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FIRST ON FOX: Conservative groups are launching the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania’s largest ever vote-by-mail program with a massive multimillion-dollar investment aimed at turning out conservative voters on more than just Election Day.
The effort is being led by three conservative PACs — the Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) PAC, the Keystone Renewal PAC and The Sentinel Action Fund — and will be backed by a “historic” eight-figure investment that they say will put Republicans in a strong position to challenge Democrats’ advantage when it comes to voting by mail.
“RSLC’s significant investment in the early and absentee voting process in 2023 was a key component of our successes in crucial battleground districts. We have the blueprint and, thanks to this historic investment, we are now prepared to build on that success,” RSLC PAC President Dee Duncan told Fox News Digital.
A Michigan voter inserts her absentee voter ballot into a drop box in Troy, Michigan, on Oct. 15, 2020. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)
“This will be the largest and most comprehensive Republican vote-by-mail effort in Pennsylvania history, it will be a vital part of our Party’s success this November, and it would not be possible without our partners who share our same goal of electing Republicans up and down the ballot.,” he added.
Republicans have historically voted on Election Day, while Democrats in recent cycles, amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, have leaned more heavily on casting absentee ballots or voting early.
Experts and Republican leadership have cited this as a major factor in recent close losses for the GOP, noting it limited the time frame for Republican voters to cast their ballots, and it increased the risk of them not showing up to the polls due to outside factors, such as weather.
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Voting other than in-person on Election Day has also bred mistrust and allegations of fraud in recent cycles, but, according to Sentinel Action Fund President Jessica Anderson, embracing early and absentee voting will be key for Republicans to win in elections this year.
“As we saw in previous cycles, Republicans must be mobilized earlier in the cycle and equipped with a strategy to connect with and turn out voters before Election Day,” she told Fox.
A voter arrives to cast their mail-in ballot at the City-County Building in downtown Pittsburgh on Monday, May 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
“By providing Pennsylvania voters with the tools and information they need to join the mail-in voting list, this historic initiative will connect with voters early and help ensure ballots are securely cast and counted in the primary and general elections. The Sentinel Action Fund is proud to be part of this effort,” she added.
Pennsylvania is expected to be one of the most closely watched states on election night in November, and early polls already show razor-thin margins in the presidential race, as well as the race for Senate and multiple House races.
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The group hopes to gain the edge in those races with an expanded Republican voter base secured by targeting low-propensity and persuadable swing voters with the information to know how to cast their vote in the most convenient manner.
One component in the group’s “multipronged” effort is a website — www.skipthelinepa.vote — that allows Pennsylvania voters to join a list to receive a mail-in ballot this year for both the primary and general elections.
It also offers a video explaining the process.
Republicans are hoping for large mail-in vote numbers this year. (iStock)
The effort has been strongly supported by former President Trump’s campaign, as well as that of Pennsylvania’s presumptive Republican Senate nominee Dave McCormick.
“We are laser-focused on turning out voters through all methods and means available, and we’re glad an organization as sophisticated as RSLC is doing this important work in Pennsylvania,” Trump campaign spokeswoman Danielle Alvarez told Fox.
“Ensuring Republicans get out and vote in droves this fall is essential to our victory in November. I’m very pleased to see this effort underway and look forward to working with Republicans across the commonwealth to beat Bob Casey and Joe Biden in November,” McCormick told Fox.
Sen. Bill Hagerty, R-Tenn., who also contributed to the group’s effort to launch the program, told Fox that conservatives needed to “use every opportunity and tool at our disposal to turn out voters who are fed up with the direction of our country under Democrat leadership.”
Senator Bill Hagerty, a Republican from Tennessee, speaks during a Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee hearing in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday, May 16, 2023. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“With everything at stake, we can take nothing for granted. That’s why I’ve been working since the 2022 election to reemphasize the importance of early voting and absentee ballots, once a Republican strength,” Hagerty said. “Our voters need to run up the score so high in November that Democrats’ dirty tricks can’t keep up.”
“It starts with Senate battleground states like Montana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, and this is a great sign that we’re on the right track. It is also imperative for conservatives in these states to register, and sign up for their permanent absentee list, which gives them the most options to cast their ballot in each election,” he added.
Brandon Gillespie is an associate editor at Fox News. Follow him on X at @BGillespieAL.
