The Rulesof theTexas

DemocraticParty

State Democratic Executive Committee4818 E. Ben White Blvd., Suite 104

Austin, TX 78741512-478-9800

www.txdemocrats.org

2015-2016as adopted June 2014

Paid for by the Texas Democratic Party www.txdemocrats.org This communication not authorized by any candidate or candidates committee.

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RULES OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF TEXASI. STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

A. Beliefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4B. Declarations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

II. NAME, MEMBERSHIP AND OFFICERS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4A. Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4B. Membership . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4C. Party Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

III. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5A. Duties of Executive Committees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5B. General Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5C. Election Matters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

1. Certification of Candidates2. Referendum Issues

D. State Democratic Executive Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61. Officers2. SDEC Members3. Removal4. Advisory Committee

E. County Executive Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81. Members2. Officers3. Qualifications4. Election Procedure5. Vacancies6. Duties and Responsibilities7. Meetings8. Expenditure of Funds9. County Executive Committee Quorum

10. Meeting of the County Executive CommitteeF. District Executive Committee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

1. Members2. Officers3. Duties4. Other District Committees5. Meetings

G. Precinct Executive Committee for the Purpose of Filling a Commissioneror Justice or Constable Precinct Candidate Vacancy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

H. Removal From Office for Endorsing Opposing Party or Candidate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11I. Duties of District Committees in Special Elections . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

IV. PARTY CONVENTIONS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13A. General Rules Governing Party Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

1. Compliance with Rules2. Publicizing Meetings3. Rules4. Voting5. Media6. Minority Reports7. Resolutions8. Rules

Table of Contents

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9. Petition Requirements10. Presidential Preference11. Balancing Delegations12. Ex-Officio Delegates13. Public Officials14. Nominations15. Non-Attendance at Prior Convention16. Appearing at Committees17. Establishment of Districts18. Succession of Delegates at National Conventions19. Actions Recommended at the Statutory Meeting of the County Executive Committee in

December of odd years and Required to be completed by January 31 of even numbered yearsB. County and Senatorial Conventions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

1. Time and Place2. Conditions for Holding Senatorial District Convention3. Qualifications and Eligibility to Participate4. Temporary Roll5. Committees6. Resolutions7. Rules8. Convention Officers9. Order of Business

10. Election of Delegates and Alternates from County and Senate District to the State Convention11. Election Procedure in Non-Presidential Years12. Determination of At-Large Delegates and Alternates13. Delegation Chair

C. State Convention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191. Time and Place2. Notice3. Eligibility to Participate4. Purpose5. Officers and Committees6. Order of Business7. Presidential Preference Poll in Presidential Years8. Election of National Delegates/Alternates9. Election of National Committee Members

10. Election of Presidential Elector Candidates11. Succession of Alternates to Delegate Status

V. CHALLENGES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24VI. ADOPTION, STATUS, AMENDMENT, PUBLICIZING OF RULES

AND PARLIAMENTARY PROCEDURE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25A. Adoption and Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25B. Amendment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25C. Publicizing of Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25D. Parliamentary Authority . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

VII. NATIONAL DELEGATE SELECTION RULES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25A. Delegates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25B. Alternates . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26C. Succession of Alternates to Delegate Status . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26D. Guidelines for Representation of the Delegation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

PARLIAMENTARY PROCEDURE AT A GLANCE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

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RULES OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY OF TEXASARTICLE I

STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLESThe Texas Democratic Party hereby adopts the following Statementof Principles as the foundation for Party activities at all levels:A. BeliefsWe believe that the Democratic Party, with its great diversity, its flex-ibility of organization, its historic adaptability to fruitful change, andits instinctive responsiveness to human needs and aspirations, canprovide the leadership required in these challenging times. We fur-ther believe:

1. That we must join together with a renewed faith in our coun-try, in our state, and in our Party to provide our people withresponsive, responsible government;

2. That government functions best when it is closest to thepeople;

3. That our government is and should be of laws and not offavoritism or of arbitrary caprice, and therefore we condemnany resolution of conflicts, save through legal processes;

4. That the Texas Democratic Party stands for law and order,for total and unceasing war against crime, for strengthen-ing law enforcement agencies, and for justice under law;

5. That all citizens, no matter what their religion or race or howhumble or exalted their origin or station, have the duty toparticipate fully at every level of government and are en-titled to an equal voice and to equal treatment at its hands;

6. That all Democrats are bound to defend, to protect, and tohonor our nation, our state, and our Party, and that whenthey are right, it is our privilege to sustain them, but whenthey err, it is our duty to correct them; and

7. That, as Democrats, we are proud and upright citizens ofthe United States, that we are determined not only to serveour country, but also to stand shoulder to shoulder with citi-zens of other states in providing meaningful, responsible,and constructive leadership for our great nation.

B. DeclarationsTo achieve these principles, we hereby make these declarations andadopt the following Rules to govern Party activities at all levels:

1. No test of membership in, nor oaths of loyalty to, the TexasDemocratic Party shall be required or used if it has the ef-fect of requiring prospective or current members of theDemocratic Party to acquiesce in, condone, or support dis-crimination on the grounds of race, sex, sexual orientation,gender identity, age, color, creed, national origin, religion,ethnic identity, economic status or disability. Further, dis-crimination on the grounds of race, sex, sexual orientation,gender identity, age, color, creed, national origin, religion,ethnic identity, economic status or disability in the conductof the Democratic Party affairs is prohibited.

2. The Democratic Party at all levels shall support the broad-est possible voter registration and participation without dis-crimination on the grounds of race, sex, sexual orientation,gender identity, age, color, creed, national origin, religion,ethnic identity, economic status or disability.

3. It shall be the duty of the State Chair and Party Officers atall levels to take affirmative steps to encourage young

people, women and minorities to seek selection as Delegatesto Party Conventions and as members of Party Committeesso that they shall be represented in reasonable relationshipto their presence in the state.

4. Every person who accepts a Party office at any level (in-cluding the position of Convention Delegate and Alternate)must agree to support all of the Partys nominees or shallbe removed.

5. Public meetings at all levels of the Texas Democratic Partyshall be open to all members of the Party, regardless of race,sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, color, creed,national origin, religion, ethnic identity, economic status,philosophical persuasion or disability.

6. The time and place of all meetings of the Texas DemocraticParty at all levels shall be publicized fully and in such man-ner as to assure timely notice to all interested persons. Suchmeetings shall be held in places accessible to all Party mem-bers and large enough to accommodate all interested per-sons.

7. The Texas Democratic Party shall publicize fully and insuch manner as to assure notice to all interested parties acomplete description of the legal and practical qualificationsand procedures for selecting Democratic Party Officers andRepresentatives at all levels. Publication of these proceduresshall be done timely and in such a fashion that all prospec-tive and current members of the Democratic Party and allprospective candidates or applicants will be fully and ad-equately informed of the pertinent procedures in time to par-ticipate in each selection procedure at each level of theDemocratic Party organization and to compete for anyelected or appointed position.

ARTICLE IINAME, MEMBERSHIP AND OFFICERS

A. NameThe name of this Party shall be the Texas Democratic Party or sim-ply the Democratic Party or just the Party.B. Membership

1. Any qualified Texas voter 18 years of age or older whosupports the foregoing Statement of Principles of theDemocratic Party may participate fully in any Partymeetings and may be elected to any Party Office, exceptwhere specifically prohibited by law or by Party Rules.

2. Any other persons who support the foregoing Statementof Principles of the Democratic Party are encouraged toparticipate in Party activities but may not vote.

C. Party Officers1. All Party Officers shall be residents of the precinct, district

or other political subdivision which they represent, andmoving residence outside the precinct, district or other po-litical subdivision shall constitute an automatic vacancy.

2. The Party Officers covered by this provision include pre-cinct chair, county chair, SDEC representative, State Chair,convention delegates and alternates, and any other officerelected by a Party committee or convention.

3. Acceptance by any person of a Party Office and participa-tion in that capacity constitutes an agreement to the provi-

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sion in the Statement of Principles that every person whoaccepts a Party Office at any level (including the positions ofConvention Delegate and Alternate) must agree to supportall of the Partys nominees or shall be subject to removal.

ARTICLE IIIEXECUTIVE COMMITTEES

It is a basic and fundamental precept of the Texas Democratic Partythat always, and at all levels, there shall be no secret ballots, thereshall be no fees charged for voting, and the meetings shall be open.A. Duties of Executive Committees

1. The State Democratic Executive Committee (the SDEC)shall carry on the activities of the Party between State Con-ventions in compliance with the law and with the directivesof the Convention.

