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An initiative to preserve

the initiative process.

JOIN US TODAY!

Visit respectMOvoters.org/join

Scan the QR code to join!

Note to presenters: Please save your own copy of this slideshow so you can customize it! Click File > Make a Copy, then update the name of the file with the date and your name!

Leave up on screen while people arrive

(5 minutes before start time.)

Welcome everyone and thank you for being here. I’m {name}, {role} with Respect Missouri Voters Coalition.

If time: While folks are finding seats and getting settled in, We would like to hear from you: your name, where you live, and why you are here today.

(If small crowd, do everybody. If large crowd, choose a diverse variety of folks to intro themselves, covering the whole room.)

(Start time/once room has settled)

Hi, everyone! Thank you for being here today. I’m {name}, {role} with Respect Missouri Voters.

Respect Missouri Voters is a volunteer-led, grassroots campaign with a mission to BAN out-of-touch politicians from attacking the will of the people and taking away your power. We are made up of everyday Missourians like you and me and we are not affiliated with any political party.

{Insert short personal anecdote about why you’re volunteering to do this work OR how you heard about Respect MO Voters and what led you to get involved}

We’re here together to talk about the initiative petition process in Missouri. The first section will explain what it is, how it works, how it’s been under attack by our own representatives, and what Respect MO Voters is doing to preserve and strengthen this century old freedom.

After that, we’ll learn how to gather valid petition signatures and leave here with blank petitions in hand so YOU can help get our proposed amendment on the ballot.

We’ll take a break in between the sections for questions so please hold them for now.

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THE FREEDOM TO PETITION�FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE US CONSTITUTION

Guarantees the freedom to petition the government for a redress of grievances
Allows people to submit petitions to legislative, executive, and judicial authorities to address issues or correct wrongs without government interference

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MISSOURI CONSTITUTION

ARTICLE I, SECTION 1:

“That all political power is vested in and derived from the people; that all government of right originates from the people, is founded upon their will only, and is instituted solely for the good of the whole.”

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WHAT IS AN INITIATIVE PETITION?

Citizen Initiative = Initiative Petition = Ballot Initiative

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INITIATIVE PETITION STEPS

STEP ONE

STEP TWO

STEP THREE

Write a law or amendment

Collect signatures �to get it on the ballot

Convince voters �to vote YES!

SOS writes the ballot language

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HERE IN MISSOURI

We’ve used the citizen initiative for 117 years!

Missouri is one of only 11 states with no law ensuring voters have the final say.

Source

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TWO TYPES OF INITIATIVE PETITIONS

CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

STATUTE �(LAW)

SIGNATURES:

5% of votes �in last governor election.

100 Legislators can �vote to overturn.

SIGNATURES:

8% of votes �in last governor election.

100 Legislators can place �BACK on the ballot to try to overturn.

Proposing a law requires fewer signatures, but is easier to overturn.

In Missouri, the number of signatures required for an initiative petition is based on the number of votes cast in the most recent election for governor AND what type of initiative it is.

Constitutional Amendments have to collect signatures equal to 8% of the votes cast for governor in 6 of our 8 congressional districts. Once an amendment is passed by the voters, there’s nothing stopping a simple majority in the legislature from placing the SAME issue back on the ballot in an attempt to get the voters to undo what was JUST voted on. This is typically where that tricky ballot language written by the Secretary of State comes into play.

Proposing a LAW requires only 5% of voters, but right now, a simple majority in the legislature can overturn our vote without any further input from The People.

The initiative petition process also includes the Veto Referendum to block legislative action. This process was just used to allow the people to vote on new district maps.

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MISSOURIANS VOTED FOR…

2018

Clean Missouri Anti-Corruption Redistricting

Amendment

2010

Puppy Mill Cruelty Prevention Act

Statute (Law)

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…BUT LEGISLATORS OVERTURNED

2018

Clean Missouri Anti-Corruption Redistricting

Amendment

2010

Puppy Mill Cruelty and Prevention Act

Statute (Law)

2011: OVERTURNED BY LEGISLATORS

2020: OVERTURNED BY LEGISLATORS’ BALLOT CANDY

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THIS IS NOT A PARTISAN ISSUE

“It is through the initiative process that those who have no influence with elective representatives may take their cause directly to the people.”

