Just received from the head office of the BC-STV campaign, sent out to its massive number of volunteers:
Chrystal --
I just wanted to send you a quick note to say thank you. On Monday I e-mailed you a sneak preview of our new 30 second TV ad which is now on the air: www.stv.ca/fairresults.
I challenged you to help us buy as much air time as possible - and the response was overwhelming. In fact, as many of you noticed, the response was so big it shut down our entire website for over an hour! However, once we got the website back up and running (with added capabilities!) you started contributing online, on the phone and in the mail - and we hit our target of putting a 10% dent in the gap between us and our opponents, by raising $23,515.
On Tuesday morning they were ahead by $225,000 on the TV airwaves. By now, that gap is likely under $200,000 and we still have them beat on the ground and 12 days until election day to catch them on the air.
Today we had verification directly from our opponents that they are simply trying to buy a victory, since they have no real grassroots support. In a candid and cynical message responding to an angry first-past-the-post supporter wondering why their campaign had no presence, No-STV President Bill Tieleman wrote:
"The Yes STV side has a great many volunteers organized for the past several years through Fair Voting BC. No STV has approached the referendum completely differently and is putting almost all resources into television, radio and print advertising - TV starts today. We do not have lawn signs and you will not see any this campaign unless individuals make their own, which would be great. But the Yes STV side has spent an awful lot of their money on leaflets, signs, offices, staff, etc., more than half of their $500,000 government funding. We believe we can reach far more people through advertising and our website."
It's sad really. They don't believe in people power and seem to think campaigning in communities is a waste of time and money. We know they’re wrong. Thousands of people are signing up to help our campaign, telling their friends and families about STV, taking the 15,000 lawn signs we've delivered across the province, and donating to help close the gap on the airwaves.
Many thanks to those who have already donated so generously! I appreciate your understanding of why we continue reach out to you as well as the growing list of new supporters who sign up every day.
I hope you appreciate this update, because what we are accomplishing together is truly amazing!
All my best,
Roy Ball
Vice President, Fair Voting BC
PS: If you haven't contributed or want to do more you can still help bridge the gap by donating securely online at www.stv.ca/fairresults.
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Never have I been part of such an exciting political campaign! It's attracting a vast diversity of people, who are all coming together in support of this single cause. It's truly inspiring and I feel privileged to be part of it.
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