2. Other executive committees acting at the County level, theDistrict level or any other level shall discharge their dutiesin compliance with the law and with the Party Rules.

B. General Rules1. At all times and at all levels of the Democratic Party, no

secret ballots shall be used, no fees shall be charged for vot-ing, and the meetings shall be open.

2. Committee meetings shall be held as required by law or bythese Rules and called by the Committee Chair or by a peti-tion in writing signed by at least 51% of the Committeemembership.

3. At all Party Committee meetings other than Conventions,County Executive Committees and Convention Caucuses,40% of the Committee membership shall constitute a quo-rum. If the meeting is to fill a vacancy in the office of pre-cinct chair, the quorum shall be 25% of the committee mem-bership. A majority participation of the Committee mem-bership shall be required for a quorum to fill a vacancy inthe office of county chair, as specified in State law.

4. Unless otherwise required by statute or by these Rules, thecurrent edition of Roberts Rules of Order, Newly Revised,shall be the parliamentary authority governing all PartyCommittee meetings and procedures.

5. The method of voting at all Party Committee meetings maybe by voice vote, by (standing) division of the house, bysigned written ballot, or by roll call vote. The method usedshall be left to the discretion of the Chair, except that onrequest of any member (who need not be recognized by theChair to voice such request), a standing division must beheld, and the request of 10% of the members present shallrequire a roll call vote.

6. Minutes of each meeting shall be furnished to each Com-mittee member at or prior to the next Committee meeting.

7. Proxy voting shall be permitted at SDEC meetings; pro-vided, however, no person may hold or vote more than oneproxy. Proxy holders for senatorial district representativeson the SDEC must reside in the same district as the mem-ber assigning the proxy. Proxy holders for representativesof organizations must be members of the organization. Noproxy voting shall be permitted at meetings of any County,District or Precinct Committee (Allowed by Texas ElectionCode 171.026).

8. No action of a subcommittee or any standing committeeshall replace or supersede the actions or authority of the

Committee as a whole, and any actions by subcommitteesshall be subject to review and revision by the superior au-thority of the full Committee at its subsequent meetings.

9. Upon the vote of 20% of the members of any Party Com-mittee, a minority report can be prepared and presented. Aminority report may be submitted for consideration eitherby way of amendment or as a substitute for a majority re-port.

10. All Party Executive Committees and Sub-committees arepermitted to conduct non-public sessions to consider finan-cial, legal or strategic matters or to review information pro-prietary to other groups or individuals. However, no votesor formal action may be taken except in public meetings.

C. Election Matters1. Certification of Candidates. The SDEC shall certify the

name of each candidate to appear on the primary ballot ordelegate such certification to the State Chair. At the closeof the filing period for candidates to be on the primary bal-lot, the State Chair shall certify to each County the listingon the Secretary of State website of the name of each can-didate certified to appear on the primary ballot in thatcounty. ( Required in Texas Election Code 172.028)

2. Referendum Issues.a. Qualified voters may by petition require a referendum

issue to be placed on the primary election ballot. Suchpetitions must be filed with the State Chair during thesame filing period applicable to candidates for federal,state, and county office. In addition to the requirementsmandated by state law (Required by Texas ElectionCode 172.088), all petitions must contain the follow-ing wording and information:

An oath or affiliation to the Party as part of the petitionstatement to read as follows:If I sign this petition, I hereby affiliate myself with theTexas Democratic Party, and I swear or affirm that during[insert election year] I will support the nominees of theDemocratic Party and that I will not vote in a primary elec-tion or participate in a convention of another political partyduring [insert election year].I further acknowledge that the purpose of this petition is torequire the Texas Democratic Party to place the proposaldescribed below on the ballot for the [election date] Demo-cratic Primary Election.[signatures]Sworn to (or affirmed) and signed before me theundersigned authority on this the _____ day of_________________.

________________________________

Signature of person administering oath________________________________

Printed name of person administering oath________________________________

Address of person administering oath________________________________

Telephone # of person administering oath________________________________

Title of office and county of residence of personadministering oath.

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b. The person administering the oath may be either: ajudge, clerk or commissioner of any court of record;a notary public; a justice of the peace; the Secretaryof State of Texas; any member of the SDEC; anymember of the County Executive Committee for thecounty in which the person signing the petition re-sides; or a person expressly authorized in writing toadminister the oath by the State Chair or a CountyChair for the county in which the person signing thepetition resides. The State Chair and any such CountyChair shall keep as a permanent part of party recordsa true copy of any such authorization. Each personadministering the oath must sign in the place shown,and print his or her name, address, office and countyof residence.

c. The form of the petition, including a description ofthe proposal that is to be submitted, the spacing andtype-size and instructions to comply with this Rulemust be approved by the State Chair. The oath of thepetition signer and the description of the proposalshall be in bold type.

d. The State Chair is hereby delegated all other authoritynecessary to effectuate this Rule.

e. The SDEC shall prescribe the wording of the proposi-tion submitting a proposal. ( Required by Texas Elec-tion Code 172.088(g)).

f. The petition shall be in both English and Spanish.D. State Democratic Executive Committee

1. Officers.a. Election. The State Convention in gubernatorial years

shall elect a State Chair. The Convention also shall electa First Vice Chair of the opposite sex from the StateChair, a Vice Chair for Finance, a Secretary, and aTreasurer. These shall be the officers of the SDEC, andthey shall be elected for a four-year term at the stateconvention held in gubernatorial election years or untiltheir successors are elected. (Required by Texas Elec-tion Code 171.002(c) )(1) In order to be qualified for any Texas Democratic

Party office enumerated in Article III, D.1 (a) acandidate must file a Declaration of Candidacy forthe specific office no later than 62 days prior tothe Call to Order of that years Texas DemocraticConvention.

(2) The filing must be physically received in the TexasDemocratic Party office no later than 6 PM on the62nd day. Should the 62nd day fall on a weekendor holiday the filing period shall be extended to 6PM on the next regular business day.

(3) There shall be no filing fee or petitions associatedwith a Declaration of Candidacy for any officesubject to this section.

(4) Should there be only one candidate appropriatelyfiled for any office subject to this section and thatcandidate withdraws, becomes incapacitated or isdisqualified prior to the State Convention the dec-laration period shall be reopened for 30 days,from the date of official notice of the change instatus or through the State Convention whichevercomes first.

b. Voting. On statutory matters, only the State Chair andFirst Vice Chair may vote; otherwise, on all other mat-ters all officers may vote.

c. State Chair. The State Chair shall be the principal andpresiding officer of the SDEC, shall have all of the au-thority and duties implied by such title and expressedor implied by these Rules, and shall have the authorityto establish and to appoint committees with the adviceand consent of the SDEC and deal with the affairs ofthe Party.

d. First Vice Chair. The First Vice Chair shall assist theState Chair and shall have the duties and authority im-plied by such title or assigned by the Chair or by theSDEC. The First Vice Chair shall preside over meetingsof the SDEC in the absence of the State Chair and shallfill any ex-officio position created for Party Vice Chairs,including membership on the National Committee.

e. Vice Chair for Finance. The Vice Chair for Financeshall have responsibilities for fundraising under the di-rection of the State Chair and shall have other duties andresponsibilities assigned by the Chair or by the SDEC.

f. Secretary. The Secretary shall have the duties and au-thority implied by such title.

g. Treasurer. The Treasurers duties shall be to present afinancial report at each SDEC meeting and to performduties assigned by the State Chair. The disbursementof funds shall be the responsibility of the State Chairor of the Chairs designee(s), provided that thedesignee(s) be approved by the SDEC.

h. Standing SDEC Committee Membership. Members ofstanding SDEC committees will be appointed by theState Chair with the advice and consent of the SDEC.The State Chair will appoint one chair and one vice co-chair who will be gender balanced, and the members ofeach of the committees will elect a second vice co-chair.

i. Operating Budget. The State Chair shall submit an an-nual operating budget to the SDEC Finance Committeefor approval by the full SDEC at the first SDEC meetingfollowing January 1st of each year. In no event shall anyTDP staff or officer, other than the State Chair, incur anydebt on behalf of the Texas Democratic Party not autho-rized by the operating budget. In addition, any expendi-ture, proposal or project which would exceed a line itemin the submitted annual operating budget by $10,000,including but not limited to additional staff or pay raises,requires a majority vote of the State Chair, First ViceChair, Vice Chair for Finance, Secretary, Treasurer,SDEC Finance Committee Chair, and SDEC FinanceCommittee Co- Chair before the funds may be expendedor the obligation incurred.

j. Audit. The State Chair shall cause an audit of the fi-nancial records of the SDEC to be made by a certifiedpublic accountant at least once each calendar year. Acopy of the report of such audit shall be furnished toeach member and officer of the SDEC.

k. Officer Vacancies. When a vacancy occurs in any ofthese offices between State Conventions, a majority ofthe members of the SDEC shall elect a successor, whoneed not be a current member of the SDEC. Membersshall receive written notice issued by the State Chair,or if that office be vacant, by the First Vice Chair, at

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least two weeks prior to the meeting at which an elec-tion will be held. Any member of the SDEC may nomi-nate a candidate for the vacant office. When an interimvacancy in the office of the State Chair is filled by theSDEC, the term of office for the interim Chair shall befor the duration of the unexpired term.

