumbnail-caption d-flex align-items-center justify-content-md-end label-xs mt-15\">         <i class=\"mdi mdi-camera me-10\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i>         <span class=\"visually-hidden\">Image Credit<\/span>Brianna Lyman       <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Curcio praised the session as \u201cvery informative.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c[The RNC] did a very efficient job with the way they went over it,\u201d Curcio said. \u201cA lot of times if you go to a seminar or a class there\u2019s a lot of dilly-dallying, but this was maximum efficiency in my opinion.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI happen to work the polls every year so I\u2019m certified and I thought this session was still very useful to me,\u201d Curcio said. Curcio also said he\u2019s hopeful that with the new RNC leadership, some issues that plagued the 2020 election inside the polling centers wouldn\u2019t happen again. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"fdrlst__b89e9-c1150cd70b2263a9bbfa1228f6034bf1 fdrlst__b89e9-after-post-content\" id=\"fdrlst__b89e9-c1150cd70b2263a9bbfa1228f6034bf1\"><\/div>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator\">    \t\t\t\t\t   \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NEWTOWN, Penn. \u2014 Classic rock from the 70s and 80s led me to a room adorned with American flags and Trump 2024 signs. Within an hour, the room brimmed with palpable enthusiasm for former President Donald Trump at his second campaign stop<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":2273224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/IMG_6345-scaled-e1718907261866.jpeg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[546],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2273223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-federalist"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/IMG_6345-scaled-e1718907261866.jpeg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2273223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/74"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2273223"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2273223\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2273224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2273223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2273223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2273223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}