The Lincoln Project, a super PAC led by "never-Trumpers," is planning to launch a new initiative that is geared to try and steer away supporters of President Donald Trump from voting for his reelection to voting for Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
According to CNBC:
The plan, according to [group spokesman Keith] Edwards, is to have thousands of Lincoln Project Facebook members reach out to Republican voters who have previously backed Trump to try to persuade them to vote for Democratic nominee Joe Biden. They have over 50,000 members on Facebook, he added.
Similar to the PAC’s political advertisements, it plans to target GOP voters in the states of Arizona, Texas, Florida, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. The digital push comes as in-person get-out-the-vote efforts in both parties have been largely sidelined due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The founder of The Lincoln Project include former counselor to President Trump Kellyanne Conway's husband George Conway, elitist author and current Editor-at-Large at The Daily Beast Rick Wilson and frequent MSNBC contributor Steve Schmidt.
Edwards told CNBC of the group's efforts to change the voting dynamics of the upcoming election.
"We maintain an email list, but Facebook groups operate as our central hubs or ‘virtual campaign offices,’ because they allow us to moderate participants, creating a more constructive gathering place,” Edwards said. “Within those Facebook groups, we share our ads first, paired with data-backed talking points. Trump’s support is strongest on Facebook, so given our target audience are Republicans, Facebook needs to lead our TLPDC efforts."
The first presidential debate is tentatively scheduled to be held later this month on September 29. CNN won't be a part of the debates for the first time since 2008, according to The Hill.