2. SDEC Members.a. Membership. The SDEC shall be composed of two

members elected from every senatorial district and thefollowing additional members:two from the Texas Democratic County ChairsAssociation,two from the Texas Young Democrats,one from the Senatorial Democratic Caucus (non-voting),one from the House Democratic Caucus (non-voting),two from the Texas Democratic Women,two from the Texas Coalition of Black Democrats,two from the Hispanic Caucus,two from the Non-Urban/Agriculture Caucus,two from the Stonewall Democrats,two from the Texas Environmental Democrats,two from the Democrats with Disabilities,two from the Asian American Democrats of Texas, andtwo from the Texas Veterans Organization.

b. Election from Senatorial Districts. The two membersfrom every senatorial district shall be elected by theState Convention held in even-numbered years. Oneman and one woman from each senatorial district shallbe recommended by the Delegates from the countiescomposing the respective senatorial districts. Eachcounty shall vote its full Convention strength dividedproportionately among its Delegates present. In a multi-county senatorial district, the Delegates should striveto provide geographical representation by recommend-ing their committeeman and committeewoman to befrom different counties; this is not a mandate.

c. Organization Representatives. The chair or presidentand the next highest ranking officer of the oppositegender of the organizations (excepting Texas Demo-cratic Women) providing additional members on theSDEC shall serve as the representative members of theSDEC; provided that, for the Hispanic Caucus, the rep-resentative members shall be two representativeselected at the State Convention. In the event that anysuch person already is a member of the SDEC, the nexthighest ranking officer of the same sex shall be the ad-ditional member. They shall participate in the proceed-ings of the SDEC insofar as the Texas Election Codewill permit.

d. Caucus Representatives. The members representingthe Senatorial Democratic Caucus and the HouseDemocratic Caucus shall be non-voting, ex-officiomembers selected by their respective caucuses.

e. Terms. SDEC members shall serve until their succes-sors take office, which shall be on adjournment of theState Convention at which the new members are elected.

f. SDEC Vacancies. When a vacancy occurs on theSDEC, the vacancy shall be filled by the majority voteof the members of the SDEC. The new member shallbe an eligible person of the same sex and from the samesenatorial district as the vacating member. The Senato-rial District Committee of the affected district shallmeet to nominate a person for such position. The StateChair shall mail written notice of the meeting to con-sider such nomination to the members of the Senato-rial District Committee and, if known, the Chair of theaffected districts Senatorial District Caucus at the lastState Convention, at least two weeks prior to the meet-ing. The Committee shall report its nominee to theSDEC. A vacancy shall be filled no later than the nextmeeting of the SDEC following written notice of thevacancy by at least five weeks.

g. Meetings. Two statutory meetings of the SDEC shallbe held in even-numbered years: on the secondWednesday after the general election primary day andnot later than the second Saturday after the runoff pri-mary election day. (Required by Texas Election Code 172.120)

h. Caucus/Organization Representative Vacancy.When a Caucus/Organization Representative vacancyoccurs, then:(1) If representing an organization, the organization

can name a replacement with the same gender ofthe person removed subject to ratification by theSDEC; or

(2) If representing a caucus that only meets at StateConvention, that seat will remain vacant until thenext scheduled convention, at which time the cau-cus shall elect its representatives.

3. Removal.a. In addition to the procedures under Article III.H., any

State Party Officer, including a member of the SDEC,may be removed for good cause by a two-thirds voteof the SDEC membership. All members must receivewritten notice from the State Chair at least 30 days be-fore any meeting at which a removal will be consid-ered. Balloting may not be done by mail.

b. For removal of an SDEC member, one-third of themembers of the SDEC or one-third of either the Sena-torial District Committee or the Delegates to the StateConvention from the Senatorial District at which themember was last elected must petition for removal ofthe SDEC member before proceedings shall be broughtbefore the SDEC.

c. A member of the SDEC who misses two SDEC meet-ings, without sending a proxy, shall be removed and avacancy shall occur.

d. For removal of other State Party Officers, either one-third of the members of the SDEC or one third of theCounty Chairs, or one-third of the Delegates to the StateConvention at which the Officer was last elected mustpetition for the removal of the State Party Officer beforeremoval proceedings shall be brought before the SDEC.

e. In the event that the State Chair is subject to petitionfor removal under this section, then the First Vice Chairshall give notice of said petition to the SDEC and giveproper notice by mail of said meeting.

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4. Advisory Committee. The Texas Democratic Party Advi-sory Committee is created to provide an issues forum andan advisory group to the SDEC.a. It shall consist of the following:

(1) the elected officers of the SDEC;(2) a Co-Chair to preside over this Committee with the

State Chair. The Co-Chair shall be nominated bythe State Chair and shall be approved by a major-ity vote of the SDEC;

(3) the participating groups, loyal to the principles ofthe Democratic Party and approved by the SDEC,shall be statewide caucuses and organizations ofthe Texas Democratic Party or the State Conven-tion. Each participating group will elect two del-egates and two alternates, balanced by genderwhere appropriate, at the State Convention.

b. The Advisory Committee will meet twice a year at thecall of the State Chair and the Co-Chair or a majorityof the committee members.

c. The SDEC shall govern any fundraising activities andexpenditures. Contributions and disbursements shall bemade through the Texas Democratic Party for properaccounting and reporting under Party Rules and relatedstate and federal laws.

d. The SDEC, as necessary, may provide additional rulesand guidelines. The Rules of the Texas DemocraticParty shall apply to the Advisory Committee. Proxyvoting shall not be permitted.

e. All members shall serve terms of two years commenc-ing after each State Convention.

E. County Executive Committee1. Members.

a. Each county shall have a County Executive Commit-tee composed of a County Chair and of one PrecinctChair from each election precinct in the county. (Re-quired by Texas Election Code 171.022)

b. These members shall be elected by majority vote in theParty Primary Election held in even-numbered years.The County Chair shall be elected by the qualified vot-ers of the county, and the Precinct Chairs by the quali-fied voters of their respective precincts.

c. The term of office for members of the County Execu-tive Committee shall begin on the twentieth day fol-lowing the Runoff Primary and shall continue for twoyears or until their successors are elected and certified.(Required by Texas Election Code 171.022(c))

d. Acting Precinct Chair Appointment Upon Failure of theElected Chair to Perform Duties.(1) If an incumbent Precinct Chair has failed to per-

form his or her duties for an extended period oftime or missed three consecutive county executivecommittee meetings, the County Chair may ap-point an Acting Precinct Chair. The County Chairmay determine if such lack of performance of theincumbent Precinct Chairs duties or the incum-bent Precinct Chairs three consecutive absencesrise to a level to give written notice to the incum-bent Precinct Chair to start the process of appoint-ing an Acting Precinct Chair.

(2) The incumbent Precinct Chair must be given writ-ten notice by registered mail that an Acting Pre-cinct Chair will assume the duties of the PrecinctChair for the remainder of the Precinct Chairsterm. The written notice must include the specificperformance of duty for an extended period of timethat the incumbent Precinct Chair is alleged tohave neglected or failed to perform or the specificthree consecutive county executive committeemeetings the incumbent Precinct Chair has missed.The notice must include an outline of how theCounty Chair came to his or her determination thatit warranted an Acting Precinct Chairs appoint-ment and that if an Acting Precinct Chair were tobe appointed the incumbent Precinct Chair wouldstill maintain his or her statutory responsibilities.The written notice must specifically include themailing address where a response to the writtennotice may be made. The written notice must alsospecifically note that the incumbent Precinct Chairhas ten business days to respond and that the in-cumbent Precinct Chair may at any time notify theCounty Chair that the incumbent Precinct Chairwill resume performing any of the duties of thePrecinct Chair. The written notice must include acopy of the Party Rules Article III, Section E(1)(d). A defect in the written notice would invali-date the process and require the County Chair toreissue correct written notice and restart the tenbusiness days response time in order to cure suchdefects.

