Cville Dems

The Charlottesville Democratic Committee

January 16th MLK Day Richmond Rally against Gun Violence

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flyer with a graphic of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and a AR code. Flyer reads "KingMLK DAY Gun Violence Prevention Rally Board the CCGVP bus on Monday, January 16, Noon @ Meadows Presbyterian Church, 2200 Angus Road, returning at 5pm. For more information: ccgvp1@gmail.com We'll rally at the Bell Tower and then talk with legislators about enacting sensible laws. Join us at this annual event (our 30th year): http://evite.me/DUfpPfTc93 Get to know like-minded Virginians and lobby to prevent gun violence! Charlottesville Coalition for Gun Violence Prevention (CCGVP)"Wednesday was the 10th anniversary of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary in Connecticut in which 20 first graders and 6 school staff members were murdered… one of many mass shootings in our country, and of course a few weeks ago here in Charlottesville.
The Charlottesville Coalition for Gun Violence Prevention (CCGVP) has chartered a bus at Noon on Monday 1/16 to go to an MLK Day rally in Richmond to demand passage of sensible, common sense Gun Violence Prevention laws; you can be back by 5pm!
Additional details are in the flyer.

REPORT: 11/28 Executive Committee Meeting

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There are important discussions going on about where how we vote in the city that will impact a large fraction of the city’s voters in 2023 and thereafter.

Precinct Redistricting

City of Charlottesville Registrar Taylor Yowell and Electoral Board member Ann Hemenway shared the City’s draft proposal for reformatting Charlottesville’s precincts with the goals of evening out the number of voters in each precinct and increasing functionality, i.e. walkability, parking, etc. Around 40% of city voters would be in a new precinct. Alumni Hall (high-traffic accessibility problems) and Tonsler (inadequate space and parking) precincts would be replaced by Charlottesville High School and Jackson-Via.

 

Update on Ranked Choice Voting (RCV)

Delegate Sally Hudson explained that, due to electronic voting equipment limitations, City Council won’t have the ability to use RCV in the 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.
It’s likely that the Cville Dems will need to have additional meetings and/or communications re: RCV and regarding the process of nominating candidates soon.
Sally shared a document with some of her perspectives on RCV:

Reflections on the November General Election

Josh Throneburg campaign poster showing Josh, his wife, and two children standing in a meadow

Josh Throneburg reported that he and his team are doing an after-election report to analyze what worked well and what didn’t; Josh is committed to staying involved to try to build in all of those areas for the future.

The campaign’s budget was much smaller than it had been for the previous two Democratic campaigns in the district, and so the campaign couldn’t reach as many voters as it needed to. Josh also indicated that the party needs to build up its infrastructure if we want to have success in the Fifth; some counties barely have a functioning Democratic committee, and the party’s network in rural areas is weak. His team is creating some briefing materials and other infrastructure so our next 5th District candidate won’t have to start from ground zero as his campaign did.
[As co-chairs Dashad and John previously posted on social media a million “thank yous” to Josh Throneburg, his staff, his family, volunteers & donors. We didn’t win, but we put out a positive message of Democratic values, compassion, and common sense. Josh has our party’s gratitude and great respect, and we salute him for leading our good fight!]

Post-Election Day Polling Place Update

Electoral Board member Jim Nix reported that 53% of active voters voted in the past election, only down 3% from last year’s gubernatorial race. The new electronic poll books worked very well. Same-day registration/voting on election day was a major change this year: 950 provisional ballots were cast (901 were certified and counted), nearly all were done on election day itself and, as expected, most were from students. This was even more provisional ballots than expected and led to a lot of stress on Carver and Venable poll workers, issues that will be addressed.

RIP Rep. Donald McEachin

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photo of Rep. Donald McEachinRichmond’s very highly-regarded and well-liked House of Representatives member Donald McEachin passed away on Monday 11/28.
The Richmond Times Dispatch ran this remembrance.
Our sympathies to his family and friends.

Storage Lockers: They Take a Village

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A group of dedicated Dems took some time after the election to clear out our storage unit! Masses of accumulated lawn signs (the wire frames that hold up lawn signs cost campaigns about three dollars each, so we have them available for the next campaign), campaign materials, office equipment, and…. stuff… were sorted, organized, and recycled or donated (e.g. a box of old campaign materials to the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society). Now we’re ready for 2023!

Thanks to everyone who helped make this magic happen: Bekah Saxon, Dashad Cooper, John McLaren, Mary Ann and Mark Harris, Mary Jane Gore, Nancy Damon, and Suzanne Michels.

Note: local politics is fun and rewarding, but not (always) as glamorous as people think. 😜

Storage locker before 11/2022 cleanup