- Governor John Ashcroft (in 1992)

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AMENDMENT 4 - THE LATEST ATTACK

← Only changes the threshold for CITIZEN-LED initiatives

← Allows a small minority of voters to override broad support

Ballot initiatives must win at least 50% of the vote in ALL 8 congressional districts to pass

“restatements of current law and do not reveal to voters what the measure would achieve if passed and must be removed from the summary statement.”

Judge Daniel Green on deceptive ballot language

This year alone, the legislature is considering 8 different bills all aimed at trying to make the citizen-led ballot initiative process harder for voters to use.

We will see a measure on our 2026 ballots that would make it impossible to pass future citizen initiatives - it would require a majority vote in all 8 congressional districts instead of the statewide popular vote that we have now. This would allow a small minority of voters to prevent something with broad support from passing.

Amendments placed on the ballot by state lawmakers are not included in the change.

And, they have already tried to mislead us AGAIN with trick ballot language, making it seem like the vote is about foreign money in state campaigns. Just like in 2020 with Clean Missouri.

Thankfully, citizens still have the ability to sue for fair ballot language and the courts have revised the language we’ll see on our ballots.

But it still shows politicians’ disdain for majority rule AND their intent to mislead the voters.

It will appear on your ballot as Amendment 4 and The actual constitutional language of Amendment 4 even calls it the “Protect Missouri Voters” amendment, to deliberately confuse people with our Respect Missouri Voters campaign.

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CITIZENS SAFEGUARD OUR FREEDOM

BAN Missouri Politicians from Attacking the Will of the People

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OUR POLICY GOALS

DECEIVING

OVERTURNING

ATTACKING

Voters with confusing ballot language

measures that voters have already passed

citizens’ ability to use the initiative process

BAN Missouri politicians from…

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WHAT WOULD THE

AMENDMENT DO?

Require ballot summaries to be clear, fair, and easy to understand so voters know exactly what they’re voting on.
Preserve our century-old constitutional freedom to petition.
Make it harder for politicians to change or undo what the people have already voted on.

Here are the details of how the Respect Missouri Voters Amendment would secure the will of the people going forward.

Our constitutional amendment does three things…

One: It requires all ballot summaries to be clear, fair, and easy to understand so Missourians know what exactly what we’re voting on.

Two: It preserves our century-old freedom to petition by prohibiting any new laws that make it more difficult for citizens to gather signatures or pass initiatives at the ballot box.

Three: Defends majority rule by making it harder for the legislature to change or undo anything passed by initiative petition, unless an 80% bipartisan supermajority, in the House and the Senate votes to return those changes to the voters.
Now: A couple things it doesn’t do:

Our amendment does NOT limit what initiatives can do.

New initiatives can still change past initiatives.

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OUR TIMELINE

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VOLUNTEER-LED CAMPAIGNS CAN SUCCEED

“I want to end gerrymandering in Michigan. � Who wants to help? 😁”

—KATIE FAHEY, GRAND RAPIDS MICHIGAN, 2016

Together 4,000 everyday people gathered 480,000 signatures.

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BY THE NUMBERS

Our X,XXX volunteers have gathered…

XXX,XXX

signatures so far!

And in our [Region] region, XXX

volunteers have gathered XX,XXX!

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THE CITIZEN INITIATIVE �IS ALREADY DIFFICULT…

A statewide majority vote

Qualify in 6 of 8 Districts

AND

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“I joined because I want my vote to matter!”

“I volunteer because the work is fulfilling and important!”

“I’m here because the decisions we make today… affect my grandchildren’s future for the best”

“I volunteer �because I care �about democracy!”

