With a decisive midterm election just around the corner it is imperative that everyone vote. However, it is not enough for us to just vote this coming November, and then again in 2020 and call it a job well done. That is why the NAACP is pushing forward a campaign to target low and moderate propensity voters in a bid to increase and maximize the Black vote for all future elections. “In order to become a potent political force, the Black community must build a political infrastructure that will vote in both Presidential and non-Presidential elections and at all levels of the ballot,” NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson said in a press release. “If all eligible members of the community rise to the challenge and vote, we control the fate and future of our community. Stated more directly, we must vote in far greater numbers because our lives, our very existence depends on it.” The NAACP partnered with GSSA, LLC, a Colordo-based data analytics group, to map out metrics for the Black community to impact the elections, and to also look into how voter registration equality, as well as Black voter turnout in battleground states. The organizations have also pinpointed that, while increasing voter turnout is good, it is equally important to put new emphasis on leadership, discipline, organization structure, planning, coordination, implementation and monitoring progress. “The initiative expects to achieve success through the use and intersection of four major strategies: the use of data-based targeting of infrequent voters and eligible but unregistered citizens; creativity in relational organizing – that is, friends talking to friends and more; especially strong coordination between and among all allied organizations; and research-based communications – why do Black voters vote or not?,” NAACP Vice President of Civic Engagement, Jamal Watkins explained. The NAACP is also looking to bring in other allied organization, including members of the faith community and advocacy groups, in order to further the campaign and reach and empower Black voters. “The NAACP has always been in the leadership in the struggle to improve the lives of Black people in America,” said Johnson. “Now it’s time for us to bring our activist roots to the forefront as strong and effective advocates and creators of change in addressing civil rights and social justice concerns of the Black community. In the current social, political and policy environment, change will only happen in our democracy through voting our interests and our conscience. The Black community can only improve its political and economic situation in America by becoming a potent political force.”