(3) If the incumbent Precinct Chair does not respondin writing within ten business days of the writtennotice, the Acting Precinct Chair may be appointedby the County Chair and shall assume the non-statutory responsibilities of the incumbent PrecinctChair, including participation in executive commit-tee meetings and votes. These duties, however,shall not include participating in any votes or ac-tions required by state statute. A County Chair canonly appoint an Acting Precinct Chair if the incum-bent Precinct Chair does not respond to the writ-ten notice within ten business days. An Acting Pre-cinct Chair must meet all the qualifications by stat-ute of a Precinct Chair.

(4) If the incumbent Precinct Chair notifies the CountyChair within ten business days of the written no-tice, then the County Chair cannot appoint an Act-ing Precinct Chair and the incumbent PrecinctChair still retains all duties and responsibilities ofa precinct chair. Any written response, short of theincumbent Precinct Chairs resignation would bea sufficient response to the written notice.

(5) The incumbent Precinct Chair shall always havevoting authority over the Acting Precinct Chair. Ifthe incumbent Precinct Chair notifies the CountyChair any time after the ten business days of thewritten notice, even after the appointment of anActing Precinct Chair, that that incumbent PrecinctChair will resume performing his or her duties,then the Acting Chair shall defer to the elected in-cumbent Precinct Chair in all duties and responsi-bilities and the position of Acting Precinct Chairshall be vacated. The County Chair shall notify theActing Precinct Chair in writing that the Precinct

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Chair is resuming his/her duties. The County Chairshall encourage the volunteer formerly serving asActing Precinct Chair to continue any activity re-lated to voter education, registration, voter identi-fication, and get-out-the-vote effort in the precinctand make available to the volunteer any material,data system, or similar information or material.

e. A County Chair or Precinct Chair who has been electedby the voters or has been appointed to fill a vacancy mustbe posted to the website of the Secretary of State. TheCounty Chair, County Executive Committee Secretary,or their designee shall add any Chair who is appointedand remove any Chair who resigns during the term oftheir office. The list as posted on the Texas Secretary ofState website shall be the official members of the CountyExecutive Committee for all purposes outlined underthese Rules and Texas statutory requirements.

f. Subsection (e) is operative upon the beginning of the2014 term of office and this section (f) shall sunsetupon that date.

2. Officers.a. The County Executive Committee may elect or appoint

a Secretary, who need not be a member of the Commit-tee. The Secretary legally is authorized to receive appli-cations for a place on the Primary ballot, and an applica-tion received by the Secretary shall be filed officially.

b. The term of office of the Secretary, if one is elected orappointed, shall run concurrently with the term of of-fice of the County Executive Committee.

c. The combined amount of any compensation paid fromthe Primary fund to the Secretary and the Chair for theirservices shall in no case exceed the lesser of $8,000.00or 5% of the amount actually spent for necessary ex-penses in holding the Primary Election for that year, ex-clusive of the compensation paid to the Chair and Sec-retary. (Required by Texas Election Code 173.004)

d. The County Executive Committee may, by majorityvote, adopt continuing rules for the conduct of its busi-ness, so long as they are not prohibited by law or arenot inconsistent with these Party Rules. Such rules shallbe filed with the State Chair.

3. Qualifications. Democrats 18 years of age or older are eli-gible for the offices of Precinct Chair or County Chair, pro-vided they meet the following criteria:a. They are qualified voters (Required by Texas Election

Code 161.005 (a)(1)) and voted in the most recentDemocratic Primary, not including runoffs, or signedan oath of affiliation:Oath of Affiliation:I swear that I have not voted in a primary election orparticipated in a convention of another party during thisvoting year. I hereby affiliate myself with the ________Party.; and

b. They are not candidates for, nor holders of, an electiveoffice of the federal, state, or county government (Re-quired by Texas Election Code 161.005(a)(2)); and

c. They are residents of the precinct or county from whichthey seek election (Required by Texas Election Code171.023(a) and 161.005(a)(1)).

4. Election Procedure.a. A qualified Party member may become a candidate for

County or Precinct Chair by filing a written applica-tion in the county using a form which shall be providedby the County Chair upon request.

b. In addition, qualified Party members filing for the of-fice of County Chair in a county with a population of 1million or more shall include a petition containing thesignatures of 10 percent of the current, incumbent Pre-cinct Chairs serving on the County Executive Commit-tee in the county using a form which shall be providedby the State Party. The petition shall contain thecandidates sworn oath that the signatures thereon arevalid and that each was signed in the presence of thecandidate or candidates representative. (Required byTexas Election Code 172.021(f)).

c. The application, and petition, if applicable, shall besigned and duly acknowledged by the candidate andthen filed with the County Chair or with the Secretaryof the County Executive Committee if there is one. (Re-quired by Texas Election Code 171.022(a) (2),172.021 and 172.023). A copy of the petition (if appli-cable) also shall be filed with the State Chair.

d. The application shall state the candidates occupation,county of residence, post office address, date of birth,and the office sought. The petition (if applicable) shallinclude the Precinct Chairs signature, name, post officeaddress and precinct number. A Precinct Chair may notsign the petition of more than one candidate for the sameoffice in the same election. (Required by Texas ElectionCode 141.066) By signing the petition, the PrecinctChair is supporting the County Chair candidates appear-ance on the primary ballot, not the actual candidate.

e. Applications, and petitions, if applicable, shall be filedno later than 6 p.m. on the deadline for candidate filingfor the Primary Election. This deadline shall be ex-tended until the next working day if it falls on a week-end or a holiday.

f. An application mailed but not received by this dead-line shall not be accepted. (Required by Texas Elec-tion Code 172.021(c) and 172.023)

g. No later than the day before the filing deadline, theCounty Chair shall post on the county or state partysInternet website, a notice of the address at which theCounty Chair or the Secretary will be available to re-ceive applications on the last day of the filing period.(Required by Texas Election Code 172.022)

h. Write-in votes for Precinct and County Chair are per-mitted by law in the First Primary election, whether ornot there are other candidates for these offices on the bal-lot. Only those votes cast for a County Chair or PrecinctChair candidate who has filed an application for write-in candidacy may be counted. (Required by Texas Elec-tion Code 171.0231). Write-in votes, however, are notallowed in the Second or Runoff Primary election.(Required by Texas Election Code 172.112)

i. No later than 20 days after the local canvass, theCounty Chair shall post on the Texas Secretary of Statewebsite, the name, address, and precinct number ofeach Precinct and County Chair elected. (Texas Elec-tion Code 172.118

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5. Vacancies.a. When a vacancy occurs in the office of County Chair,

the outgoing County Chair or the Secretary of theCounty Executive Committee may call a meeting to fillthe vacancy at any time after it occurs. Upon the writ-ten request of any Committee member, however, theSecretary shall call one for a date not more than 20 daysafter receiving the request, giving each member noticeof the time, place, and purpose. Should a CommitteeSecretary fail to act after being requested in writing todo so, the State Chair shall call the meeting in like man-ner. The officer calling the meeting shall designate aTemporary Chair to preside until the new PermanentChair is elected. (Texas Election Code 171.025)

b. A County Chair may appoint a person to fill a precinctvacancy at any time. A County Chair shall delete fromthe Secretary of State website the name of any CountyExecutive Committee Member who resigns, dies, orvacates the position. The appointed chair shall assumethe position upon appointment. The County ExecutiveCommittee shall confirm those appointed at the nextbusiness meeting of the committee. Any vacancy on theCommittee shall be ratified by majority vote of theCounty Executive Committee at a meeting at which a25% of the membership shall constitute a quorum; orthe Executive Committee, when a business quorum ispresent may call for a vote by mail, listing the precinctchairs to be appointed on a published ballot sent to allof its membership, to be signed and returned by a stateddeadline (in keeping with the requirement that theTexas Democratic Party does not permit secret ballots)and provided that the vote will not be valid unless 25%of the membership have returned their signed ballots.The results of the votes shall be published within 7 daysafter the stated deadline. [Optional by Texas ElectionCode 171.024] ) If there is an additional candidate atthe time of a ratification vote, then the County Execu-tive Committee shall default to conducting a precinctchair election per its rules, and not conduct a ratifica-tion vote of the County Chairs appointment. Notice ofthe replacement chairs name and address shall bepromptly posted on the Secretary of State website. Un-til confirmed by the County Executive Committee, theappointed precinct chair has only the non-statutory re-sponsibilities of a precinct chair.

c. When the precinct boundaries are changed between pri-mary elections and only one Precinct Chair resideswithin the new precinct, that Chair shall continue theterm of office. If more than one Chair or if none re-sides within the new precinct, however, the office au-tomatically shall become vacant and shall be filled asprovided herein. (Required by Texas Election Code171.023)

d. Changes in precinct boundaries made by the Commis-sioners Court shall not become effective to alter mem-bership of the County Executive Committee until Feb-ruary 1 after the changes are ordered. (Required byTexas Election Code 171.023)

6. Duties and Responsibilities.a. Statutory duties of the County Executive Committee

include collecting filing fees (Required by Texas Elec-tion Code 172.021 and 172.022); appointing watch-ers (Required by Texas Election Code 33.03); deter-

mining the order of names on the ballot (Required byTexas Election Code 172.082 and 172.084); canvass-ing primary results (Required by Texas Election Code172.116); and setting and publicizing times and placesfor Precinct and County and Senatorial District andState Conventions (Required by Election Code174.022 and 174.063). Additional required respon-sibilities are outlined in the Texas Election Code inChapters 171, 172, 173, and 174 as well as Sections31.032, 32.006, 32.034, 32.093, 32.111, 34.007,42.009, 43.003, 51.002, 51.003, 51.035, 52.002,123.001, 123.033, 124.065, 125.031, 143.033, and145.036.

b. In addition to its statutory duties, the County Execu-tive Committee shall have primary responsibility forplanning and for coordinating the General Electioncampaigns of the Democratic Partys nominees withinthe county. In the case of nominees running for officein districts which include areas outside of the county,the County Executive Committee shall work with theSenatorial District Committee (as described in ArticleIII.F. below). This responsibility shall include raisingfunds for conducting local campaigns, supporting thestatewide effort for the entire ticket, producing materi-als and coordinating local services for all Democraticcampaigns.

c. The County Executive Committee may establish suchcommittees as it deems appropriate to carry out its non-statutory duties and may elect or appoint committeemembers who are not members of the County Execu-tive Committee. Unless the County ExecutiveCommittees continuing rules provide for such commit-tees to elect their own Chair, the Chair of such com-mittees may be elected or appointed by the County Ex-ecutive Committee. The term of office of the Chair ofsuch committees shall run concurrently with the termof office of the County Executive Committee.

7. Meetings.a. Three statutory meetings of the County Executive

Committee shall be held: in December of odd-num-bered years, on or before the second Friday after theFirst Primary, and on or before the second Friday afterthe Runoff Primary.

b. Precinct Chairs shall be notified by written or electronicmail notice at least five days in advance of all meet-ings, excluding emergency situations.

8. Expenditure of Funds. Expenditure of funds by the CountyExecutive Committee, unless otherwise specified by law,shall require the approval of at least 51% of its memberspresent.

9. County Executive Committee Quorum. Non-StatutoryBusiness At County Executive Committee (CEC) meet-ings, the quorum for conducting non-statutory business shallconsist of not less than 25% of the membership, excludingvacancies.

10. Meeting of the County Executive Committee. The CountyExecutive Committee (CEC) shall meet at least quarterlythroughout the two year term between elections. Statutorymeetings called for by the Texas Election Code may becounted toward the quarterly meeting requirement of theCEC. The County Executive Committee (CEC) meetingsshall not be scheduled during the week of the biennial state

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convention and county/Senatorial district convention, ex-cept to a) fill a ballot vacancy, b) endorse a candidate in aspecial election or c) if the nature of the business is suchthat it cannot wait until the adjournment of that convention.If a county chair fails to issue a written call for a CountyExecutive Committee meeting within six months of the pre-vious County Executive Committee meeting, 25% of themembers of the CEC may call a CEC meeting by writtendemand. Notice of such meeting, including an agenda of thebusiness to be considered, shall be mailed or sent by elec-tronic mail to all members of the county executive commit-tee at least fourteen (14) days prior to the date of the meet-ing and shall state the time, date and place and the namesof the persons issuing the call. The County Executive Com-mittee meetings shall be chaired by the County Chair. If theCounty Chair is not present, then the Secretary or any quali-fied Democrat may conduct the meeting.

F. District Executive Committee1. Members. Each senatorial district shall have a Senatorial

District Executive Committee, sometimes referred to as theDistrict Committee, to be formed as follows:a. In a senatorial district composed of only a part of one

county, the Precinct Chairs within the district shall con-stitute the District Committee. No later than the statu-tory meeting of the County Executive Committee inJanuary, such Precinct Chairs shall elect one of theirnumbers to serve as Chair of their District Committee.(Texas Election Code 171.053)

b. For a senatorial district composed entirely of one wholecounty, the County Executive Committee shall consti-tute the District Committee, and the County Chair shallbe the District Chair. (Texas Election Code171.052)

c. For a senatorial district made up of more than onecounty or parts of more than one county, the DistrictCommittees membership shall include the CountyChair of each county wholly contained within that dis-trict and one District Committee member elected fromamong their number by each group of Precinct Chairswithin a portion of a county included in such senato-rial district. The District Committee thus formed shallelect its own Chair. The District Committee memberso elected by the group (or committee) of PrecinctChairs (from only part of a county included in such amulti-county district) shall be and act also as Chair ofsuch group or committee of Precinct Chairs. (Requiredby Texas Election Code171.054)

2. Officers.a. A District Committee may elect officers in order to ac-

complish its business. Any Democrat qualified to holdParty office may hold any District Committee officeother than that of Chair. Chairs must be either a Pre-cinct or County Chair.

b. Within 3 days after the meeting of each County Execu-tive Committee at which District Committee membersare elected, each County Chair shall forward to theState Chair the names and addresses of the DistrictCommittee members and of the District Chair selectedat the meeting. (Required by Texas Election Code171.053(a) and 171.054(b))

3. Duties. District Committees shall have those responsibili-ties assigned by Texas statutes, such as filling certain va-

cancies in nominations for District officials. (Required byTexas Election Code, Chapter 145) They also shall be re-sponsible for any duties in connection with Party activitieswhich may be assigned by the SDEC. They may and should,on their own initiative, undertake such efforts on behalf ofthe Party and its candidates which are appropriate on thedistrict level.

4. Other District Committees. Certain statutory provisionsoccasionally may require specific action by a District Com-mittee, other than those based on state senatorial districts.The membership of such District Committees shall be de-termined by the same general rules applying to the forma-tion of Senatorial District Committees, except that the geo-graphical boundaries used shall be those pertaining to therelevant district.

5. Meetings. When a District Committee composed of morethan one county or of parts of more than one county mustmeet and organize before it has a permanent District Chairas provided in these Rules, the State Chair shall designateone member of the District Committee to serve as Tempo-rary Chair to call the meeting to order and to preside untilthe Committee elects its own Chair. The permanent DistrictChair so elected shall serve for the remainder of the term ofoffice and shall call any subsequent meetings held duringthat time. (Required by Texas Election Code171.054(1)(e))

G. Precinct Executive Committee For the Purpose of Filling aCommissioner or Justice or Constable Precinct CandidateVacancy

At a meeting called by the County Chair to fill a Commissioner Pre-cinct or Justice Precinct vacancy, the Precinct Chairs in each Com-missioner precinct and each Justice precinct shall select one of theirnumber to serve as Chair of a Precinct Executive Committee for eachrespective Commissioner precinct and Justice precinct. The PrecinctChairs of the election precincts within the Commissioner precinct orJustice precinct shall constitute the Precinct Executive Committee.However, if any such precinct contains fewer than three county elec-tion precincts, the County Executive Committee shall be the PrecinctExecutive Committee and the County Chair shall serve as Chair ofthe Committee. (Required by Texas Election Code 171.071,171.072, and 171.073)H. Removal From Office For Endorsing Opposing Party or

Candidate1. A Party Officer shall be removed from office if during the

current term of office such officer publicly supports or en-dorses an opposing party or nominee of an opposing party,a person seeking the nomination of an opposing party, or anon-Democratic candidate seeking an office in an electionin which candidates may file by party affiliation and aDemocrat is seeking the office in question.

2. The terms publicly supports and endorses shall include,but not be limited to, serving on a campaign committee; giv-ing financial support, including contributing money or itsequivalent such as equipment loans, services or supplies;willingly and knowingly allowing the officers name to beused in any kind of letter, public endorsement, news release,or advertisement; or actively soliciting votes by making apublic appearance or a door-to-door solicitation of votes.

