THE KEYSTONE COUNTS COALITION’S EFFORTS MADE A DIFFERENCE
2020 Census Work Recap
PLANNING
The Pennsylvania Voice partnership identified the 2020 Census count as a collective key priority in 2016, after recognizing the significant and far-reaching consequences for communities of color, immigrants, and other communities it serves for a decade to follow. Keystone Counts created a Get Out the Count plan including comprehensive field, advocacy, and communications strategies for accomplishing a fair and accurate count across the state.
IMPLEMENTATION
In 2020, the Keystone Counts coalition of 97+ organizations implemented a statewide coordinated Get Out the Count plan to engage the Pennsylvania households that we identified as being most at risk of being missed in the 2020 Census.
Our aim was to supplement the work of the U.S. Census Bureau and local Complete Count Committees by engaging households in 1-on-1 conversations at scale. We looked to civic engagement best practices that have been proven time and time again to move people to take civic action: a multi-layered approach that includes outreach tactics such as door-to-door canvassing, mailing, phonebanking, and textbanking.
We knew that the work had to be done by trusted messengers: organizations grounded in those communities and working with them day in and day out. Our field plan would allow these organizations to deepen their relationships with individuals in their communities through these 1-on-1 conversations.
RESULTS
Pennsylvania’s Census response rate in 2020 was above the national average, and we know that’s due in part to our momentous efforts.
Please see our full 2020 Census Report for a more detailed summary of the work of the Keystone Counts Coalition: