Encouraged by their success in the November 2002 elections, the Republican Party has adopted the grassroots campaign strategy used by Labor and Democrats to improve voter turnout, according to an Associated Press report last month.

This grassroots, get-out-the-vote effort using a mass of volunteers worked so well for the Republicans in the November 2002 elections that, according to a spokesperson for the Republican National Committee: "Quite probably it has changed the way Republicans get out their vote forever.''

According to the news story, the Republican Party plans to focus its political campaigns on garnering grassroots support on its issues rather than relying on television advertising and direct mail to get out its message to the public.

The Republicans learned from Labor's political campaign successes in previous elections, and decided to do what the unions do -- registering and enlisting volunteers from within its ranks to knock on doors and sell Labor's issues directly to the public. In November, the Republican election machinery, including big businesses, went into action and enlisted hundreds of thousands of volunteers from within the states and communities where the race was tight to knock on doors, talk with voters and help with phone banks.