3. The following procedure shall be used for removal of aParty Officer:

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a. A complaint may be filed only by a qualified voter whomust be a Democrat and who resides in the politicalsubdivision represented by the subject officer.

b. Complaints concerning a State Party Officer or SDECmember, a National Committee member, or a Senato-rial District Chair or a County Chair shall be filed withthe State Chair. Complaints concerning other Party Of-ficers (except convention delegates) shall be filed withthe County Chair.

c. Immediately upon receiving a written complaint, to-gether with specific evidence that a Party Officer has vio-lated this rule, the appropriate Chair shall notify the sub-ject Party Officer by certified mail, return receipt re-quested, deliver to addressee only, stating the nature ofthe complaint and the evidence submitted and providinga copy of these rules. The subject Party Officer shall beadvised that unless he or she delivers to the appropriateChair within ten (10) days after receiving the notice awritten denial signed by the Party Officer specificallydenying the claims, the appropriate Chair shall declarethe office held by such Party Officer vacant.

d. If the Party Officer fails to deliver the written responseas required above, the Chair immediately shall declarethe office held by such Party Officer to be vacant.

e. If the Party Officer delivers a written denial to the ap-propriate Chair within the time prescribed above, theChair within five days thereafter shall determinewhether the denial fairly and specifically denies the al-legations in the complaint.

f. A Chair who determines that the denial does not fairlyand specifically deny the allegation shall declare theoffice held by such Party Officer to be vacant, and theChair immediately shall mail written notice of such de-cision to the Party Officer and the complaining person.

4. Either party may seek review of the decision or action takenby a County Chair by filing a written request with the StateChair within 10 days after receiving notice of the CountyChairs decision. If the County Chair fails to mail a noticeof the decision required above within 21 days from the datethe notification of the complaint was mailed to the PartyOfficer, the complaining party may seek review by the StateChair by filing a written request within 10 days after the21-day period.

5. No vacancy shall be filled during the time allowed to re-quest review or while a review is under consideration.

6. Within 10 days after receiving a request for review, theState Chair shall determine whether the action or inactionof the County Chair shall be sustained or reversed. The onlygrounds for review shall be:a. Whether the complaint against the Party Officer fairly

and specifically states an allegation of conduct violat-ing these Rules;

b. Whether the response filed by the Party Officer fairly andspecifically denies the allegations in the complaint; and

c. Whether there are procedural deficiencies, includingfailure to follow the notice requirements, involvinghandling the complaint.

7. The State Chair immediately shall mail written notice of thedecision regarding the review to the County Chair, to theParty Officer, and to the complaining person. If the State

Chairs decision declares a vacancy, the County Chair shallinitiate the steps necessary to fill it.

8. If a County Chair fails to send the original notice required bysection 3(c) above within three days after receiving a com-plaint, the complaining person may present the complaint tothe State Chair, who, upon receiving the complaint, shall as-sume the duties of the County Chair prescribed above.

9. Any Party Officer so removed shall be ineligible to serveas a Party Officer for the remainder of that term.

I. Duties of District Committees in Special Elections1. When for any reason a vacancy occurs in an office requir-

ing a special election, the appropriate District Committeeshall meet at the call of the State Chair for the purpose ofconsidering the endorsement of a candidate for the open of-fice. A District Committee may endorse a candidate in aspecial election, even if more than one Democrat is seekingelection.

2. The District Committee shall be composed of the samemembers who would convene to fill a statutory ballot va-cancy for the open office. The State Chair or the StateChairs designee shall preside over the meeting, and a Sec-retary shall be elected by the Committee to keep and pre-pare minutes.

3. The Chair shall provide at least 72 hours notice of the meet-ing after learning a vacancy has occurred or shall occur. Inno case shall a meeting be called later than 14 days afterthe actual occurrence of the vacancy.

4. As the first order of business, balloting for or against an en-dorsement shall be conducted by recorded roll call vote orsigned paper ballot. If an endorsement is approved, the sameprocedure shall be utilized in voting on candidates for theendorsement.

5. A candidate receiving a two-thirds vote of those presentshall become the endorsed Democratic Party candidate inthe special election. If no candidate receives a two-thirdsvote on the first ballot, balloting shall continue until onecandidate receives a two-thirds vote. If no candidate has re-ceived a two-thirds vote after the fifth ballot, the low votegetter will be removed from the list of eligible candidatesbefore the sixth ballot is taken and this procedure will con-tinue with every succeeding ballot until one candidate re-ceives a two-thirds vote. If a tie shall occur between the bot-tom two vote-getters on or after the fifth ballot, there willbe a coin flip with the loser being removed from the eli-gible list before the next ballot. In the event that five bal-lots between only two candidates does not result in one can-didate receiving a two-thirds vote, the candidate receivingthe majority vote shall be endorsed. If an unresolvable tieoccurs (one lasting through five ballots) between the top twovote-getters, then the meeting shall be adjourned and thereshall be no formally endorsed Democratic Party candidate.A majority of the District Committee can petition the StateChair to re-convene the Committee at any time up to tendays prior to the election.

6. The District Committees endorsed candidate will receivethe help and support of the Democratic Party as if he or shewere the Democratic nominee in the General Election. Theprovisions of the Party Rules allowing for removal of PartyOfficers for failure to support the Democratic nominee shallnot apply to an officer supporting a Democrat other thanthe one endorsed through this process.

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ARTICLE IVPARTY CONVENTIONS

It is a basic and fundamental precept of the Texas Democratic Partythat always, and at all levels, there shall be no secret ballots, thereshall be no fees charged for voting, and the meetings shall be open.A. General Rules Governing Party Conventions

1. Compliance with Rules. Delegates to all Party Conventionsshall be selected in accordance with state law and with theseParty Rules and in compliance with the rules, regulations,and official directives of the previous National Conventionand of the Democratic National Committee, as such direc-tives pertain to the next National Convention.

2. Publicizing Meetings. The State Party, in conjunction withCounty Parties, shall develop a plan to publicize the Countyand Senatorial District Conventions prior to the Primary andon the day of the Primary Election. The notice shall beposted at the polling place on election day and include thetime, place and purpose of the convention. Such notice shallalso contain the URL of the State Party website for prereg-istering to attend the precinct convention at the county orsenatorial convention.

3. Rules.a. It shall be the duty of the presiding officer at the open-

ing of each convention to explain the rules governingthat convention and the ways in which convention ac-tions will influence important Party actions and deci-sions at subsequent convention levels.

b. The current edition of Roberts Rules of Order, NewlyRevised, shall govern parliamentary procedure in allconventions, caucuses, and convention committees, ex-cept where contrary rules or procedures are specifiedin these Party Rules or by state law.

c. A copy of all standing Party Rules which pertain to theconduct of the State Convention shall be printed in theofficial program of such Convention to be distributedto each Delegate during registration and shall be postedon the State Party website.

d. The specific time and place for each State ConventionCommittee to meet shall be established in advance ofthe Convention. This information shall be printed in theappropriate place in the official Convention programdistributed to delegates prior to the opening of the Con-vention and shall be posted on the State Party website.

e. The State Chair, any Permanent Standing Committees,or any duly-elected Party Officer shall be empoweredto charge a nominal fee, which is to be no greater thanthe unit cost of printing and postage, for any materialsrequired by these Rules to be provided to interested per-sons on request.

f. In any precinct in which a ballot is required by law tobe printed in English and any language other than En-glish, any precinct convention in a presidential electionyear may be conducted in English and in each suchother language. If needed, an attendee may bring at-tendants or interpreters (language or sign language) oftheir choice, and the attendants and interpreters neednot comply with the requirements of Article 4, SectionB4 or be a delegate or alternate to the convention.

g. In any County or Senatorial District that contains oneor more precincts subject to Subsection (f), the countyor Senatorial district convention may be conducted inEnglish and each such other language required by Sub-section (f). If needed, an attendee may bring attendantsor interpreters (language or sign language) of theirchoice, and the attendants and interpreters need notcomply with the requirements of Article 4, Section B4or be a delegate or alternate to the convention.

