2012 Democratic National Convention

Charlotte, North CarolinaSeptember 3rd-6th, 2012

Guide to the National Delegate Selection Process:

Democratic National Committee (DNC) 2012 Convention

• Massachusetts will send a total of 135 delegates and 9 Alternates to the Convention

• Together with other delegates from across the country, will nominate Barack Obama as the President of the United States

• September 3rd-6th, 2012

• Charlotte, North Carolina

Massachusetts Delegates to the Convention:

72 District-Level Delegates and 9 Alternates-Selected April 21, 2012 by Congressional District Caucuses

24 At-Large Delegates -Selected May 5, 2012 by the Democratic State Committee

14 Pledged Party Leader and Elected Official (PLEO) Delegates -Selected May 5, 2012 by the Democratic State

Committee

25 Unpledged Party Leader and Elected Official Delegates-Designated Elected Officials

• Massachusetts is allotted 72 District-Level Delegates and 9 Alternates

• To qualify, candidates must be registered Democrats by 8pm on February 15, 2012

– Any person who is a U.S. Citizen; and a Massachusetts resident; and is 18 years old can register to vote. In Massachusetts you can register to vote or join a Party if already registered, by mail or at any municipal office.

– Registration of Democrats shall be verified at each Congressional District caucus through recent official registration lists or by the presentation of certificates of party enrollment. Certificates can be picked up at any municipal clerk’s office

• Must file candidacy and pledge of support forms with the Democratic Party by 5pm, March 23, 2012.

District-Level Delegates

District-Level Delegate Assignments*:

*Post-Redistricting Changes

Districts

Delegates

Male       Female      Total

Alternates

Male      Female       Total

#1 4 4 8 

1 1

#2 4 4 8 1   1

#3 4 4 8   1 1

#4 4 4 8 1   1

#5 4 4 8   1 1

#6 4 4 8 1   1

#7 4 4 8   1 1

#8 4 4 8 1   1

#9 4 4 8   1 1

Total 36 36 72 4 5 9

On the Day of the Caucus:• District-level Delegates will be elected by Congressional

Caucuses on April 21, 2012

– Each congressional district will have a caucus on this day, time and location will be released sometime in February

– Caucuses will be held in newly re-drawn Congressional Districts. You can go to mass.gov to find new congressional maps and wheredoivotema.com to find your election information and district

• Each candidate will be allowed to make a two-minute speech and to distribute materials on his/her behalf at the Caucus– The provision to make a speech may be amended by 2/3 of those

present and voting

• All district-Level candidates must be present at the Congressional Caucuses to give consent to nomination

– Nomination must be seconded by two persons present at the caucus

– Persons must be registered Democrats within the District to nominate and vote

• Candidates and voters should plan to be at the Caucus for the entire day as several votes will take place on each ballot

Key Dates to Remember for District-Level Delegate and Alternate

Selection:

• January 16, 2012- Candidacy and pledge of support forms and filing instructions available

• Can be picked up in person from the Massachusetts Democratic Party office, by mail, or on the web at [www.massdems.org]

• February 15, 2012- by 8:00pm. Last day and hour to register to vote and/or change party enrollment for presidential primary

• Only registered Democrats shall be allowed to run as delegate or alternate, or to vote on any matter at the congressional caucuses

• March 6, 2012-Presidential Primary

• March 23, 2012- by 5:00pm. Deadline for filing statement of candidacy and pledge of support forms with the State Party

– Please note this is a hard and inflexible deadline. Materials must be in our hands by the deadline.

By Mail: Massachusetts Democratic Party c/o National Delegate Selection Process 77 Summer Street, 10th Floor, Boston MA

02110

At-Large Delegates:• Massachusetts is allotted 24 At-Large Delegates

• To qualify, candidates must file a statement of candidacy and a pledge of support for the presidential candidate with the state party by 5pm on April 13, 2012 (Please note this is a hard and inflexible deadline. Materials must be in our hands by the deadline)

By Mail: Massachusetts Democratic Party c/o National Delegate Selection Process 77 Summer Street, 10th Floor, Boston MA

02110

• Selections for At-Large Delegates will take place on May 5, 2012 by the Democratic State Committee

• At-Large delegates will be selected by the Democratic State Committee using the following procedure:

– The state chair will announce the candidates pledged to presidential candidate and call for a separate vote for each set of delegates

– The vote shall be taken by hand vote or signed ballot

– If no preference reaches a threshold to receive delegates; nominations would be accepted from the floor at the May 5, 2012 Democratic State Committee Meeting

Pledge Party Leader and Elected Official (PLEO)

• Massachusetts is allotted 14 PLEO Delegates

• Individuals eligible for PLEO delegate positions:– Big City Mayors– State-Wide Elected Officials– State legislative Leaders– Other state, county and local elected officials and party

leaders

Requirements:

• A candidate for PLEOs must file a statement of candidacy and a pledge of support with the Democratic State Committee by 5pm on April 13, 2012 – Please note this is a hard and inflexible deadline. Materials must be in

our hands by the deadline– File by 5:00pm on April 27, 2012 for those not elected at District-Level

• Selections for PLEOs Delegates will take place on May 5, 2012 by the Democratic State Committee

Unpledged Party Leaders and Elected Officials:

• Massachusetts is allotted 25 Unpledged Party Leader and Elected Official Delegates

• The following categories shall constitute the Unpledged Party Leaders and Elected Official delegate positions:

• Members of the Democratic National Committee who legally reside in the state (10)

• All of Massachusetts’ Democratic Members of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate (11)

• The Democratic Governor (1)• Distinguished Party Leader delegates who legally reside in the

state (3)

How to Run for Delegate: • Call your friends and family and ask them to attend the

caucus and vote for you– Must be registered Democrats in your district to vote

• Attend local town/ward committee meetings, social gatherings and introduce yourself (Go to www. mass dems.org to find a listing).

