Reading · ViatorSmith’s Substack

Hello and Welcome!

Today’s newsletter is a bit on the long side, but moving forward I will strive to keep newsletters to a couple of topics at most, so they will likely end up being more frequent than quarterly. I’ll also work on having a few different options to sign up so you can get the info you want as directly as possible.

I’m going to take a minute to bridge my advocacy for representation and inclusion in the tabletop game industry with my community building experience to make some observations on how we can improve our Get Out The Vote efforts.

Often in the tabletop industry, especially in the facets that are more community-facing, you will hear, “Everyone is welcome.” And that’s great. But these well-meaning folks have a blind spot. A lot of very kind and welcoming people don’t necessarily understand that while THEY actually mean everyone is welcome, this has not been the experience of certain communities in other spaces and as a result those communities, or even just individuals, need a specific, direct invite for them to actually feel welcomed. If you personally do not need a direct invite, it does not diminish the fact that someone else does. And when we work to ensure all actually FEEL welcomed, our communities thrive with the diversity of insights and perspectives.

The same is true whether we are looking at tabletop gaming spaces, academic spaces, the workforce, or political spaces. We can take lessons learned and the best practices for creating spaces that are truly welcoming to everyone and apply that to our Get Out The Vote efforts. Just a few tips off the top of my head to use at meetings/gatherings and also when block walking:

greet everyone, especially underrepresented demographics
appear enthusiastic, relaxed, comfortable
make eye contact
ask and then LISTEN (everyone wants to be heard)
follow up with a question

I have previously presented a workshop on building inclusive communities at various state and international conventions and conferences, and I am happy to bring my workshop to your club or organization, with particular priority given to groups in CD38.

The Texas SDEC met on December 14 in San Marcos. The morning began with a brief welcome/intro and then we split off into committees. Currently I am serving on the Campaign Committee, but I attended the Rules and Finance committee meetings as well. Here are some committee meeting highlights:

Reminder that any rules adopted by the SDEC are temporary until permanently adopted at the State Convention.
Rules committee is essentially the by-laws committee and deals with long term ways in which the party is governed.
Convention rules are essentially standing rules that are more temporary and pertain specifically to the convention; they are currently established by the Convention Committee which does have members of the Rules committee.
The Campaign Committee has some admirable goals including fielding candidates in even more races.

General Session Highlights:

Our 1st Vice Chair gave moving remarks that I recommend everyone take the time to read or watch and reflect upon.
The Executive Director discussed TDP’s focus on county chair and candidate recruitment.
The SDEC ultimately passed a motion to conduct the March state chair election using Ranked Choice Voting (check out the video below to learn more about this more equitable and efficient voting method).

The deadline to file to run for chair of the Texas Democratic Party is January 27 and there are currently six candidates, with a couple more expected to file this week.

On March 29, 2025 in Austin, members of the SDEC will elect a chair to serve the remainder of the current term. (Note: delegates to the state convention in 2026 will vote for state chair and other party offices, so now is a good time to start planning to travel to Corpus Christi in the summer of 2026. I’ll also have more information about how to become a state delegate in a future newsletter.)

The Black Caucus hosted the first forum virtually, a link to the recording can be found here.
The Texas Progressive Caucus will be holding a hybrid event at the LBJ Ranch near Fredericksburg on Jan 25. Link to register either in-person or virtually.
Harris County Democratic Party will be holding an in-person forum on February 8 at 2pm, I’m still confirming if it will be live streamed as well. Location: 6300 Irvington Blvd Houston, Tx 77022

Multiple school districts will have their school board election this May. While currently these races are officially nonpartisan, there has been a big push by right wing extremists to take over school boards and politicize our children’s education. Many of these candidates and elected trustees are backed by the same groups who have a vested interest in pushing school vouchers to the detriment to public education.

It is IMPERATIVE that every voter gets out and votes for all pro-public education candidates in every school board race.

Spring Branch (positions 5, 6, 7): https://www.springbranchisd.com/about/board-of-trustees/elections/current-elections

Katy ISD (positions 1, 2): https://www.katyisd.org/Page/4979

Cy-Fair ISD (positions 5, 6, 7): https://www.cfisd.net/our-district/board-of-trustees/board-elections/board-election-2025

Klein ISD (positions 6, 7): https://www.kleinisd.net/about-klein-isd/board-of-trustees/campaign-finance-reports

Houston ISD (districts I, V, VI, VII, IX): https://www.houstonisd.org/Page/204584 (There will still be trustee elections despite the Board of Managers being placed in charge during the takeover.)

The above districts, plus Tomball ISD (positions 1, 2, 3, 4): https://www.tomballisd.net/about-tisd/leadership/board-of-trustees/election-information-2024

For the May elections: NOW is the time to be linking up with existing organizations or coalitions to get out the vote.

For the November (and 2026) elections: NOW is the time to be building coalitions of like-minded groups and organizations and recruiting candidates. We have seen success in Texas districts when coalitions work WITH the communities to identify which candidates the community is most likely to vote for and putting all of their effort behind that candidate.

If your group or organization would like to discuss best practices from successful districts, please reach out so I can share resources.

Space City Progressives is a resource connecting folks (particularly under-involved folks and those who lean left but don't consider themselves Democrats) with Houston area organizations to empower people to get involved at the level that is best for them. In each newsletter under the Space City Progressives heading, I will be amplifying the work of groups, clubs, and organizations in the Greater Houston Area by sharing publicly available information so that folks looking to get more involved can find the right club or organization to connect with. If your group or organization would like to be featured, please let me know.