4. Voting.a. Methods of Voting. The following methods of voting

may be used in all conventions, caucuses, and conven-tion committees: voice vote, (standing) division of thehouse, roll call vote, teller vote or signed written bal-lot. Unless otherwise specified in these Rules, the pre-siding officer may determine the voting method to beused on each particular question, except that on requestof any qualified participant (who need not be recog-nized by the chair to voice such request), a standingdivision vote must be held, and the request of one-fifthof the qualified participants shall require a roll call vote.

b. Secret ballots are specifically prohibited.c. Roll Call Votes. The Rules on roll call votes shall be

as follows: In a Precinct Convention, the roll shall bethe list of all qualified Party members present; in aCounty or Senatorial District Convention, the list of allprecincts within that county or senatorial district; andin the State Convention, the list of senatorial districtswithin the state. A motion to require a roll call voteshall take precedence over any other item of business.

d. Voting For Officers. Voting for the following PartyOfficers, if there be more than one nominee, shall beby roll call or by written ballot. A written ballot shallrecord each delegates name, county, Senatorial districtand delegates choice of candidate. Each Officer shallbe voted on separately and not as a slate: PermanentChair of the State Convention, (if the State Chair is ab-sent or declines the position), Chair of the SDEC(State Party Chair in these Rules), and National Com-mitteemen and Committeewomen.

e. Unit Rule. The use of the unit rule or the practice ofinstructing delegations shall not be permitted at anylevel of the convention process.

f. Proxy Voting. Proxy voting may only be used in thecase of absence of all delegates from a county at a stateconvention. In any case, a county delegation must haveheld and filed minutes from their county convention tobe eligible to be represented by proxy. No proxies fromany county shall be recognized at any convention orcaucus, so long as there is a Delegate present to castthe vote of the county. No person shall be permitted tohold or to vote a proxy for more than one county. Aproxy for an absent county delegation must be filed inwriting or by electronic means with the State Chair be-fore the state convention is called to order at the meet-ing of the state executive committee. A proxy may alsobe filed with the State Chair or Delegation Chair by thelast remaining delegate from a county at the State Con-vention before said delegate leaves the Convention.(Optional by Texas Election Code 174.096)

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g. Voting Full Delegate Strength.(1) Each multi-county Senatorial district shall vote

the full Delegate strength to which it is entitled,divided proportionately among the counties in at-tendance according to each countys votingstrength within the district. (Optional by TexasElection Code 174.096)

(2) Each unit at each Convention shall vote the fullDelegate strength to which it is entitled, dividedproportionately to the vote of its Delegates in at-tendance. (Optional by Texas Election Code174.068 and 174.096) The voting strength ofeach county in the Senatorial District or CountyCaucus shall be the same as the vote of that countyon the floor of the Convention.

(3) For any county which has no Delegates present inperson or by proxy, those votes shall be appor-tioned based upon the vote of the Senatorial Dis-trict so that the Senatorial District can vote its fullDelegate strength.

5. Media. Representatives of the news media shall have theright to attend all conventions for purposes of reporting theproceedings. (Required by Texas Election Code 174.002)

6. Minority Reports. Upon the vote of 20% of the Delegatesto any convention or the members of any convention com-mittee, a minority report shall be prepared and presented tothe convention as a whole. Such minority report may besubmitted to the convention for consideration either by wayof amendment or as a substitute for a majority report; pro-vided, however, that additional nominations for any Partyoffice always may be made from the floor of the conven-tion by any Delegate, except where Delegates or Party Of-ficers are elected by smaller units or are subject to differentrequirements as provided in these Rules.

7. Resolutions. In order to be considered at State Convention,a written resolution must either have passed at a county orsenatorial district convention or have been referred favor-ably to the Convention through the petition process.

8. Rules. In order to be considered at State Convention, a pro-posed rule change must either have passed at a county orsenatorial district convention or have been referred favor-ably to the Convention through the petition process.

9. Petition Requirements. A petition signed by 20% of theDelegates attending any convention, other than the StateConvention, shall automatically place a specified item ofbusiness on that Conventions agenda.

10. Presidential Preference. In presidential years, all personsnominated for Delegate or Alternate or for any Party Com-mittee dealing with the Delegate selection process shallmake known their presidential preference or uncommittedstatus to the relevant assembly prior to their election.

11. Balancing Delegations.a. In selecting Delegates and Alternates at all levels, the

Nominations Committee and the Convention itself shallmake every effort to select persons in the district orstate so that the delegation as a whole shall reasonablyreflect the presidential preferences (in presidentialyears), include young people and people with disabili-ties, and reflect diversity in race, sex, gender identity,ethnicity, and sexual orientation.

b. At least one-third of the Delegates and one-third of theAlternates of any delegation elected at any level shall beof the gender opposite to that of the rest of the delegation.

12. Ex-Officio Delegates.a. There shall be no automatic ex-officio Delegates in-

cluded in convention delegations at any level, exceptthat members of the Democratic National Committee,Officers and members of the SDEC, DemocraticCounty Chairs and former Texas State DemocraticParty Chairs shall serve as ex-officio voting Delegatesto all conventions held by the Texas Democratic Party.These ex-officio Delegates shall be added on as a partof their County or Senatorial District delegation. Theyshall not be replaced with an Alternate in their absence.In years when redistricting has changed district bound-aries and numbers, SDEC members shall have the op-tion of having their automatic delegate position be toeither the district in which they were elected or to theirnew geographic district. In redistricting years, auto-matic delegates will inform the State Chair of theirSenatorial District choice by no later than the SDECmeeting immediately preceding the State Convention.

b. Any Democratic officeholder of any state or federal of-fice may attend any Democratic Convention governedby these Rules, at any level, without being a Delegateor Alternate, and may exercise all floor privileges ex-cept voting. These floor privileges shall include speak-ing on any question and serving as a Convention Of-ficer. (Required by Texas Election Code 174.097)

13. Public Officials. No person shall be ineligible to run forthe position of Delegate or Alternate by reason of holdingany public office.

14. Nominations.a. From the Floor. In case there are floor nominations to

fill an office that is to be held by more than one person(such as National Committeeman or Committeewomanor At-Large Delegate to a higher Convention), a per-son making a floor nomination shall identify both thefloor nominee and nominee of the Nominations Com-mittee against whom the floor nominee will be running.Proportional representation mandated by other Rulesshall not be violated by the nomination or election offloor nominees.

b. Closing Nominations. Unless otherwise stated in theseRules, nominations may not be closed until either nofurther nominations are forthcoming from the floor ora motion to close nominations has passed by a two-thirds vote. Such a motion, however, shall not be in or-der until a reasonable time has elapsed.

15. Non-Attendance at Prior Convention. No one shall bebarred from election as a Delegate or Alternate to any con-vention because of nonattendance at that or any precedingconvention, if such nominee otherwise qualifies for the post.

16. Appearing at Committees. Any Delegate attending anyconvention shall have the right to appear before any Con-vention Committee to make recommendations, either orallyor in writing, before the Committee takes final action on itsreport. The Committee may establish by majority vote rea-sonable time limits for such presentations and shall allotequal time to all wishing to appear.

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17. Establishment of Districts. The respective districts fromwhich the members of Party Committees and ConventionDelegates at all levels are elected in any given voting yearwhether Delegates be elected by popular vote in the Prima-ries or by Party Convention shall be the same as the cor-responding districts used in the Primary and General Elec-tion of that voting year.

18. Succession of Delegates at National Conventions. Thesuccession of Alternate to Delegate status at National Con-ventions shall be governed by the following rules:a. A vacant Alternate position shall be filled by the Texas

Delegation. The replacement shall be of the same presi-dential preference, shall be from Texas, and otherwiseshall be eligible to serve as a Delegate.

b. A Delegate who is to be absent or resigns may selectfrom among the Alternates elected by the State Con-vention from which the Delegate was elected that par-ticular Alternate of the same presidential preference, ifpossible, who shall assume Delegate status.

c. When the Alternate is selected by the Delegate, the datefor determining that the Delegate and the Alternatehave the same preference shall be their preferences asof the date when the Delegate selects an Alternate.

19. Actions Recommended at the Statutory Meeting of theCounty Executive Committee in December of odd yearsand Required to be completed by January 31 of evennumbered years.A County Executive Committee (or Precinct Chairs withindistricts), pursuant to statute and these Rules shall:a. Determine and announce the time and location of the

County Convention or Senatorial District Convention.b. Group precincts within the county or Senatorial district

which did not contain sufficient votes for Governor inthe preceding gubernatorial election to qualify for adelegate to the state convention.

c. In counties with multiple Senatorial districts, elect aSenatorial District Chair and Secretary if not previouslydone.

d. In counties with multiple Senatorial districts, decidewhether there will be a Senatorial District Conventionheld in each Senatorial district, or whether two or moredistricts will meet at the same location.