“I joined because I’m tired of MO legislators not honoring the will of the people”

THANK YOU!

respectMOvoters.org/join

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endorsements

& many local units

Former U.S. Sen. John Danforth (R-MO)

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Connect with us & spread the word

Respect Missouri Voters

u/RespectVoters

@respectMOvoters.org

@respect.mo.voters

@respectvotersorg

@respectvoters

Respect Voters Coalition

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END OF PART 1

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QUIZ

Show we are ready to start collecting signatures

OVERVIEW

The Respect MO Voters Amendment
Collecting VALID signatures
Best practices
Clipboard setup
Messaging

PRACTICE

Pitch to each other
Give feedback

TODAY’S GOALS

Please hold your questions.

Q&A will be at the end of the presentation. Please write down your questions so you don’t forget - but the answer may be in the slides already!

Note to trainers: Please save your own copy of this slideshow so you can customize it! Click File > Make a Copy, then update the name of the file with your region and team #!

Whether you plan on heading out into the field to talk with Missourians of all stripes or you just intend to gather signatures from your immediate social circle, this training will provide the tools you need to gather VALID signatures.

I’ll provide an overview of what it takes to gather valid signatures, we will get some time to practice pitching someone to sign the petition, and there will be a quiz at the end to ensure we all know the legally required basics for signature gathering.

You are welcome to take photos of these slide for your future reference.

Please take notes of your questions and hold them until the end, it’s possible your question will be answered over the course of this training.

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WHAT WOULD THE

AMENDMENT DO?

Require ballot summaries to be clear, unbiased, fair, accurate and easy to understand so voters know exactly what they’re voting on.
Preserve our century-old constitutional freedom to petition.
Make it harder for politicians to change or undo what the people have already voted on.

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HERE’S WHAT IT DOES…

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to:

expand the initiative and referendum petition process by making it a fundamental right;
allow courts to revise ballot summaries through lawsuits;
prohibit the legislature from weakening initiative or referendum powers;
prohibit the legislature from changing or repealing laws enacted through the initiative process, or passing laws similar to those rejected by referendum, without approval from at least 80% of both chambers; and
preserve existing majority vote and signature requirements for initiative and referendum petitions?

State and local governmental entities estimate no costs or savings.

Requires ballot summaries that are fair, accurate, and easy to understand

“Ballot summaries shall not seek to mislead voters”

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HERE’S WHAT IT DOES…

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to:

expand the initiative and referendum petition process by making it a fundamental right;
allow courts to revise ballot summaries through lawsuits;
prohibit the legislature from weakening initiative or referendum powers;
prohibit the legislature from changing or repealing laws enacted through the initiative process, or passing laws similar to those rejected by referendum, without approval from at least 80% of both chambers; and
preserve existing majority vote and signature requirements for initiative and referendum petitions?

State and local governmental entities estimate no costs or savings.

Makes our citizen initiative freedom a fundamental right.

Preserves our century-old freedom by keeping the current majority vote and signature thresholds.

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HERE’S WHAT IT DOES…

Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to:

expand the initiative and referendum petition process by making it a fundamental right;
allow courts to revise ballot summaries through lawsuits;
prohibit the legislature from weakening initiative or referendum powers;
prohibit the legislature from changing or repealing laws enacted through the initiative process, or passing laws similar to those rejected by referendum, without approval from at least 80% of both chambers; and
preserve existing majority vote and signature requirements for initiative and referendum petitions?

State and local governmental entities estimate no costs or savings.

Makes it harder for politicians to overturn or change the things voters passed

Prevents politicians from passing similar laws to things voters rejected.

Does not protect amendments referred from the legislature.

It Prohibits the legislature from overturning or changing initiatives passed by voters unless an 80% bipartisan supermajority sends changes back to the voters to approve. It does NOT protect measures placed on the ballot by the legislature, which often have deceptive language.

Sounds pretty great, right? Here’s how YOU can help make it happen.

Any change must be approved by voters before it can take effect.
Protects initiatives passed after January 1, 2010 that are still in law or the Constitution when this amendment goes into effect, as well as initiatives in the future. Protects citizen referendum petition vetoes after January 1, 2010 and in the future.
Does not protect measures placed on the ballot by the legislature, which often have deceptive language.

