GOP embraces technology in Louisiana Senate race

In this Sept. 6, 2014 photo, Dustin Brewster, an intern with the state Republican Party, checks a mobile app to determine which houses he'll visit to gather information about Louisiana's Senate race, in Baton Rouge, La. Republicans are embracing technology in their effort to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu this fall. (AP Photo/Melinda Deslatte) In this Sept. 6, 2014 photo, Dustin Brewster, an intern with the state Republican Party, checks a mobile app to determine which houses he'll visit to gather information about Louisiana's Senate race, in Baton Rouge, La. Republicans are embracing technology in their effort to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu this fall. (AP Photo/Melinda Deslatte)

By Associated Press September 24, 2014 5 min read

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) – Dustin Brewster’s door-knocking journey across a Baton Rouge neighborhood zigged – then zagged.

After each home, he looked down at his phone, found his next target and approached another, armed with a list of questions and a pocketful of placards promoting Republican Bill Cassidy’s campaign for U.S. Senate.

At roughly 1 out of 3 homes he visits, a door opens.

“I’m here with the Louisiana Republican Party. We’re just going door to door, trying to gauge support for the midterms,” the 21-year-old recent college graduate begins.

Brewster is not merely a GOP supporter, and his path on this recent day was not random. He is a foot soldier in the Republican Party’s national drive to catch up to the Democrats’ data collection know-how that helped power President Barack Obama to two terms in the White House.