• Call your local Town/Ward Chairs to ask if they are attending. Listing can be found on www.massdems.org

• Create a flyer with your bio and why you should be elected as a delegate.

• Begin volunteering as early as possible for President Obama’s Re-election campaign (important for the campaign to know who you are)

For ways to volunteer Contact:

Carl Nilsson, Massachusetts State Director, Obama for America, 617-470-5664, CNilsson@barackobama.com

• You will need MANY (some have suggested at least 250, in some cases it might be more) committed registered Democratic supporters/voters from your district to come to the Delegate Election location, so encourage your family, friends, city/town Democratic committee members, your social/civic organization members to VOTE for you

• Create your own visibility materials, such as “hand-held” signs, “pamphlets” to hand-out at social events, city/town events, organizations/group events, and town/city Democratic meetings and events as well as the Delegate Caucus Selection

– Remember: You are running for an elected position, possibly against other elected officials

• Remember to keep speech at the Delegate Selection Caucus short.

– Focus on why you’re excited to support the President at the National Convention and why the voting body should elect you for one of the open MA Delegate seats

• You can team up with others to run Delegate slates

– Start having conversations with others in your congressional district who are interested in running

– Make sure you are committed to bring a number of people for your team

• Slates are allowed, but are not given any preference when voting. Every person needs to write down every name on the ballot

Commitment to Diversity• Consistent with the DemocraticParty’s commitment to including thehistorically underrepresented in theDemocratic Party’s Affairs, by virtueof race/ethnicity, age, sexualorientation or disability,Massachusetts has developed Partyoutreach programs. Such programsinclude recruitment, education andtraining, in order to achieve fullparticipation by such groups anddiversity in the delegate selection process and at all levels of Partyaffairs for 2012.

2012 DNC Delegation Goals**

White/Non-Hispanic

Black/Non-Hispanic

Asian/Pacific Islanders

Native Americans

Hispanic/Latino

% in MA Population

80.3% 8.3% 5.8% 1% 11.5%

Numeric Goals for Delegation

108 11 8 1 16

** Based on the 2010 Census Estimates, that do include Congressional District breakdowns, the following goals are set for the 2012 DNC Delegation

DNC Delegate Goals** Continued….Disabled Youth Gay/Lesbian/

Bisexual/Transgender

% Established by AAC

9% 22% 8%

Numeric Goals for Delegation

12 30 11

**Based on Massachusetts Office of Disabilities (MOD) estimate, voter file report, and Affirmative Action Committee Established percentage, the following goals are set for the 2012 DNC delegation

** MOD established criteria of some type of disability which restricts one from 30% of normal functioning daily. This percentage is an estimate. The AAC in good faith has established a goal which will reflect 50% of the estimate of the MOD

**Voter file report and 2012 US Census Data established the number of Youth (18-35) that are registered voters in 2008 as a percent of total registered voters.

**GLBT goals established by AAC in cooperation with the GLBT community.

At the Convention:• The Massachusetts Democratic Party will inform you of all

event details for the Convention– You will be able to rent a hotel room with the MA

delegation• The Massachusetts Democratic Party has no responsibility to

pay delegate expenses (i.e. Hotel Fees, Air Fare Cost, Delegate costs while in North Carolina, etc.)

• Persons elected as a National Delegate Representing Massachusetts should consider possible National Convention costs at between $4,000 to $6,000 in total expenses

Covering the Cost of the Convention: • You should begin “early” to develop a Fund Raising strategy

indentifying possible “groups/organizations” or “persons” who may have an interest in aiding you in funding your convention costs

– Members of the National Delegate Committee can provide you with fundraising ideas

• Arrange events/parties where you may charge the attendees an “admission price” or ask for a “donation” to aid you in offsetting your convention costs

– While fundraising, make sure that you abide by regulations. Public employees are not allowed to fundraise

For Additional Information on the 2012 Democratic National Convention

Visit: www.Charlottein2012.com

Special “Thank You” To:

• Our host organization today!!

• John Walsh, Chair, Massachusetts Democratic Party

• Clare Kelly, Executive Director, Massachusetts Democratic Party

• Russell Ashton, 2011-2012 National Delegate Selection Chairperson

• Melvin/Tina Poindexter, 2011-2012 National Delegate Selection Training Directors

• Steven Driscoll/Tom Barbera, 2011-2012 National Delegate Selection Fund Raising Directors

• And a very special “Thank you” to our National Delegate Selection Trainers today and everyone who attended today’s National Delegate Selection training session!

Presentation Brought to you By:

Contact: Massachusetts Democratic Party

C/O National Delegate Selection Process77Summer Street, 10th Floor

Boston, MA 02110Phone: 617-939-0800