"Turn Out the Vote Thursdays" at Ix Art Park
2023-08-31 16:00 - 19:00, 2023-09-07 16:00 - 19:00, 2023-09-14 16:00 - 19:00, 2023-09-21 16:00 - 19:00, 2023-09-28 16:00 - 19:00, 2023-10-05 16:00 - 19:00, 2023-10-12 16:00 - 19:00, 2023-10-19 16:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York) | Ix Art Park, 522 2nd St. SE, Charlottesville, Virginia, 22902, United States
“Turn Out the Vote Thursdays” 4-7pm at the Ix Art Park on the Brazos Tacos lawn, weather permitting. Come when and for how long your schedule and mood dictate; it needn’t be every week or the entire three hours!
For the past three years, we’ve been fortunate to have so many dedicated people join us at Ix Art Park to eat, drink, chat, and pitch in together to help our Democratic candidates win. In 2022, we had 100+ volunteers who attended at least one time, with many attending almost every week. If you’ve joined us before, please join us again. If you haven’t tried it yet, come on down and meet fellow Dems and enjoy yourself while working for a big win on November 7!
At various times the group will be:

Writing postcards and making follow-up phone calls to newly registered voters. That combination has been very successful, resulting in this group voting at a consistent 75-80% rate in 2021-2023.
Distributing “walk sheet” name and address lists of Dem-leaning people for our campaign canvassers to visit.
Sending some specific issue-message postcards (a new idea we’re considering).
Writing postcards and phoning Albemarle residents we’ve registered.
Writing postcards and phoning for campaigns near Charlottesville.

If you can, bring a chair to sit on and a clipboard or something similar to write on.

Democracy & Constitution Days Celebration (9/16/23)
2023-09-16 14:00 - 15:30 | Charlottesville Free Speech Wall, 605 E. Main St., Charlottesville, VA, 22902
When: Sept. 16, 2:00–3:30pm
Where: Downtown Mall Free Speech Wall
As Republicans nationwide disenfranchise vulnerable populations with voter suppression laws, and online platforms polarize our politics and sow distrust in our institutions, voters are recognizing the urgent threat to our democracy and are looking to push back… hence this event!
Speakers at this pro-democracy rally include our own Josh Throneburg, Meg Heubeck, Chair of the League of Women Voters of the Charlottesville Area and Director of Instruction at UVA’s Center for Politics, and Prof. Bruce Williams from UVA Media Studies Department.
Local musicians Theocles, Jon Nafziger, and the Green Grannies will also participate. The League of Women Voters will register voters and provide important voting information.
For more information, check out: https://www.facebook.com/events/1479365319505121
And before or after this short but very important event, check out at least part of the other nearby event (fun and celebratory) going on that same day, the C’Ville Sabroso Cultural Festival.

C'Ville Sabroso Cultural Festival
2023-09-16 14:00 - 21:00 | Washington Park, Preston Ave
When: Sept. 16, 2–9pm
Where: Washington Park, 1001 Preston Ave
As the region’s only Latin American music, dance, and culture festival, C’ville Sabroso has become a treasured regional celebration over its 11-year run; attendance should approach 5,000! It’s a safe space for our diverse Latin American community to showcase and share the rich cultures of their countries of origin and of Latin America generally.
Some highlights from this year’s event, organized by local immigrant services nonprofit Sin Barreras:

Continuous music and dance on the main stage—including the festival’s first-ever band from South America.
A new adult-only beer garden.
A kid’s area with face painting, the JMRL bookmobile, and supplies for making traditional paper flowers and garlands.
Cultural representation from Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Puerto Rico, and Uruguay.
Food, food, food: twice as many vendors as last year!

For more information: https://www.facebook.com/cvillesabroso
The Spanish language flyer is below.
Note: before coming out to Sabroso, consider taking in the much shorter Democracy & Constitution Days Celebration the same day (2:00-3:30pm) at the Free Speech Wall that the Cville Dems are cosponsoring.

Cville Dems Full Committee Meeting (9/26/2023 - DATE CHANGE)
2023-09-26 18:30 - 20:00 | Forest Hills Park, 1000 Forest Hills Park Ave., Charlottesville, VA, 22903, United States
We’ll meet in Forest Hills Park, 6:30-8:00pm on Tuesday, September 26. The preliminary agenda:

Hear from candidates and local organizers about opportunities to help as we make a focused push toward Election Day.

Discuss, and hopefully have a quorum to be able to pass, one or more formal resolutions about current policy issues (e.g. abortion rights and Republican proposals for a “forced outing“ law attacking LGBTQ+ kids in our school system, which Creigh Deeds’ opponent Philip Andrew Hamilton and many other Republicans endorse).
Hear from UVA Democrats (UDems) about what they’re doing to energize the youth vote.
Discuss, time permitting, Bob Good’s “report card” (see “Preaching to the Choir” section below). Spoiler alert: it’s not a report card he’d want to bring home to his parents!

