Could the Amish vote tip Ohio and Pennsylvania?

Throughout September and October the three friends set up a table at local auctions and bloodmobiles (Amish often donate blood) and handed out flyers inviting Amish to register to vote. They handed out a “conservative ballot” that listed candidates who stand for traditional values. They told them about President Obama’s support for abortion and same-sex “marriage.” “They were just appalled at what Obama had done,” Miller said.

At a typical auction or blood drive, some Amish took the flyers, and some—perhaps a dozen on average—filled out voter registration forms. Others walked by, ignoring them. A man on a bicycle was enthusiastic. According to Miller, he came “barreling” up the road after hearing about the voter drive and stopped at the table so he could register, too.

Phil Burress, president of Cincinnati-based Citizens for Community Values, said thousands of Amish voted in 2004 when Ohio’s ballot asked whether to amend the state constitution to protect traditional marriage. After Miller called Burress and told him about the garden-themed flyer she was handing out, his group used it as a template for a full-page ad targeting the Amish. “Join us as we stand in the gap,” invited the ad, which ran in five newspapers, including the Holmes County Shopper News, The Budget, and the Holmes edition of The Bargain Hunter.