B. County and Senatorial District Conventions1. Time and Place. Each County and Senatorial District Con-

vention shall be held on the third Saturday after the FirstPrimary; however, if that date occurs during Passover or onthe day following Good Friday, the Convention shall beheld on the next Saturday that does not occur during Pass-over or on the day following Good Friday. The Conventionshall be held in a place easily accessible to the public andlarge enough to accommodate all participants. (Optional inTexas Election Code 174.063)a. County Conventions. A County Convention shall be

held at a time of day and place set by the County Ex-ecutive Committee pursuant to the timeframe in Art.IV (A) (19) and be posted on the State Party websitecalendar and local party websites where available.

b. Senatorial District Conventions. Pursuant to thetimeframe in Art. IV (A) (19), the Precinct Chairs for

the election precincts which will select Delegates toeach Senatorial District Convention, or on their failureto act, the Senatorial District Chair shall determine theexact time and place where each respective SenatorialDistrict Convention shall be held. Each Chair shall postsuch order electronically on the county and state partysinternet website at least 10 days before the Convention.Should any Chair fail to post the order and to file thenotice, any member of the County Executive Commit-tee entitled to participate in the decision may post andfile such notice. Should more than one do so, the firstposting and filing in point of time shall prevail. (Re-quired by Texas Election Code 174.064)

2. Conditions for Holding Senatorial District Convention.a. When parts of one county belong to more than one

Senatorial district, there shall be held, in lieu of aCounty Convention, a District Convention for each partof the county falling into a different Senatorial district.

b. Any county containing portions of two or more Sena-torial districts may elect to combine the Senatorial Dis-trict Conventions of two or more adjoining Senatorialdistricts into a single County or sub-county RegionalConvention. The Precinct Chairs in each Senatorial dis-trict involved must, by majority vote, adopt a resolu-tion to hold such Convention at a meeting for which30 days prior notice has been mailed or sent by elec-tronic mail to all members of the County ExecutiveCommittee.

c. Any such Convention [referred to in foregoing para-graph (b) above] shall:(1) Elect Convention Committees proportionately rep-

resentative of each Senatorial district in attendance;(2) Group precincts solely within Senatorial districts;(3) Elect At-Large Delegates and Alternates from each

Senatorial district in such manner as to insure thateach Senatorial district receives its proportionatenumber of Delegates and Alternates and that suchDelegates and Alternates reflect the political pref-erence if any (in non-presidential years) or thepresidential preference (in presidential years) ofthat Senatorial district;

(4) Allow only members of a Senatorial district tomake nominations and vote on the election of At-Large Delegates and Alternates from that senato-rial district on the floor of the Convention.

3. Qualifications and Eligibility to Participate.Any qualified Democratic voter 18 years of age or olderwho resides in the county or senatorial district (as appli-cable) where the convention will be held and who has votedin the Democratic Primary, whether early, by mail, or inperson, or who signs an oath affiliation and has not votedin another partys primary, convention, or supported a can-didate of another party, shall be eligible to attend, to par-ticipate in, and to be a candidate for any Party Office or forany Delegate or Alternate position to be filled at that con-vention. (Texas Election Code 174.021)

4. Temporary Roll.a. To attend a Precinct, County or Senatorial District Con-

vention a person may preregister for the convention byelectronic means though an online registration system

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maintained on the state party website. Precinct, Countyand Senatorial District Chairs shall advertise and makethe registration site accessible through local websites.

b. The online registration shall require the persons name,voting address, city, and zip code. The system shall re-quire the county and voting precinct of each registrantand the voters unique identification number (VUID)as assigned on their voter registration. However, fail-ure to fill in one of these data items does not disqualifya participant from participating. It shall be the respon-sibility of the County or Senatorial District Chair ortheir designee to complete the registration form by add-ing missing data that is available through the Voter Ac-tion Network (VAN).

c. In a presidential election year, the registrant will make adeclaration of support for presidential candidates or astatement of uncommitted status. A person may changetheir presidential status until the Chair of the County orSenatorial District Convention has announced that reg-istration for precinct conventions has closed.

d. The online and in-person registration must include thestatement described by Texas Election Code Section162.004(a) and require a preregistering attendee to af-filiate with the party by taking the oath described inSection 162.007(b). By preregistering online, the reg-istrant shall affirm that they have read and attest to bothoaths.

e. The preregistration shall open on January 2 of the vot-ing year and close 48 hours prior to the county or sena-torial convention.

f. A person who does not preregister to attend a conven-tion under this section may register in person at the con-vention and must have voting rights identical to thoseof a person who preregistered.

g. Any person without access to the electronic registra-tion may register in writing with the County Chair.Such registration shall contain all the data elements re-quired in this section and shall include the statementsrequired by subsection (d) and an affirmation to theoaths. Upon receipt of written registration, the Chair ortheir designee shall enter the registration into the onlinesystem.

h. Each county chair or their designees shall have accessto download the list of preregistered convention attend-ees for their county or Senatorial district convention.

i. Each attendee at a county convention who has prereg-istered shall write their original signature on the list asthey arrive at the convention. All eligible persons whodid not preregister online shall have the right to regis-ter at their convention and provide all the required datain subsection (b) and an affirmation to the oaths.

j. The list of persons who preregistered or registered onsite shall become the temporary roll of the convention.Only those listed thereon may vote on the temporaryorganization of the Convention.

k. If for any reason, the preregistration roll is not availableor in a case of technology failure, the Chair shall allowon-site registration in writing for all attendees as long asall data elements to the extent possible from subsection(b) and the oaths in subsection (e) are maintained alongwith an original signature for each registrant.

5. Committees. Convention Committees shall be the Commit-tees on Credentials, Nominations, Platform and Resolutions,and Rules and Procedures. Each committee shall be com-posed of between 5 and 15 members. These committeesshall be appointed from among persons who have preregis-tered to attend the Convention by the County Chair or theSenatorial District Chair and ratified by the Precinct Chairswithin the respective conventions at the statutory meetingafter the First Primary.

6. Resolutions.a. Any person qualified or eligible to participate in the

Precinct, County or Senatorial District Convention maysubmit to the County or Senatorial District ConventionChair or a designee a proposed resolution for consider-ation by the Convention. Resolutions may be submit-ted to the Chair for referral to the Resolutions Com-mittee beginning on the date of the statutory meetingof the county executive committee after the First Pri-mary.

b. The Chair shall announce at the beginning of the con-vention where and with whom resolutions shall be filed.The period for filing resolutions shall be open for atleast one hour from the time of said announcement. TheConvention may waive this one hour period if there isno objection from any attendee.

c. The Committee on Resolutions may meet prior to theCall to Order of the County or Senatorial District Con-vention to organize their work and make preliminaryrecommendations of submitted resolutions.

7. Rules.a. Any person qualified or eligible to participate in the

Precinct, County or Senatorial District Convention maysubmit to the County or Senatorial District ConventionChair or a designee a proposed change to the TexasDemocratic Party Rules for consideration by the Con-vention. Proposed rules may be submitted to the Chairfor referral to the Rules Committee beginning on thedate of the statutory meeting of the county executivecommittee after the First Primary.

b. The County or Senatorial District Convention Chairshall announce at the beginning of the conventionwhere and with whom rules shall be filed. The periodfor filing proposed changes to the rules shall be openfor at least one hour from the time of said announce-ment. The Convention may waive this one hour periodif there is no objection from any attendee.

c. The Committee on Rules may meet prior to the Call toOrder of the County or Senatorial District Conventionto organize their work and make preliminary recom-mendations of proposed changes to the rules.

8. Convention Officers.a. The County or Senatorial District Convention Chair

shall submit the names and information about Del-egates and Alternates to the State Convention and allresolutions to the State Chair within five days after theConvention.

b. The County Chair shall be the chair of the County Con-vention unless the County Chair is absent or declinesthe position. In such case, the delegates shall elect fromamong themselves a chair by majority vote.

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c. Chair at Senatorial District Convention. The Chair ofthe Senatorial District Committee shall be the Chair in aSenatorial District Convention composed of only part ofone county. The Senatorial District Committee member(not to be confused with the SDEC member for the sena-torial district) shall be the Chair of the Senatorial Dis-trict Convention for a part of a county which is joinedwith another territory in a senatorial district. In the casethat the Chair of the Senatorial District Committee is ab-sent or declines the position, the delegates shall electfrom among themselves a chair by majority vote.

d. Submission of Delegate and Alternates. The Countyor Senatorial District Chair or their designee shall sub-mit the minutes of the convention and the list of Del-egates and Alternates to the State Convention throughan online electronic system on the website of the stateparty. The Chair shall retain a written copy of the min-utes which shall contain signatures of the County orSenatorial District Chair and the Secretary of the Con-vention. The Chair or Secretary should bring this origi-nal copy to the State Convention in the event a chal-lenge to the delegation occurs.

9. Order of Business. The order of business at County andSenatorial District Conventions shall be as follows:a. Call to Order.b. Establishment of Temporary Roll of Delegates. (Art. IV

B 4.)c. Report of Credentials Committee. The credentials re-

port shall include recommendations regarding chal-lenges of attendees and shall be considered accordingto the Rules in Article V, and shall be acted upon be-fore other business is considered.

d. Report of the Rules and Procedures Committee and ac-tion on its report.

e. Election from among those present of a ConventionChair if the C