- HOME
- About
- Topics
- Angelides
- Arnold Schwarzenegger
- California Attorney General Race
- California Congressional Races
- California Democratic Party
- California Governor Race 2010
- California Legislative Races
- California Lt. Governor Race
- California Secretary of State Race
- California State Budget
- California State Controller
- Campaign Finance Reform
- Campaigns
- Cell Phones
- Children and Families
- Consumer Rights
- Corporate Accountability
- Criminal Justice
- Death With Dignity
- Disaster Preparation
- Discrimination and Civil Rights
- Education
- Elections and Voting
- Electoral College
- Energy
- Environment
- Farm Animal Cruelty Ballot Measure
- Flood Control
- Food Safety
- Gas Prices
- Governor's Election Race
- Gun control
- Health Care
- Health Insurance
- Hiram Johnson's Corner
- Housing
- Human Rights
- Humor
- Immigration
- Infrastructure
- Initiative Reform
- Insurance Commissioner Race
- Labor
- Language and Politics
- Legal System
- Media and Communication
- Minimum Wage
- Open Government
- Pharmaceutical Companies
- Politics
- Preschool
- Presidential Election 2008
- Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act Prop
- Prison Reform
- Privacy
- Privitization
- Prop 11-Redistricting/Reapportionment
- Prop 1A--High Speed Rail
- Prop 2--Treatment of Farm Animals
- Prop 3-Children's Hospital Bonds
- Prop 4 Waiting Period and Parental Notification
- Prop 5--Non-violent drug offenses
- Prop 7 and 10-Alternative Fuel and Energy Bond
- Prop 8 and-Marriage Equality
- Prop 85 Parental Notification
- Prop 86 Tobacco Tax
- Prop 87--Alternative Energy
- Prop 9 Parole
- Prop 90
- Prop 91--Transportation Funding
- Prop 92- Community Colleges
- Prop 93--Term Limits
- Props 94-97--Tribal Gaming
- Props 98 and 99
- Racial Disparities
- Responsible Lending
- Retirement Benefits
- Site of the Day
- Solar Initiative
- Structure of California Government
- Taxes
- Toxic Chemicals
- Transportation/Transit
- Water
- Westly
- Workers' Compensation
- Stories
- Cavala: A Constitutional Convention for California?
- Eight Years From Bush v. Gore to Palin: The Bridge to Nowhere
- California Proposition 11: Redistricting Commission – YES
- What Does a Republican Running in an Increasingly Democratic District Do? Why Aghazarian Wants to Make Legislative Races Non-Partisan
- Prop 1A and High Speed Rail's Role in Fighting Dependence on Oil and Sprawl in California
- Schwarzenegger Vetoes Bill Recommended By Autism Commission
- Governor Schwarzenegger Can Put a Dent in Auto Repair Fraud and Protect Consumers by Signing AB 2825
- California Assembly District 26: Republican Refuses to Debate Eisenhut in Close Race Democrats May Pick Up
- Bankruptcy Relief and the Bailout
- A Renewed Call for Mortgage Reform in California
- Preschool Legislation Aimed at Closing the Achievement Gap in California Becomes Law
- Debate: Opening Advantage Obama
- Directory
- Donate
- Contact Us
RSS Advertise Here
Deliver your message to thousands of readers every day.
Our readers are influential opinion makers - politicians, journalists and activists.
Our latest headlines
- California Wildfires and the Urgency of Combating Climate Change
- California Education Cuts in the Year After the “Year of Education”
- A Breeze of Fresh Air from Washington D.C. To California? Waxman and Dingell Battle Today--Reactions to Obama's Climate Remarks—Schwarzenegger Calls Them “Fantastic”
- Stronger Renewable Energy Goals For California: Schwarzenegger’s Executive Order and Where We Go From Here
- Dear Speaker Pelosi, Can California Have $25 Billion?
- California Democratic Party Meeting Last Weekend a Window to the Future and Areas That Need Improvement
- Save the Renter’s Tax Credit for Seniors Eliminated by Schwarzenegger’s Blue Pencil
About Us
The California Progress Report is published by Frank D. Russo, a longtime observer of and participant in California politics.