To suggest something to add to the agenda, please email cvilledemschair@gmail.com

The Forward Fifth 2023 Extravaganza (9/30/2023)
2023-09-30 17:00 - 22:00 | University of Lynchburg, 1501 Lakeside Dr., Lynchburg, VA, 24501, United States
Final details still being worked out (we’ll announce them when we know more), but save the date!

MoveOn.org Banned Bookmobile Event (10/18/23)
2023-10-18 16:00 - 18:30 | Charlottesville Free Speech Wall, 605 E. Main St., Charlottesville, VA, 22902
Come Get Free Banned Books from MoveOn.org!
Join us on Wednesday, October 18, from 4:00-6:30pm, at the Free Speech Wall (605 E Main Street on the Downtown Mall) to meet up with (and get free banned books from!!) the MoveOn Banned Bookmobile and hear from featured speakers including award-winning local author Jocelyn Nicole Johnson (“My Monticello”) and a variety of officeholders and candidates.
It’s fine to drop by to catch the event, but helpful to sign up here with MoveOn.
The Banned Bookmobile is on a national tour to highlight the terribly frightening and undemocratic attempts by extremist Republicans to ban books in schools and libraries nationwide; per WVTF and the Virginia Education Association, there have been 400 attempted book bans in Virginia this year as of September, and one public library almost closed due to efforts to ban LGBTQ content (but they fought and won that battle!).
Not available for sale at the event, but Actor Levar Burton and MoveOn Political Action collaboratively released in early October a new original “Read Banned Books” T-shirt for National Banned Book Week in support of this campaign,. The limited-edition shirt features the likeness of the lifetime literacy champion LeVar Burton (long-time host of the PBS “Reading Rainbow” show) and can be purchased here.
Nancy Damon is organizing the event (thank you Nancy!). If you’d like to be a speaker, please contact her at nancycdamon@gmail.com.

Cville Dems Executive Committee Meeting (10/23/2023)
2023-10-23 18:30 - 20:00
Agenda and meeting location will be shared via email a few days before the event.

CANCELLED: "Turn Out the Vote Thursdays" at Ix Art Park
2023-10-26 16:00 - 19:00 | Cancelled, United States
No more work at Ix needed, we wrote and mailed approximately 7,500 postcards! This is far more than we’ve ever done before, and it happened due to:

Superb organizing by Mary Ann Harris, Nancy Damon, and Suzanne Michels – huge kudos!
Sincere gratitude to everyone who pitched in throughout the Summer and Fall by writing postcards and/or donating money to buy postcards and stamps.

So our Thursday at Ix work is done for this cycle, no more meet-ups at IX Park this Fall!
Now for the details about those 7500 postcards:

700 to new City of Charlottesville voters
1,800 to new Albemarle County voters
2,000 to City residents
500 for Rachel Levy in Louisa County
500 for Michael Feggans in Virginia Beach
1,000 for Susanna Gibson in Henrico County
1,000 for Lily Franklin in Montgomery County.

It was a pleasure spending time with old friends and getting to meet new friends — spending our Thursday afternoons together working to help elect the best candidates locally and statewide! We’re most definitely looking forward to sitting around the picnic tables in the Spring when the BIG 2024 presidential election cycle begins.
We hope most of you will join us for the big Sunday October 28 Canvassing push with Sen. Mark Warner at Pen Park!
And… make sure to remind all your Dem-leaning friends, both City and County, of the importance of voting; we can’t take victory for granted, it’s all about turnout!

CANCELLED -- "Thursday at Ix Park" (BUT we have alternatives!!)
2023-11-02 16:00 - 19:00 | Cancelled, United States
No more work at Ix needed, we wrote and mailed approximately 7,500 postcards! This is far more than we’ve ever done before, and it happened due to:

Superb organizing by Mary Ann Harris, Nancy Damon, and Suzanne Michels – huge kudos!
Sincere gratitude to everyone who pitched in throughout the Summer and Fall by writing postcards and/or donating money to buy postcards and stamps.

So our Thursday at Ix work is done for this cycle, no more meet-ups at IX Park this Fall!
Now for the details about those 7500 postcards:

700 to new City of Charlottesville voters
1,800 to new Albemarle County voters
2,000 to City residents
500 for Rachel Levy in Louisa County
500 for Michael Feggans in Virginia Beach
1,000 for Susanna Gibson in Henrico County
1,000 for Lily Franklin in Montgomery County.

It was a pleasure spending time with old friends and getting to meet new friends — spending our Thursday afternoons together working to help elect the best candidates locally and statewide! We’re most definitely looking forward to sitting around the picnic tables in the Spring when the BIG 2024 presidential election cycle begins.
And… make sure to remind all your Dem-leaning friends, both City and County, of the importance of voting; we can’t take victory for granted, it’s all about turnout!

