This year it won’t be just a season, stormy weather expected all year long.
In a little over a month, you will be called upon to make critical decisions about our political leaders and the course of action for our country, state, and county. The presidential primary is March 5, and caucus for Weld County will be March 9, 10:00 a.m. This is an unusual year in that the presidential primary occurs before the caucus. Participation in caucus is still vital for many reasons. There will be statewide candidates to choose, precinct leaders to vote for, platform issues to submit and ballot issues to discuss. As a Democrat, your input is vital to determine our political future in so many areas. Mark your calendars now to be sure you are ready for this civic responsibility.
The caucus and also our assembly/convention will be virtual as it has been in the last few years. The virtual caucus allows for the most efficient use of our limited resources and volunteers as well as making it possible for many who cannot easily come long distances to participate. Hopefully, now after several years of this, the ease of attendance and voting will make both caucus and assembly a continued success.
Our assembly/convention will be held on March 16, 10:00 a.m. To be able to participate in the assembly/convention, you must have participated to some extent in caucus. Delegates to the assembly/convention will vote on who goes on to the additional assemblies, and more. Because Weld County shares so many districts with other counties, the multi-county assemblies to choose HD and SD candidates will occur later in April and be conducted by the State Party. The exception to this is HD 50 which is contained wholly within Weld County, and they will meet on March 16.
Speaking of HD and SD candidates. We need candidates for several district positions. We do not have a candidate for HD 64, HD 48, HD 63, or SD 23. We also have no candidates for county commissioners.
In the coming weeks, you will be receiving, by email, registration information regarding caucus. If however, we do not have access to your email address, registration for caucus may be more difficult. If you are unsure that we have your email address, and want to participate in caucus, please use this form or you can call our office, or send your email address to wd.centralcomm@gmail.com or info@weldcountydems.org.
Volunteers are the lifeblood of the Democratic Party. Very little can occur without the dedicated, unpaid and overworked volunteers. Would you be one of us? To be able to continue fighting for Democratic values in Colorado and especially Weld County, we need help. If you are even a little bit computer savvy, you could help with caucus and assembly. If you have some extra time, filling out postcards or making calls is a great help. Can you cook or are able to set up tables and chairs? Our events committee sure could use you. Can you answer the phone and take messages, answer questions, type a little and enter data? We need volunteers in our office. Do you like to walk, meet new people and old friends? We will need an army of canvassers, and we have several programs to train you. Same goes for registering people to vote, being an election judge or poll watcher. We will need hundreds. With apologies to George Bernard Shaw…Those who can, do; Those who cannot, donate (donating on a monthly or sustaining basis is best). That’s right. If you are busy, like everyone, donations go a long way in making the wheels of democracy turn. I know, as a busy mom, when the school wanted to have our kids sell something, or bake something, sometimes I would tell them, “Could I just write you a check?” Sometimes that is the best way to volunteer to just cut to the chase. However, dollars can’t always replace elbow grease and mental and physical muscle power. Frankly, we need both, and now more than ever. This is going to be the most expensive and important election cycle in our lifetimes. Think about how you can contribute. Again, the email addresses above are a great way to let us know you are reporting for duty, or you can call our office.
One of the best parts of my job is getting together with like-minded individuals, socializing over food and drinks and discussing how to solve the world’s problems, and who is best to take on that challenge. On March 3rd is an event that gives everyone the opportunity to meet and greet other Democrats for good times, good talks, good food and to find out what really is going on. On March 3, our annual Century Club fundraiser and meet-and-greet will be held at the Poudre Learning Center. This “happy hour” event will take place from 3-5 for drinks and hors d’oeuvres. We will have some great musical entertainment, and Colorado Attorney General, Phil Weiser, will be our guest speaker. We also will have candidates attending for you to get acquainted with, so you can make informed decisions and choices for the upcoming election season and delegates can campaign for upcoming events. As the name suggests, tickets to Century Club are $100. We ask that you secure your seats by February 29 using the ActBlue link or mail a check to: Weld County Democratic Party: 710 11th Avenue, Suite L10 Greeley CO 80631.
This is going to be a very demanding and probably contentious election year, and it begins now. Say a little prayer for all of us that it can go smoothly and that the outcomes are on the side of democracy, human rights and environmental protection and that sane adults are chosen to represent us. See you at caucus!
Beverly Wallace, Chair of the Weld County Democratic Party