Did MVP fund deep organizing or “shallow” canvassing in 2024?

Both. Most of our partners practiced deep relational organizing and engaged trusted messengers to talk with voters in their communities. However, most didn’t get funding early enough to scale this work. Many, therefore, also ran scaled-up, “shallow” voter contact programs which have become the industry-standard approach (at least up until now). 

Although research has shown “shallow” voter contact to increase voter turnout and persuasion, the 2024 elections have called this approach into question. We on the MVP team are coming to believe these more transactional interactions (whether by door, phone, or text) are quickly diminishing in effectiveness, especially in high-turnout elections.

We are taking a hard look at resources spent on “shallow” voter contact, and we are focusing on supporting our partners to prioritize deeper organizing methods. However, this approach requires year-round, multi-year investment — not just short-term infusions a few months before a big election. 

The more our partners can maintain consistent organizing staff and robust volunteer operations, the more they can scale up and optimize their year-round voter organizing. This pays off in critical wins on Election Day, policy wins the rest of the year, and sustained progress over time.