"Donut Forget to Vote" Saturday Morning 11/4 Event!
2023-11-04 08:30 - 11:30 | City of Charlottesville Registrar’s Office (Office of Voter Registration), 120 7th Street NE City Hall Annex, Room 142, Charlottesville, 22902, United States
On Saturday November 4, the last day of Early Voting, we’ll be partying 8:30-11:00am near the Cville Registrar’s office (120 7th Street NE at City Hall Annex, near the Pavilion). Come join us and a medley of candidates who will chat with us and encourage us (and those walking by!?) to get their vote in. Donuts never hurt, so we’re offering them too!
Please contact Suzanne Michels suzemichels@gmail.com if you’d like to help with this event or have any questions. Thanks to our friends at Himalayan Fusion for help with staging logistics.
Sen. Creigh Deeds needs all our Cville blue votes to keep his seat and a Dem majority in the VA Senate. Don’t let the City’s uncontested races lull you into complacency; we need to work to make sure our neighbors and friends turn out to vote! So far this cycle, Early Voting is way down, which is worrisome…

Election Day 2023 (In-Person Voting 6am-7pm)
2023-11-07 06:00 - 19:00
Go to your precinct polling location (check where that is this year with the City of Charlottesville’s Interactive Precinct Map, because 40% of us have different polling locations this year than in previous years!).
Bring your ID (for Virginia’s voter ID policies, see this overview and list of acceptable forms of ID).
Same Day Registration (new as of 2023): If you’re not registered before Nov 7, you can go to your precinct polling place to register to vote and submit a provisional ballot; your polling place is determined by where you live. To find your correct polling place, contact the Charlottesville Voter Registration Office at 434-970-3250 or go to iwillvote.com (but if you go to the wrong precinct, the pollworkers there will redirect you to the right precinct).

November 7 Victory Party (hosted by Albemarle Dems)
2023-11-07 19:00 - 22:00 | Vivace’s Restaurant, 2244 Ivy Road, Charlottesville, VA, 22903
The Albemarle Dems are holding a Victory Party at Vivace’s, 2244 Ivy Rd, Charlottesville, VA 22903… and since we did all our canvassing with them this election season, let’s join them to enjoy the fruits of all our hard work!!

Cville Dems Full Committee Meeting (11/27/2023)
2023-11-27 18:30 - 20:00
Agenda and meeting location to follow.

Cville Dems Reorganization Meeting (Precinct and Officer Elections)
2024-01-06 14:00 - 16:00 | Carver Recreation Center, 233 4th Street NW, Charlottesville, VA, United States
January 6 Reorganization Meeting: Opportunities for New People with New Ideas!

Cville Dems Executive Committee Meeting (January 29, 2024)
2024-01-29 18:30 - 20:00 | Central Branch — Jefferson-Madison Regional Library, 201 E. Market St, Charlottesville, VA, 22902, United States
The meeting will begin at 6:30pm on Monday 1/29 in the Madison Room of the at the Jefferson Madison Central Library. The agenda will be shared a few days before the meeting.
NOTE: this meeting was previously announced as 1/22, but had to be pushed back a week because the election of officers was pushed back a week due to the City’s weather-related closing of Key Rec where we were to meet.

Meet the 2024 5th District Candidates!
2024-02-03 15:00 - 17:00 | Potters Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Road, VA, 22903, United States
Please come and meet the Democratic House of Representatives candidates running
against Rep. Bob Good in the 5th District.
Learn about their vision for the 5th district and find out what you can do to support their efforts!
Live music and cash bar (and food).

Virginia "Super Tuesday" Presidential Primary — Early Voting now through Saturday March 2
2024-02-23 08:00 - 2024-03-02 17:00 | City of Charlottesville Registrar’s Office (Office of Voter Registration), 120 7th Street NE City Hall Annex, Room 142, Charlottesville, 22902, United States
Early voting is underway, and ends on Saturday March 2! Early in-person voting is the safest and easiest way for most people to vote (the deadline to request a ballot for mail-in voting has already passed).
Here’s election information taken from the City’s Election webpage:

Vote at the Registrar’s Office (City Hall Annex,120 7th St. NE, Room 142 — 434-970-3250)
Voting began January 19 and can be done Monday through Friday until Friday, March 1 from 8:30am-4:30pm
The office will also be open on two Saturdays, February 24 and March 2, from 8:30am-5:00pm
Curbside voting from a car is available to anyone with a disability, limited mobility, or who is over age 65; just call 434-970-3250 when you arrive at the Registrar’s Office
Bring your ID (for Virginia’s voter ID policies, see this overview and list of acceptable forms of ID)
Sample Ballot

