2024 Election: How Californians are getting out the vote in swing states

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Some Bay Area volunteers are heading to battleground states to help turn out the vote ahead of the Nov. 5 election.

Starting on Thursday, Beverly Debolski will pack her car and make the journey to Nevada, where she plans to canvas for Democrats and later volunteer as a poll watcher in the vital swing state.

She's one of dozens of California Democrats determined to put her time and energy where it counts: the battleground states.

Whether it's the candidates themselves, surrogates, or volunteers like Debolski - all eyes are on Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin in the coming days. And both the Trump-Vance and Harris-Walz campaigns are relying on the grassroots ground game to help sway the undecided voters who will likely decide the presidency.

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Debolski said she's typically not one to get this involved in an election, but something about this race felt different to her.

"Democracy is our responsibility. It's a government of the people, right?" she said. "I really thought a lot about the civil rights workers in the '60s. I thought they're facing fire hydrants and attack dogs, and they were willing to fight for what they wanted. So the least I can do is get in a car and go to another state and volunteer some time."

Her friend Tamara Osheroff, who lives in San Rafael, will also be heading to Nevada on Sunday for the same volunteer work.

"It really was a situation of not wanting to sit in my home or watch it on TV, but actually be on the ground when things are happening," Osheroff said. "And I have family in Nevada. My mother was very active in politics with the Democrats up in Nevada, and she passed away in 2020. And I feel like I'm carrying on her work now."

Melinda Jackson - a politics professor at San Jose State University - said there's an increased focus on poll watchers due to allegations of fraud in the last few election cycles. Claims of widespread voter fraud in the 2020 election have been repeatedly debunked in court cases, by top-ranking election officials and other local jurisdictions.

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"We're seeing more people show up to observe and just be there to make sure that voters aren't being intimidated or turned away," she said. "Certainly with some of the messaging that's been going out with no evidence of of any widespread voter fraud, there has been no evidence of that in any of our elections. It's extremely rare. But with the messaging that people are hearing, a lot of people are concerned."

Jackson said it is easy to understand why California Democrats are focusing their energy elsewhere.

"It used to be pretty rare that, you know, someone would volunteer to go to another state. But we're seeing an increase in this in this election cycle for sure," she said. "There are a lot of California Democrats who are really fired up about this election. Well, it's not going to help that much to knock on doors in California."

John Dennis, chairman of the San Francisco GOP, said California Republicans have an active volunteer base that is more focused this cycle on ground game in the Golden State.

"We have a lot of races that are consequential for the national scene and for what happens in Sacramento. So people are really engaged. Even on the local level, we have more candidates on the ballot in San Francisco than we've had for decades," he said. "The U.S. House runs through states like California, New York, really California. And we have a number of seats that we need to hold. And then there are some opportunities to pick up seats."

With the presidential election at a virtual tie in the polls, effective canvassing and get-out-the-vote efforts could mean the difference in swing counties and states.

"I think the ground game is the key at this point. It's about turnout, it's about targeted turnout," Jackson said.