Nevertheless, we reveled in the election of Joe Biden to the Presidency, and we celebrated the effort we had put in to our effort despite the challenges: eight hundred eighty-two people from forty states requested names—from Arizona, California, Hawaii, Oregon, Washington, and so many others—and several of those requests represented groups of women. Over and over our Grandmothers came back for additional names when their original lists were completed, even for other states. All told, we sent 80,000 cards to Kentucky, 25,030 cards to Maine, 35,000 cards to North Carolina, and 78,481 cards to South Carolina.

Then there was the amazing case of Georgia! Because Georgia requires a majority of the vote to elect a U. S. Senator, there had to be a run-off election between Jon Ossoff and David Perdue for a six-year term. A run-off was also required for the special election for a two-year term between Raphael Warnock and Kelly Loeffler. So we got out our pens again, and this time we were successful. Both Joh Ossoff and Raphael Warnock were elected on January 5, 2021, and as a result the Democrats attained a majority, and Chuck Schumer became Majority Leader.

Our efforts in 2022 will be as important as they have ever been. But we have excellent candidates, and we have every expectation that our Grandmothers will work as hard as ever, and will even increase in numbers, recognizing that these are difficult times.

We Grandmothers should be very proud of our recent work in support of Andy Beshear’s campaign for Governor of Kentucky, which he won with a slim margin of 5000 votes. Our members across the country sent out over 20,000 yellow Grandmothers’ cards targeted to Democratic and Independent women over 65 and got them delivered before Election Day, November 5th — an amazing piece of work by many hands in a short period of time. This quick and successful intervention came after our Grandmothers’ support of winning Senate races in 2018 in Nevada and Arizona.

Early in May we sent the following to our Grandmothers across the country.

Time for Action

Appalled by the findings of the Mueller report and the across the board defiance of the Trump Administration, we call upon our representatives in Washington to exercise their constitutional obligations for oversight, wherever they lead, however long it takes. We are a nation of laws.

Our country’s honor, its standing among nations, and a promising future for the generations that follow demand no less.

Grandmothers, friends, pick up your phone and call or send an email to the local office of your senator and congressman. Make your opinion known, and remind them that you vote!

Galvanized by the dishonesty and discord in the White House since Donald Trump’s election, Grandmothers are determined to do all we can to help flip the Senate in 2018.

But first, in February and March, Grandmothers rallied with others following the tragedy at The Marjory Stoneman Douglas School in Parkland, Florida. We developed the following card. Then we signed and mailed thousands of them to the Republican members of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees.

We are overwhelmed by the numbers of you who have signed up since the beginning of the year. You are clearly looking for action. We have two immediate suggestions:

1. We recommend that you read the Indivisible Guide: www.IndivisibleGuide.com. Written by a group of Congressional staffers, it is full of good ideas for effective advocacy.
2. Our issues are the environment, women’s health and voting rights. Find out where your members of Congress stand on your – or if you will, on our – priorities. Let them know how you feel.

We are delighted to add you to our network. You will be hearing from us soon. Our emails will always have Grandmothers in Action in the subject line, so you will know it is from us.

Betsy Hatfield
Coordinator

Never have we had such enthusiastic and energetic members.

In the course of the summer and fall, the Grandmothers network sent cards to over 177,000 voters in 5 states: Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina and Ohio. The cards urged the election of both Hillary and the Democratic candidate for Senate in the voter’s state.

As you know, Hillary only carried two of these states, and only two Democratic Senators emerged victorious – Catherine Cortez Masto in Nevada and Maggie Hassan in New Hampshire. But by the end of the campaign our network had expanded to 36 states and the District of Columbia. And judging from the response to our post-election letter, our members are primed and ready, as the new administration takes office, to fight for our priorities:  preserving the environment, protecting women’s healthcare, and ensuring voting rights for all eligible voters. Come join us!

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Massachusetts Grandmothers directed their energies primarily on New Hampshire because Scott Brown had been briefly their Senator until Elizabeth Warren beat him, and they were determined to see him held accountable for his record. Triumph! Jeanne Shaheen remains in the Senate.

Groups of Grandmothers in Connecticut, Virginia, New Jersey and Vermont as well as Massachusetts focussed on Louisiana. We chose Louisiana because of the fear of exactly what happened. Mary Landrieu did not receive 50% of the vote in the general election, and she lost in the runoff against an opponent staggeringly well funded by the full force of ALL that Republican money.

And cheers to Massachusetts Grandmothers. In 2012 for Elizabeth Warren and 2013 for Ed Markey, working from voter lists provided by their campaigns, Massachusetts Grandmothers sent thousands of postcards such as the following:

Both candidates were elected by strong majorities.

The uniqueness of the enterprise was recognized. Articles about us appeared in The Boston Globe and the Times Record of Maine. The State Department even sent a group of 25 foreign journalists to meet with 25 Grandmothers in a retirement community to show them grassroots advocacy at work!