Scott Powers
A coalition of three groups is urging African-American voters to “make a plan to vote” in the Nov. 8 election, with a $20,000 ad buy in Florida’s black press and on the internet.
The initial ads unveiled Tuesday by the coalition of the National Congress of Black Women, Stop The Violence & Embrace, and For Our Future, makes no partisan or issue position statements. They depict black voters casting votes, with the message, “We’ve made history before — let’s do it again!”
The ads then urge people to vote, and offers a web address — makeaplantovote.com — detailing how they can arrange to vote by mail, early vote, or vote at the polls on Election Day.
While there is no partisan tone to the ads, a news release from the coalition notes the comment about making history is a reference to record-breaking black voter turnout in the 2008 and 2012 elections when President Barack Obama was elected and re-elected.
The news release states the coalition wants to encourage African-Americans to vote “in order to protect President Obama’s accomplishments and continue moving our country forward addressing issues critical to their communities.”
The most recent voter registration data from the Florida Secretary of State’s office shows 80 percent of black voters are registered Democrats, and just four percent are Republicans. The remainder are either independent voters or members of third parties.
Ads will begin appearing in the weekly papers and on their websites this week with additional creative to rotate in over the coming weeks.
The National Congress of Black Women is placing ads in The Jacksonville Free Press, the Miami Times, the Westside Gazette in Miami, and the Florida Sentinel Bulletin in Tampa. Stop The Violence & Embrace will be placing ads in the Florida Courier, a statewide publication.
“We want every Florida voter to know how incredibly powerful they are,” Jack Williams, founder of Stop the Violence & Embrace, stated in a news release. “Our state will most likely decide the election, so we need everyone to make sure their voice is heard through vote by mail, early vote, or on Election Day.”
