Cville Dems

The Charlottesville Democratic Committee

Court Support for Swords into Plowshares (Time #2)

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logo of Swords into Plowshares project, a white horse and rider and flying birds set against a blue backgroundThe Jefferson School African American Heritage Center (JSAAHC) continues to be harassed by Confederate-sympathizing plaintiffs suing it to try to further delay the Swords into Plowshares repurposing of the Lee statue into inclusive art (an already City Council-approved project).
Please join us on Wed. February 1, 2023 at Charlottesville Circuit Court, 315 E. High Street to show our support for the project:
  • 9:00am for a rally in front of the courthouse, for the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center, and for Dr. Andrea Douglas.
  • 9:30am for the beginning of the actual court proceeding(stay and show your support by attending if you can!)

Dems Do Well in VA Special Elections!

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Congratulations to all three of these great candidates:

  • Closest to home, Jade Harris ran a great though unsuccessful race in the very heavily Republican-leaning District 24
  • Aaron Rouse flipped the Virginia Beach State Senate District 7 for the Dems. This is a very important victory for protecting reproductive rights in Virginia!
  • Holly Seibold won the District 35 House of Delegates race in NoVa.

photo of State Delegate candidate Jade Harris Aaron Rouse in group photo with people holding "Aaron Rouse for Virginia Senate" signsHolly Siebold photo with text reading "Delegate. Educator. Mom. Advocate. Progressive Democrat for Delegate. When I see changes needed in our community I don’t sit on the sidelines. I roll up my sleeves and get to work. That’s what Democrats do. I’ll do it every day."

Three VA Early-January “Must-Win” Special Elections

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 Get out the Vote graphic reading "Calling All Democrats! Get out the Vote! Knock Doors Make Calls (for) Jand Harris Special Election Tuesday January 10" The image shows a January 2023 calendar with Saturday 7th - Tuesday 10th blacked out.
The three races below are critical to protect the progress we’ve made and for the upcoming legislative session. We have just a few days left to elect candidates who will support reproductive and voting rights, environmental protection, rule of law, etc. These aren’t our districts, but Democrats are all on one team and we need to show up for each other!

photo of State Delegate candidate Jade Harris1. Our friends at Rural GroundGame need our help for the final 4 days of District 24’s 1/10 Special Election that will helpfully see Jade Harris win a seat in the House of Delegates!

Jade is the only candidate in the race with solid, local, political experience (she was Vice Mayor of Glasgow, VA) and has worked on funding for community infrastructure and gun violence prevention.
At this point she really needs physical and virtual “boots on the ground” for the final GOTV:
  • January 7, 8, & 9 — In-person AND virtual at 10am/Noon/3pm
  • Election Day 1/10 — In-person AND virtual at 9am/Noon/3pm
In-person meet-up locations:
Lexington: 11 S. Jefferson St. Lexington, VA 24450
Amherst: (location TBA)
For more details, please reach out to harris4va@gmail.com
2. Aaron Rouse, former Virginia Beach City Councilman (and Hokie/NFL football player) is running for VA-07 State Senate (Virginia Beach area). The election is Jan. 10th. Visit https://rouseforsenate.com to find out more about this excellent candidate, and donate here.
3. VA-35 (Fairfax County) has a January 7th Special Election. Holly Siebold is a progressive Dem (and Mom and Educator), and this is an important seat for us to keep blue! Visit hollyseibold.com for info about this excellent candidate, and donate here.

Aaron Rouse in group photo with people holding "Aaron Rouse for Virginia Senate" signs          Holly Siebold photo with text reading "Delegate. Educator. Mom. Advocate. Progressive Democrat for Delegate. When I see changes needed in our community I don’t sit on the sidelines. I roll up my sleeves and get to work. That’s what Democrats do. I’ll do it every day."

Full Committee Meeting via Zoom (Monday January 9th, 6:30pm)

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cartoon people sitting around a meeting tableUPDATE: This meeting, the only one we’re having in January, will only be on Zoom, not also in person as previously announced. Don’t go to the library, instead look for an email a day or two pre-meeting providing the Zoom link.

 

Here are the agenda highlights:

 

Voter Protection

DPVA is eliminating its statewide Voter Protection Department, so we and other local committees need to meet and establish our own VoPro committees. Priority #1 is to recruit an army of volunteers to help voters who have Election Day problems, including any voters whose eligibility is challenged. These people need to be in place for this November’s election so we can use that experience to prepare for the November 2024 presidential election, where it could really matter! Kristin Clarens will brief us on the evolving voter protection strategy.

 

2023 Primaries

There will likely be primaries in June 2023 for City Council, House of Delegates, and State Senate elections. We’ll share what we know about the primaries at this meeting.

 

Update on Ranked Choice Voting (RCV)

Delegate Hudson told the Executive Committee last month that, due to electronic voting equipment limitations, City Council won’t have the ability to use RCV in a 6/2023 primary, but could authorize its use starting as soon as the 11/2023 general election. Sally asked the Executive Committee to consider having the Full Committee pass a resolution telling City Council whether we support or oppose an ordinance authorizing RCV for City Council elections.
Sally shared a document with some of her perspectives on RCV (please look it over before the meeting):

Court Support for the Jefferson School / Swords into Plowshares

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Swords into Plowshares logo, a silhouette of birds flying away from the General Lee statueThe Jefferson School African American Heritage Center continues to be harassed by Confederate-sympathizing plaintiffs suing it to try to further delay the Swords into Plowshares repurposing of the Lee statue into inclusive art (an already City Council-approved project). Please join us on Monday, January 9 at 3pm at Charlottesville Circuit Court, 315 E High St., to show our support for Dr. Andrea Douglas and the JSAAHC as she answers some questions in advance of the trial.

 

Despite the on-going legal harassment, the Swords into Plowshares team has completed the community engagement phase and will soon begin the search for an artist to create new art in collaboration with the community.

New Year Brings New VA Laws

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Here are a few highlights Del. Sally Hudson flagged last week:

Photo of statue of blindfolded Lady Justice holding the scales of justice

  • Thousands of Virginia workers got a raise as our minimum wage went up to $12/hr. Just two years ago, Virginia ranked dead last among Oxfam America’s worst states for workers. We’ve since climbed to the middle of the pack, as we’ve modernized the laws protecting workers’ wages and basic bargaining rights. There’s an awful lot of work still left to do, but this step is something to celebrate.
  • With wages going up, Virginia also cut taxes on the things we all buy most. The state’s grocery tax has ended, another step long overdue. Virginia was one of just 13 states left in the country that still taxed grocery sales, and those days are finally done. We still have local governments that rely on grocery taxes for revenue, so there’s more we can do to ease taxes on working families.
  • If you’re shopping in either Charlottesville or Albemarle County, be sure to bring a bag; there’s now a five cent tax on plastic bags.

[We got an update on this last one from the Sierra Club: you can donate your extra reusable grocery bags at Refill Renew, 171-B Allied Lane (off of McIntire Road) —or— at Dogwood Refillery, 190 Zan Road (off of Hillsdale Drive). More sites are being lined up. For info about the tax see the City of Charlottesville website.]