About Frank Russo.
About California Progress Report.
Got a news tip? Want to write a guest column? Contact Frank here.
Sponsors
Books
California State Democratic Party Digging Out from Avalanche of Papers Submitted to Run for State Delegates: Elections on January 13 and 14
By Frank D. Russo
A happy but weary Robert Jordan, Deputy Director of the California State Democratic Party, reported that over the 2100 applications from those running for the State Central Committee (DSCC) have been received as of the deadline Wednesday evening. He doesn't even know the exact number of candidates for the 960 slots that are to be elected the weekend of January 13 and 14 at 80 Assembly District caucuses. The number could climb still higher, as he and other party officials are verifying the applications and comparing the information from them with the California Secretary of State's voter file.
"It's overwhelming, especially in heavy Democratic Districts," Jordan said. This is the first time that the party has required candidates to file in advance of the caucus meetings. In past years, any Democrat registered in an Assembly District could simply show up and announce they were running at the time of the election.
Each Assembly District elects 12 members to the Democratic State Central Committee, or "delegates," as they are called. That totals 960, which is roughly a third of the body that sets the policies for the California Democratic Party at annual conventions. The other two thirds of delegates are chosen by County Central Committees, whose members are elected in the June primary, and by those selected by Democratic officeholders and nominees according to various formulas and distributions.
If, in any Assembly District the requisite 12 candidates have not filed, the ones who have already filed are automatically elected and when the caucuses are held in a little over a week, others may file at the meeting and run. The only district known at the present time to not have sufficient candidates is the rock ribbed Republican Second Assembly District, where most of the seats have not been applied for, but there may be a few others lacking the even dozen that will rule.
Jordan expects to have the list up on the CDP website as early as today, but it may not be until Monday that he can accomplish this. "A few folks are in Washington, D.C. today" for the historic swearing in of Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the US House, he advised.
There is renewed interest in the party, particularly from the progressive caucus, and there is a website, ProgressiveSlate.com , which has information on how how to find your Assembly District, and other useful information as to why you should run or attend these caucus meetings to vote.
The California Democratic Party is governed by the DSCC, membership of which is a two-year position going from odd-year Convention to odd-year Convention. Starting with the November 2006 election, the state party starts its reorganization, determining the new DSCC, which meets for the first time at the April 27-29, 2007 Convention in San Diego. As the DSCC members meet annually at the State Party Conventions, they are also referred to as delegates to the State Party.
DSCC members vote on the party platform, revitalize the party operation and machinery, and vote for specific candidate endorsements. This is a real opportunity to get progressives and reformers into the state party to attempt to steer it in a direction that is more responsive to the grassroots, more engaged with the electorate, and generally more functional and successful in elections and achieving the party's goals.
To vote in the AD Election Meeting, you must be a registered Democrat in the Assembly District by the time of the close of registration for the Nov 2006 election. The only exceptions are for persons who turned 18 or were naturalized as citizens after the close of registration - those persons can register on-site as Democrats and participate. A $5 registration fee will be collected from all voting participants, to help defray meeting costs. This registration fee will be waived for those participants who claim economic hardship.
If you are not sure which Assembly District you are in, please take a look at information provided by the official California Democratic Party site: Statewide Maps of Assembly Districts
or you can use a district locator, by putting in your voter registration address.
To find out meeting times/dates/locations, click here to go to the official California Democratic Party site.
The times listed are when the doors for the meeting will open and registration begins. One hour after the listed time, registration will close and unless you are in line, you will not be able to vote if you have not yet registered. At this point, the meeting will then begin. You do not have to stay for the entire meeting in order to cast your ballots. But you may want to as it is fun to see old friends and neighbors--and celebrate the November victories one more time.
Comments
This is great news. Hopefully, it is indicative of renewed interest in the direction of the CA Democratic Party.
Thanks for the post and the run down of procedures.
Posted by: Randy Bayne at January 5, 2007 09:20 AM
Post a comment
Get Email Updates
Want the California Progress Report by email? Once a week, we'll send you the latest and greatest headlines.
© 2008 California Progress Report Our copyright and fair use policy.
Powered by Mandate Media. Logo design by Jane Norling.
