Rochester agency Partners + Napier want you to vote in the midterm elections, regardless of where you stand on the issues.
To that effect, the agency launched a campaign entitled, “The Vote Needs U.” The campaign landing page highlights a number of issues which are, to varying degrees, divisive, with the “u” missing from such phrases as “Legalize Marijuana?,” “Reproductive Rights?” and “Gun Control?” along with the message, “Wherever you stand, the vote needs U.”
Whether you view the “U” concept as a bit gimmicky, the sentiment helps support the non-partisan nature of the campaign, which aims to drive viewers to vote in the midterms on November 6. To that end, the site also provides links for visitors to register to vote and find their local polling places.
In recent years, voter turn out for midterm elections has been dismal, with only around 37 percent of eligible voters turning out for the 2014 midterms. Although 2018 marks a particularly contentious midterm election, voter turnout is still likely to be down significantly from the 2016 presidential election, a phenomenon Partners + Napier’s campaign and myriad other voter turnout efforts hope to address.
“This campaign is built on the insight that voting is one of the most personal things we can do. Voting literally makes your opinions, values and beliefs count,” Partners + Napier executive creative director Pete VonDerLinn said in a statement. “So instead of simply reminding people to vote, which historically doesn’t get people to the polls, we’re centering the campaign around hot-button issues that will provoke Americans to pull levers in the voting booth on November 6 and truly affect change.”