Saturday morning was quite chilly in Nashua, New Hampshire, but that did not stop our group of ONE members from being the first people lined up for the Kelly Ayotte rally with Sen. John McCain. We waited for more than an hour before the doors opened, but it was well worth it to make sure we were up front and center so that both Sen. McCain and Kelly could see our ONE shirts when they came in.

Sen. McCain with a big group of ONE members

Before the rally began, we ran into many friends and supporters of ONE. Former Rep. Charlie Bass came over and said hello to us, as did some state representatives, press and even some of Kelly’s staff. Some even sported ONE bands from previous events! We got to speak briefly with Kelly, who noticed our ONE shirts immediately.

Kelly introduced Sen. McCain, who gave some quick remarks before both of them took questions from the crowd. In his opening remarks, Sen. McCain asked that all the ONE members in the front to please stand.

He told the crowd about ONE and thanked us for our efforts to raise awareness and take action in the fight against AIDS and poverty in Africa. He said that he was always inspired by ONE members across the country, and even mentioned that we had great support from people like Bono and his wife Cindy McCain!

Kelly Ayotte and Sen. McCain

Many ONE members will recall that Sen. McCain introduced Bono at the Atlantic Council dinner a few months ago, and that Cindy McCain traveled to Africa with ONE as part of a trip that highlighted the importance of women in the developing world.

After the rally, we spoke with Sen. McCain and thanked him for cosponsoring PEPFAR reauthorization, and told him that saving lives around the world reflects the greatest of our country’s values, helps create a more stable world, and that it was no time to let up now! Sen. McCain pulled us all in for a quick photo and told us “What you all have done is magnificent, and I am very proud — never been more proud to be an American!”

Our marine Michael Castaldo presents a special gift to Sen. McCain

Later on in North Hampton, New Hampshire, ONE’s Marine, Michael Castaldo caught up with Sen. McCain and talked to him about his days with ONE on the campaign trail. He even presented Sen. McCain with an extra copy of his New Hampshire license plate, too!

Even though, ONE Vote ’08 is far gone, right now, through ONE Vote 2010, we have the opportunity to educate our elected leaders and let them know that it is possible to beat back global diseases like AIDS and malaria, and that it is possible to end extreme poverty like hunger and lack of clean water. With ONE, we have an opportunity to raise our voices and urge continued American leadership to save lives in the poorest nations around the world.

Be sure to connect with other ONE Vote 2010 New Hampshire members on Facebook and Twitter.

On Saturday, Arizona ONE members gathered at the Barton-Burr Library downtown Phoenix to exchange ideas on educating their communities and reaching out to their elected representatives to do something about needless global poverty and preventable diseases.

Attendees addressed hand written letters to both Senator McCain and Senator Kyl asking them to urge Senator Cochran to ensure $56.65 billion is appropriated for the state and foreign operations bill. Immediately thereafter a highly engaged audience began planning two education and recruitment events through July.

Something tells me we can expect to see something a little different from ONE members in Arizona. Congrats on a successful workshop! We are all very excited about things to come.

I made it over the to the town hall with some ONE members, and saw a lot of familiar faces, some, like State Rep. Shaun Doherty, were still wearing their ONE bands!

After the town hall meeting, I spoke with Kelly Ayotte about ONE, and our efforts to save lives of people who struggle to over come extreme poverty on less than a dollar a day. I even offered her a ONE band, which she immediately put on.

I managed to catch Sen. McCain too and spoke with him about Cindy McCain’s recent event with Women ONE2ONE on the hill. Sen. McCain instantly recognized ONE, and I was able to briefly mention to him about how Bill Gates talks about the untapped purchasing power of the developing world and new efforts to save millions of lives through immunization programs like GAVI.

I also told him how the other Gates, Sec. Gates has made a desperate plea for more funds for international development in order to build a more stabile and safer world – something that 50 US Generals echoed the other day.

No matter where you live, your voice can help encourage our elected leaders to take urgent action to fight AIDS, malaria, and hunger around the world.

In talking about ONE, Foreign Policy Editor in Chief Moisés Naím noted that “unless one pushes for obvious ideas, they aren’t obvious for many. Now [these issues] are obvious to millions thanks to ONE.”

Mr. Daschle and Mrs. McCain spoke at length about the necessity of bipartisanship in the fight against extreme poverty—a bipartisanship of which they were obvious examples.

But by far the highlight and emphasis of the ceremony were the immeasurable achievements of ONE members and volunteers all across the country—today represented by Danielle DePas, Michael Castaldo, and Matthew McAllister who came to DC to accept the award. All three were invited to sit on a panel discussion with Steve Radelet and ONE’s Liesl Hickey to discuss topics such as grassroots activism, organizing, and how the US can lead in the fight against global poverty and preventable disease.

We’ll have further posts with photos and video from the event for you shortly. You can read more about the award here.

-Chris Scott

Below is a video of ONE organizer Matthew Bartlett speaking with John McCain a few days ago at what could be his last town hall meeting in New Hampshire as a presidential candidate. It aired on CNN and Matthew’s impassioned and articulate message is spot on. Congrats Matthew and all of our ONE Vote ’08 activists.

-Chris Scott

Take a minute to check out their statements and happy voting!

-Chris Scott

During these times of economic instability in both domestic and global markets, we must not forget about the world’s poorest people who are especially vulnerable during times of economic hardship. We should continue to support smart, affordable initiatives that are making a real difference for millions around the world.

This month over 68,832 ONE Members nationwide and 2,849 in Pennsylvania, signed a petition asking that:

As you work to find a solution to the global financial crisis, please do not waver in your support for the world’s poorest people. It is now more important than ever to stand up for effective, efficient solutions that save millions of lives, strengthen the global economy, and win the hearts and minds of people around the world. I’m keeping my commitment to fight global poverty, and I ask you to do the same.

Even when we face challenges here at home, we must continue to lead, work to strengthen America’s global reputation, and make our world a safer and better place.

-Brian Sweeney

When you go to our On The Record microsite today, you can see McCain’s and Obama’s most up-to-date plans side-by-side. While you’re there, make sure to check out our exclusive video interviews with John McCain and Barack Obama.

ONE is a nonpartisan organization that does not endorse or oppose any candidate, but we do want you to know where the candidates stand as you go to the polls on Tuesday.

-Virginia Simmons

In the morning we went to the Everglades Lumberyard in Miami to hear Senator McCain speak. He was accompanied by fellow Republicans Governor Charlie Crist, Representatives Mario Diaz-Balart and Lincoln Diaz-Balart and Florida’s former Governor and current ONE Vote ’08 Co-Chair, Jeb Bush.

Just a few hours later Senators Obama and Biden held a campaign rally at the Bank Atlantic Center in Fort Lauderdale. Just when we thought we were not going to be able to get in, the security guards let us through and we found great seats just behind the stage.

With the election right around the corner, ONE volunteers are working harder than ever to maintain their strong presence on the campaign trail in Florida and to show the candidates that regardless of party affiliation, fighting global disease and extreme poverty must be a priority in the next administration.

-Sara Paterni

Cindy and John McCain were just about to leave a rally in Downingtown, PA but stopped when they saw my ONE shirt! They came back around and I gave both of them white wristbands, thanking them for their support. Mrs. McCain commented on how much she enjoyed her trip to Rwanda with ONE this summer and Senator McCain thanked me and all of the ONE volunteers he sees at his rallies across the country for being advocates for the world’s poor.

Every voice in the fight against global poverty really does count, whether you have a national podium or a black and white ONE t-shirt in a crowd.

-Lauren Conn