Full Committee Meeting (February 26, 2024)
2024-02-26 18:30 - 20:00 | TBA
Every Cville Dem and potential new Dem is welcome to attend (bring a friend if you want!), please mark your calendars to join us on Monday, Feb. 26, 6:30pm and see what we’re up to (and learn how you could plug into working to win this November’s pivotal election!). The agenda will be publicized a few days before the event.
Location for this one meeting:
Jefferson School African American Heritage Center
233 4th St NW
Charlottesville, VA 22903-4593

Tuesday March 5 "Super Tuesday" Presidential Primary — In-Person Precinct Voting
2024-03-05 06:00 - 19:00 | Local Polling Locations (see Interactive Map), Charlottesville, VA, United States
Election Day is Tuesday March 2! In-person voting is the safest and easiest way for most people to vote (the deadline to request a ballot for mail-in voting has already passed).
Here’s election information taken from the City’s Election webpage:

Vote from 6am-7pm at your local polling place (many precinct’s were changed in 2023, use the City’s Interactive Precinct Map to find your current Polling Location).
Bring your ID (for Virginia’s voter ID policies see this overview and list of acceptable forms of ID)
Sample Ballot

Orientation Meeting for Cville Dems Voter Registration Team
2024-03-10 14:30 - 15:30 | Kardinal Hall, 722 Preston Ave #101, Charlottesville, VA, 22903, United States
Just before the first “Democracy on Tap” event (this Sunday 3/10 at 2:30pm at Kardinal Hall), join the Cville Dems Voter Registration Team for its annual kick-off orientation. Suzanne Michels will provide an overview of how things work and how you can join in. New people will be warmly welcomed, and if you’ve done it before this is a great time to reconnect with the team and see old friends!
About 85% of Cville voters vote blue, so registering someone in our area helps really helps in statewide and District races.
Questions? Contact Suzanne at suzemichels@gmail.com .

"Democracy on Tap" Speaker Series Launches this Sunday (3/10) at 3:30 pm!
2024-03-10 15:30 - 17:00 | Kardinal Hall, 722 Preston Ave #101, Charlottesville, VA, 22903, United States
The Cville Dems and the Albemarle Dems are hosting our first “Democracy on Tap” speaker series event this Sunday at 3:30pm at Kardinal Hall. Miles Coleman, Associate Editor for Sabato’s Crystal Ball (a comprehensive, nonpartisan political analysis and handicapping newsletter published by the University of Virginia Center for Politics) will share information about the crucial upcoming elections.
Light snacks will be provided.
“Democracy on Tap” events featuring great speakers and camaraderie among local Democrats will be held monthly at Kardinal Hall. For all the old-timers, think of this as a revival of the always-popular Democratic breakfasts of the past.

University Democrats "Meet the Candidates" Event TODAY (Wed. 3/13)
2024-03-13 18:00 - 19:30 | University of Virginia (UVA) – Nau Hall, Charlottesville, VA, United States
The event will take place at 6:30pm in Room 101 of Nau Hall, which is on the south side of Jefferson Park Avenue just behind Old Cabell Hall. A small reception begins at 6pm, and at 6:30pm the candidates will be introduced, UDems members will ask some questions about issues affecting students at UVA and statewide, and the event will end with closing statements and an open Q&A.
UDems officers will be outside the building to guide those unfamiliar with Grounds. Public parking is a challenge—the best options are Newcomb Parking Garage or the lot by Scott Stadium.
All of the candidates are in the process of building out their campaigns and would very much appreciate your support – whether that is in terms of volunteer time or campaign funds. We have the raw talent to beat Bob Good in November, but the candidates need your help to make this a reality! The candidate websites are:

Gloria Witt — https://www.gloriawittforcongress.com/
Paul Riley — https://paulrileycongress.com/
Gary Terry — https://garyterryforcongress.com/
Toby Johnson — https://sites.google.com/view/toby-for-va5/home

Come to the "Meetings of Opposites" Program on March 16
2024-03-16 13:00 - 15:00 | Gordon Ave Library, 1500 Gordon Avenue, Charlottesville, VA, 22902, United States
The “Meetings of Opposites” programs bring together people with opposing views on politics and other issues. Henry McHenry will lead the Saturday March 16 program taking place at the Gordon Avenue Library meeting room from 1-3pm. The workshop will be timely given today’s perception wars:
After a video demonstrating the mechanism of perception which produces optical illusions and prevents accurate assessment of visual information, we notice that the same mechanism seems to be at work in the ways we interact with each other. We are swamped in perception wars, because the assumptions that keep us in our positions, Us-Against-Them, reside in narratives that own us and that we can’t see out of. To experience a way of being together different from the one perception enables and enforces, we will engage with each other in physical exercises and activities, some as simple as a handshake.