In case questions are asked:

Q: When will our petition be on the ballot? A: We still do not know which ballot we will be on (August or November 2026). If amendment 4 passes in August and ours is in November, ours will override amendment 4 - BUT ours would have to pass with the new threshold of a majority in all 8 districts. If they are on the same ballot, ours has to get more votes than amendment 4.
Q: Will this reinstate repealed initiatives? A: It would NOT reinstate repealed initiatives. But it would require an 80% vote in the legislature to try to overturn anything that is still in law or the constitution if it was passed after Jan 1, 2010.
Q: What does “common language” mean? A: Language should be 8th grad level.
All of this info can be found on our website if you have questions later.

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COLLECTING VALID SIGNATURES

TEAL: you fill this out!

YELLOW: you can help voters complete if needed

Purple: only the voter can sign!

RED: leave blank, you fill this out at notarizing

GRAY: leave blank - notary completes

Collecting VALID Signatures

As we discussed earlier, politicians in Jefferson City have repeatedly undone the will of the voters.

We know they do not respect our votes and have tried multiple times to gut the Initiative Petition Process in Missouri.

We know the signatures we turn in will be heavily scrutinized. That’s why it’s so important for the signatures we collect to be VALID.

Even if you have gathered signatures before, we need you to pay attention to this section.

An Initiative Petition is a legal document. As a circulator, you are the witness and responsible for the accuracy of the signatures you gather.

Pull out a color-coded sample petition and a blank petition from the training packet.

Let’s look at the color-coded sample petition together:

Teal - The teal sections labeled ‘ADD COUNTY’ are for the county the signers are from. You should fill in the upper right hand corner before you begin gathering signatures on that page. It’s important to note that each petition sheet should only contain signatures from voters whose addresses are in the county you’ve written in the top right corner of that sheet.

Your Dos and Don’ts sheet has a list of all the counties in the state and their correct spelling.
If someone wants to sign and they are from a different county, label a new sheet with the correct county in the top right corner have them sign that new sheet.
The teal box above the signers’ section is for you to PRINT your legal name.

Dark Blue / Purple - This is where the voter’s signature will go. The voter MUST sign themselves.

Yellow - This is where the date of signing, the signer’s street address including the city where they are registered to vote, zip code, and printed legal name go. The voter will usually fill this out themselves, if they are unable, you may help fill it out for them.

Red - DO NOT FILL THIS OUT UNTIL YOU ARE WITH A NOTARY. This contains the county line for the county you are getting notarized in, and a space for YOUR signature, printed legal name, and address. The notary needs to watch you fill in this section.

This also includes the section about getting paid to gather. It’s RED here because some folks don’t know what to put, but we’re all volunteers here so you can check the ‘DO NOT’ expect to be paid box at any time while gathering or while with the notary.

Gray - You DO NOT fill these in. Page number, congressional district, and notary info. This is for the notary to fill in.

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Must be at least 18 years old
Cannot offer money or gifts for signatures

YOUR QUALIFICATIONS FOR GATHERING

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Be a registered Missouri voter
Know the county they are registered to vote in
Have a chance to read the petition before signing if they want
Only sign for themselves - not for friends or family!
Only sign once

PEOPLE WHO SIGN

THE PETITION MUST…

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ONLY ONE COUNTY PER SHEET!
Use BLACK ink - yes this is required
Add the county before anyone signs
Add your name
Legibility matters!

PERFECT PETITION PAPERWORK

Reminder: St. Louis City and St. Louis County are different counties!

Filling out the sheet correctly

Once someone has agreed to sign, ask them what county they are registered to vote in. Remember, only signers from one county per petition sheet. Signatures of voters from counties other than the one designated on that individual petition will not be counted.
Before someone signs the petition, make sure: the county is written in the upper right-hand section labeled county.

Important - St. Louis City vs. St. Louis County

Write your name in the teal section labeled “Your Legal Name”
Use black ink. Specific pen color is required.
Ensure as much as possible everything written legibly. Being able to read someone’s handwriting can be the difference between signatures being valid or thrown out.

Tell folks it’s ok to take their time, you want to make sure their signatures counts.

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Fill in the red sections until you are with a notary

Fill in the

page number

Sign your

own petition

Take pictures of the petition

Write

anything in

the signature section

DO NOT…

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Leave this blank!

