On Thursday, December 14, 2017 the Roanoke City Democratic Committee will reorganize. For those who may be unfamiliar, what that means is that all positions on the committee are up for election through a caucus. On the evening of the caucus, Democrats living in the city of Roanoke will gather at the Ramada Inn, 1927 Franklin Rd. SW. Precinct captains and assistant precinct captains will be elected by the Democrats in attendance who reside within each precinct. District leaders from each of the 7 districts (see below for details) will be elected by the Democrats in attendance who reside within each district. Officers of the committee (chair, vice-chair, secretary and treasurer) will then be elected by the assembled Democrats who have been elected to the committee, as well as those who hold ex-officio positions on the committee. It is not required that an individual be present in order to be elected, however only those present may cast a vote. Individuals attending will be required to verify their voter registration within the city of Roanoke, either by providing their voter ID card or by submitting the last 4 digits of the social security number to permit credentials staff to assure registration. All participating individuals will also be required to sign a written pledge of support for Democratic Party nominees in the next scheduled election. A voluntary caucus filing fee will be charged, $25 for those filing to run for an officer position, and $10 for all others. The filing fee will be waived upon request for reason of financial hardship. Upon election, all members will owe dues in the amount of $30 for the 2018-2019 biennium, except that dues for elected officials will be $225.
Attached are 5 documents, including the formal Call to Caucus, the temporary rules of the caucus (which may be amended by the caucus by majority vote), a prefiling form for those wishing to be considered for an officer position, a filing form for all others wishing to be elected to the committee, and and a set of guidelines for members, which may be of assistance to both new and old members. Those who plan to run for an officer position must prefile as instructed on the form not later than noon, Tuesday, December 12. Those considering any other position on the committee will be required to fill out a filing form on the day of the caucus (so there will be opportunity to ask questions about the nature of the positions before deciding whether to file).
A few changes have recently been made to the RCDC bylaws that will impact the reorganization caucus. Those wishing to read or download a copy of the bylaws can find it atroanokedems.com, under the documents tab. One important change is that there will not be any at-large members elected at the reorganization. At large memberships may be considered by the new committee after it is constituted, if there is demand for such positions. Those elected at the reorganization will be expected to fill either an officer position, a district leader position, a precinct captain position or an assistant precinct captain position. Descriptions of these positions are included in the member guidelines document. In short, every committee member will have a defined job to do. Assistant precinct captain positions have been added to lighten the burden on the precinct captains. The number of assistant precinct captains is variable, depending upon the Democratic vote in each precinct in the 2017 general election. The 7 new districts are Northwest (including the Peters Creek and Eureka Park precincts, with a total of 10 members), North (including the Grandview, Preston Park and Summit Hills precincts, with a total of 9 members), East (including the Southeast, Hollins Rd., East Gate, Forest Park and Williamson Rd. precincts, with a total of 11 members), North Central (including the Lincoln Terrace, Virginia Heights-Norwich and Highland precincts, with a total of 11 members), South Central (including the Raleigh Court and Old Southwest-Wasena precincts, with a total of 9 members), South (including the South Roanoke, Crystal Spring and Garden City precincts, with a total of 9 members) and Southwest (including the Lee-Hi, Deyerle and Grandin Court precincts, with a total of 11 members). Another change is the introduction of Associate Memberships. An associate member will have all membership priveleges with the exception of voting at committee meetings, and will owe dues of $10 for the biennium. Associate members do not need to be elected and do not need to be registered voters in the city of Roanoke.
We encourage those receiving this message to forward it widely to anyone who may have interest in RCDC membership. We look forward to a robust reorganization meeting, and a great two years ahead working for our values and our candidates
Thanks,
Mark Lazar
Secretary, Roanoke City Democratic Committee