How does Heather Cox Richardson say 80 million non-voters can be brought to the polls?

Answering a listener who noted 80 million eligible Americans did not vote in the last presidential election, Heather Cox Richardson said committed partisans rarely change, so change comes from mobilising soft and new voters. Her model is the 1890s, when organisers started newspapers and held picnics and rallies in farm and working districts, producing the 1890 midterms, one of the biggest shifts in American history. Her advice is to tell neighbours about concrete local issues rather than lecture them about how to vote.

• Richardson's example of a local issue was a private prison being built next to an elementary school.
• Scott Galloway urged Richardson herself to campaign, saying crowds on his live tour applauded at her name.

▸In their words

“And simply showing up made the difference.” Heather Cox Richardson · at 1:01:23 — open in the transcript →

Source: our own transcription of the episode. The full conversation is on Pivot (2026-10-18). Read the whole episode summary →

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