Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

TRAINING FOR MARCH 6 PRECINCT MEETINGS

CHARLOTTE, NC

Agenda
Precinct Packages Precinct Meeting Instructions NC Democratic National Convention Delegate

Selection Process

Meeting Tips

Important Upcoming Dates

Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Contents of Precinct Package

Precinct Meeting Instructions Precinct Officer duties Precinct Meeting signs Meeting Agenda Form to record meeting attendees and certify meeting Letters from Gov. Perdue and NCDP Chair, David Parker Letter from Organizing for America Neighborhood Headquarters program information Instructions on how to become a delegate to the 2012 Democratic

National Convention

List of Active Democrats in Your Precinct Partial list of Democratic Voters in your precinct

Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Precinct Meeting Details

When Must Meeting Be Held?

Must occur on Tue, Mar 6 and begin no earlier than 6:00 pm and no later than 7:30 pm If a quorum of 5 registered democrats is not reached at scheduled Mar 6 meeting or due to inclement weather, meeting can be rescheduled for Sat, Mar 10 with meeting being held between 10:00 am 7:00 pm At the polling place for that precinct or at another public location approved in advance by the county chair with notice posted at the polling place.
Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Is an alternative date available?

Where can meeting be held?

Precinct Meeting Details

What happens if a meeting is not held on Mar 6 or

Mar 10 or a quorum (minimum number of democrats necessary to hold a precinct meeting) not reached?

Delegates will not be recognized at the county convention

Can multiple precincts meet at the same location?

Must be agreed to in advance by the county Chair, and by the precinct chair or acting precinct chair of the affected precincts.

Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Tips to Reach a Quorum

What are some tips to reach a quorum? Contact democrats included in your precinct package by phone and email if you have it

Make follow-up calls 1 to 2 days before the meeting date to remind them Call people using phonevites.com with 25 free calls.

Ask the people you contact to contact 5 more people in your precinct Try to get at least 10 people committed to attend to ensure you end up with 5+ people Contact democrats in your neighborhood to attend Collect email addresses from meeting attendees to continue communication
Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Precinct Meeting Details

What occurs at the meeting? The election of active Democrats from the precinct as delegates to the county convention

You can elect up to 2 times as many delegates as the votes you have for the county convention (i.e. you have 6 votes then you can elect 12 delegates) Elected delegates dont have to be present at the meeting If you elect less than your precinct votes, you will lose votes in a weighted elected

Proposing and adopting resolutions for consideration at the county convention. Election of officers if there are any officer vacancies Collection of Sustaining Fund
Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

What is the Sustaining Fund Used For?

Each county has a goal in this annual program to contribute $0.10

for every vote cast in the county for Governor in the last gubernatorial election. Contributions to the Sustaining Fund helps NCDP to do the following:

Employ State Party staff in critical areas of communications, political outreach and data management Communicate our message to the public and rapidly respond to Republican attacks Maintain and update the State Party website and support local county party websites Provide our county parties with an updated, online voter file

Recruit and train candidates

Provide support and expertise to local parties Protect voter rights

In previous years, MCDP like other larger counties (i.e. Wake) have kept their

sustaining fund to help operate their offices and other expenses

MCDP Needs support in addition to NCDP

Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Donating to the MCDP

The MCDP is asking each precinct to raise $1,200above and beyond the sustaining

fund

What have previous donations to the MCDP been used for?

Pay for rent, staff Basic Office Operations, keeping office open 6 7 days a week near election time

Coordinated Campaign efforts (manager, lunches for poll workers, radio ads, et)
Helped win 22 out of 25 seats in Mecklenburg County in 2011 City council was swept by a 9-2 margin Democrat to Republican. Unprecedented endorsement in the school board race made us successful in electing two Democrats at large In 2011 reached 24,000 doors, made 35,356 calls and distributed 67,000 voter guides Ask for additional donations at March 6 Meeting 12 precinct members donate $100 each

Ways to raise $1,200

Host a House Party

$20 in 2012 (Give $20 for 12 months)

Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Unorganized Precincts
Can unorganized precincts organize during Mar 6 meeting?

An acting chair must be named by the county chair, Aisha Dew, in advance of the meeting A location for meeting must be publicized The acting precinct chair shall preside over the special meeting The Meeting must have a quorum of 5 democrats A meeting must first be held to elect Officers (Chair, vice-chair, secretary/treasurer); can be done on March 6

What can occur at this meeting

1.

If held on March 6, that meeting must be adjourned before the official delegate selection meeting can begin You will need to have a separate set of sign in sheets and meeting certification for this meeting

2.

Second meeting will follow the agenda in the precinct package Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Tips for a Successful Meeting

1. Start your meetings, presentations and training sessions with an ice-breaker

or warm-up activity.

2. Never underestimate the power of food at a meeting. Food relaxes the

atmosphere, helps make people feel comfortable, helps people sustain positive energy levels and builds the camaraderie of the team. content. Make sure there are seats for all attendees. Make sure visuals are visible and that people can hear.

3. Organize the physical environment so people are attentive to the meeting

4. Formulate the agenda carefully. 5. Start on time and end on time. Allot each speaker the amount of time

necessary to cover their topic. Hold them to their time limit - nicely.

Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Important Convention Dates

March 6 Precinct Meetings March 17 NCDP Fundraiser April 13 MCDP Fundraiser April 14 County Conventions

April 27 Deadline for filing Notice of Candidacy forms for district level

delegate or alternate May 19 District Conventions June 1 Deadline for filing Notice of Candidacy forms for at-large and/or party leader/elected official delegate or alternate positions June 16 State Convention in Raleigh. Mandatory meeting of national delegates and alternates immediately following the State Convention September 3-7 Democratic National Convention, Time Warner Arena, Charlotte, NC
Mecklenburg County Democratic Party

Important Election Dates

2012 PRIMARY ELECTION March 19 - First Day Absentee (By Mail) April 13 - Deadline for Primary Registration April 19 - First Day Absentee (ONE STOP) May 1 - Last Day Absentee (By-Mail) May 5 - Last Day Absentee (ONE STOP) May 7 - Last Day to Return Absentee Ballots May 8 - PRIMARY ELECTION June 26 - 2nd Primary (if necessary) 2012 GENERAL ELECTION September 7 - First Day Absentee (By Mail) October 12 - Deadline for Registration October 18 - First Day Absentee (ONE STOP) October 30 - Last Day Absentee (By Mail) November 3 Last Day Absentee (ONE STOP) November 5 5:00 PM Last Day to Return Absentee Ballots Tuesday, November 6 6:30 AM-7:30 PM GENERAL ELECTION

Mecklenburg County Democratic Party