USE BLACK INK ONLY

Must match voter file!

Use MM/DD/YY format

Optional, but should always ask

Scan to learn more and sign up online

WALK EVERY VOTER THROUGH EVERY STEP OF SIGNING

Point out each section and explain

(ex. “You’ll put today’s date here”)

1 volunteer per sheet = 30K new volunteers!

Walk. Every. Voter. Through. Every. Step. Every time.

Signature FIRST
Then the date including month, day, and year ←Tell them today’s date.
Their street address where they are registered to vote including city spelled out

They do not have to put the state but it’s ok if they do. Many do out of habit.

their zip code next, in its own section,
Skip the congressional district (the little box)
And finally their name PRINTED as it appears on their voter registration

Check it over BEFORE they walk away to make sure nothing is missing or in need of a correction.

The city is a piece of info that is often left out by the signer, be sure to confirm they have written their city BEFORE they walk away.
Check that the date is correct and includes the year (it’s 2026 now)

If you have time, ask the signer if they want to stay connected to the campaign, if they say yes they can scan the QR code on your Dos and Don’ts sheet or your lanyard to get to the join page.

Since we are volunteer-led, every additional supporter of the campaign could make the difference of us qualifying for the ballot or not, even if only 1 person per petition sheet decides to stay connected we would end up with 30,000 additional supporters!

Only say this if you have setup boards to show

If you have the additional info sheet on your board and paper clipped to each petition sheet, they can write their phone number and/or email address there.

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STEP BY STEP SIGNATURE GATHERING

1.

Ask the signer which MO county they are registered to vote in.

2.

Match signer’s voter registration county to petition sheet (one county per sheet!)

3.

Walk the voter through each step of signing.

4.

Recruit more volunteers.

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Carry extra boards

for large events

Talk to EVERYONE!

Have your

greeting prepared

Smile and be approachable

QUICK TIPS

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TALKING POINTS

Will you sign this petition to require the language on our ballots to be clear, fair and easy to understand?
Will you sign this petition to preserve our century-old freedom to use the petition process in Missouri? Politicians are trying to pass laws that make it harder for citizens to have our voices heard.
Will you sign this petition to make it harder for politicians to change or undo what the people have already voted on?

Are you registered to vote in Missouri?

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SMILE, STEP & SIGN!

That was great, thank you! (In reference to activity in previous slide)

Here’s an easy way to remember the process:

“Smile, Step, and Sign!”

Smile
Take a step forward with the petition in front of you.
Use your preferred greeting/most successful intro

Hi, are you a registered MO voter?
Hi, are you tired of politicians in Jeff City ignoring what we voted for?
Hi, want to ban politicians from overturning the will of Missouri voters?

Assume they are supportive.

Answer questions, and if you do not know an answer, say that and move on.
Don’t argue with anyone who doesn’t want to sign, wish them a good day and move on.
Time spent on someone who won’t sign is time wasted.

Confirm they are a registered Missouri voter

What county are you registered to vote in?

Walk them through each step of signing the petition.
End Positively.

Thank you for signing!
Thank you for your time!
Thank you! You just signed the Respect Missouri Voters petition so if anyone else asks, don’t sign it again.

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TURN IN PROCESS FAQS

My petitions were already notarized,

is that ok?

Yes, but we prefer to get notarization done at turn in events.

What if there are blank signature lines on my petition?

Turn it in anyway! It will help us get accurate counts

Can I give petitions to my field captain to take to Notary Night?

No, you have to have bring your ID and petitions to the notary and attest you collected signatures in good faith.

A.

Q.

A.

Q.

A.

Q.

Ok, you have signed petitions, what next?

Since the petitions are LEGAL documents, they need to be notarized.

We hold weekly notary events for signature turn-in. This is when you can turn in your signatures and have them notarized. It doesn’t matter if your sheet is complete or not, even if it only has one signature on it, we want you to turn all of them in weekly. At these events you can grab more blank petitions as needed. It’s important that we as a campaign have as up to date information as possible about how many signatures we have gathered. The only way to stay on top of this is by having consistent turn-ins. Also, your signatures are not valid unless we get your sheet notarized, which we have to do with you in person.

