Voter ID. We can do it.

They held an election, and no one came: Just 16.6 percent of the registered voters in Worcester went to the polls in the city’s most recent election.

We could talk about voter apathy and the waning of civic responsibility. But for the Choice community, the implications run deeper.

The reality is that low voter turnout favors the status quo.

In the Worcester election, for example, every single incumbent running was returned to office.

We have a presidential election coming up this November. If we don’t do something about voter turnout (and soon), we will be handing George W. Bush another four years in which to attack women and reproductive rights.

In an interview published in the November 2003 issue of The American Prospect, Bill Clinton insisted that the Democrats “are in every race,” including the race for the presidency. The key to winning: “In 2004 . . . we have to improve our turnout to their level” and “we’ve got to fight.”*

Yes, it is important to support a challenger. By all means, continue to send money to pro-Choice organizations. But most important, help us get the voters to the polls.

To do that, we must work on two fronts: voter registration and voter identification. Right now, we are looking for ways to help the League of Women Voters and other organizations that already are running voter registration drives. But when it comes to voter identification, the Wachusett Coalition for

Choice is an expert. For years, the Coalition’s lists of pro-Choice voters in

Worcester County have helped win elections for pro-Choice candidates in a number of close races for state office.

We know that voter identification works. Here’s how:

We intend to concentrate on several local races, targeting races where pro-

Choice incumbents are threatened or where anti-Choice incumbents need to be replaced. We plan to purchase current lists of voters. Then we plan to call every one of the names on those lists to determine where each voter stands on reproductive freedom. Every identified pro-Choice voter will be added to our mailing list until the election, and we will pass each name along to the local candidates we’re helping.**

Beginning on February 1 and continuing through the end of May, we are going to do phone-banking every Sunday evening from 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. We need each of you (and your cell phone) to volunteer one evening a month. We will provide voter lists, phone numbers, and a simple script to follow. We also need captains to offer a kitchen table and snacks to a group of five or six callers one Sunday evening a month.

It’s easy. It’s fun. And it’s effective.

To volunteer, please call Marsha at 508 839 2012. And send a check if you can to help defray the cost of the lists.

We can do this.