Our notary events are [insert your notary night schedule here!]

Once you’ve registered with us as a gatherer, you’ll receive emails with information about notary events and gathering opportunities. Remember to check your promotions, junk, or spam folders so that you don’t miss these important messages.

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Most Missourians agree with us!
Not everyone will want to sign - that’s ok!
Speak truthfully and don’t be afraid to say “I don’t know”
Contact your field captain right away:

If you run into any issues in the field
If a member of the press tries to talk to you

Our Weekly Goal: [XXXX] Signatures

ANY QUESTIONS?

REMINDERS & QUESTIONS

Two hours

per week!

2

Note to trainers: Please add your team’s weekly signature goals if you have them to the slide in the red box. Update the notes below to fill in region and team info. Delete this note when you’re done!

Final Reminders

The Majority of Voters agree with us. People will be excited to sign this petition.
Not everyone will want to sign, and that’s okay. We say thank you, have a great rest of your day.
Speak truthfully when discussing the initiative, if you don’t know something say “I don’t know.” You can always refer people to the RespectMoVoters.org website
If a member of the press tries to talk to you, or if you run into any issues in the field contact your field captain.
We hope you’ll gather 2 or more hours a week.
Our team has a goal of gathering [insert your team’s weekly signature goal here!] signatures this week.
Reminder of when the next notary night is [insert next notary night date/time/place here!], and what the regular schedule of notary nights is.

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SCAN TO START

THE QUIZ:

respectMOvoters.org/register

We’ll take a group picture after the quiz!

Scan the code to start!
Enter your county and zip code and click the yellow button, to see your Region and Team number.
Scroll down and enter the 2 digit region code and 2 digit team number you just received.
Check the Gatherer box and any other boxes you like and enter your contact info.
Click REGISTER - you’ll get a confirmation email with your Field ID
TAKE THE QUIZ
After submitting, you can click ‘View score’ and review your answers (will open in a new tab)
If you didn’t get 100%, scroll to the bottom and click ‘Take the quiz again’ or go to respectMOvoters.org/quiz

QUIZ TIME!

Field Quiz

The last thing we need everyone to do before we take your questions is to take the Field Quiz.

Scan the code to start! Alternatively, you can just type in the URL RespectVoters.org/register.

The first page will actually be for creating your Field ID so we can contact you if we identify mistakes on your petitions and reward your accomplishments.

Enter your county and zip code and click the yellow button, your Field Region and Team will appear on the screen
Scroll down and enter the 2 digit region code and 2 digit team number you just received
Check the Gatherer box and any other boxes you like and enter your contact info AND Click REGISTER - you’ll get a confirmation email with your Field ID which you will need at your notary event.
TAKE THE QUIZ - You need to get every question right in order to pass.
After submitting, you can click ‘View score’ and review your answers (will open in a new tab)
If you didn’t get 100%, scroll to the bottom and click ‘Take the quiz again’ or go to respectMOvoters.org/quiz

Note: stay on this slide until most everyone has successfully completed the quiz!

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Join other volunteers to go out and gather together
Meetup in priority districts then break off to hit high traffic locations
Get notarized at the end of the day
Carpooling options available

DAYS OF ACTION

WHAT’S NEXT?

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WRAP UP & PHOTO TIME!

Need to re-take the quiz?

Visit respectMOvoters.org/quiz

WANT TO

DO MORE?

Join one of our eight amazing teams!

Send an email to onboarding@respectMOvoters.org

Communications

Videos, graphics, messaging, media, etc.

Field

Signature collecting

and everything related

Fundraising

Raising money for the campaign

Good Vibes

Keeping morale for the team high

Onboarding

Helping new volunteers join the team

Outreach

Building relationships with people & orgs

Policy

Polling, analyzing, gathering input

Tech Support

Ensuring technology works & all can use it

respectMOvoters.org/photos

SEND US YOUR PHOTOS!

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THANK �YOU!

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END OF PART 2

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END