Hello!
Since my last newsletter, a new United States president has taken office, the Texas legislature has taken up over a thousand bills, and the Texas Democratic Party has elected a new state chair and a new vice chair of finance.
This newsletter will recap the state party committee meetings, other meetings and events I’ve attended in and around Congressional District 38, and virtual office hours that I will be hosting over the coming months.
There is a lot of work to do and I’m very thankful to be alongside so many great people, like YOU, that are doing the work.
Overview of the March (Q1) State Democratic Executive Committee meeting (notably, the State Chair election).
Overview of the May special meeting.
Overview of the June (Q2) meeting.
Announcing virtual office hours.
Recap of other meetings and events around the congressional district.
You can see the full minutes here.
After three months of campaigning, including close to a dozen candidate forums, phone calls, individual meet ups, physical mail and many emails, the state Democratic committee met in Austin, Texas on March 29 and elected a new chair for the Texas Democratic Party.
Using ranked choice voting, Kendall Scudder won on the first round of voting with 54% of the vote. A young progressive from rural East Texas, Chair Scudder’s election signals the dawn of a new era in the Texas Democratic Party, and a new path forward for Texas.
Also notably, the SDEC approved the finance committee’s budget recommendation.
Additionally, it was calculated that during executive session the party raised $10, 444 ($1300 of which are sustaining dollars) from individuals and groups who are excited about the new direction of the state party.
You can see the full minutes here.
A special meeting was held virtually to hear executive session reports from the chair and the disciplinary committee.
Executive session is bound by non-disclosure agreements, so I can only share what was listed in the minutes:
The motion on the floor was the Disciplinary Committee’s recommendation that the SDEC uphold the complaint and grant the complainants request for relief, which is the removal of the county chair of Fort Bend, Fred Taylor.
Roll call vote - 91 present
73 yes, 12 no, 6 abstain
Fred Taylor was removed as Fort Bend County Democratic Party Chair by majority vote.
Additionally, the committee was provided with the election procedures for the vice chair of finance election to fill the vacancy created by Chair Scudder becoming state chair.
On Saturday, June 14, the state Democratic executive committee met for the quarterly meeting. The agenda will be here until the next meeting agenda is published and then the minutes will be available in a new link.
It was the most well-run meeting I have attended in a long time. The body had ample opportunity to raise questions and be heard. We were also provided special placards to raise when casting votes. This is a vast improvement over voice votes that can be open to interpretation and often resulted in a longer, more drawn out and contentious process.
The biggest item at this meeting was the vice chair of finance election. Once again, the body elected a young progressive on the first round of voting using ranked choice voting. Kolby Duhon earned 73% of the vote and is now the vice chair of finance.
I was appointed to the finance committee and remain on the campaigns committee.
The finance committee is primarily responsible for drafting the yearly budget and my understanding is that the report will be reconfigured to increase transparency for everyone responsible for approving the budget.
The campaigns committee supports staff in recruiting and training candidates for office up and down the ballot. We will be working with staff and TMP on improving the training process and with counties and congressional districts on recruiting candidates.
All committees do very important work, and I feel that my experience and knowledge base best serves the committees to which I have been appointed.
Join me at any or all of these online office hours!
The next Katy area progressive online meet up is July 1 and we’ll be talking school board candidates. Yes in July. NOW is the BEST time to be building coalitions with local organizations that align with our values and connecting with communities that haven’t felt heard. We’ve had great turn out so far, so join us and meet your progressive neighbors.
The next Houston area school board info-share will be July 14. Leaders, organizers, and anyone interested in working together to improve school board representation are invited to join these meetings to share what worked for them, ask questions and discuss how we can support our neighbors in strengthening school boards across the region!
For Texas Progressive Caucus members (and anyone interested!), we are hosting monthly virtual office hours. Each month we will feature a different region of the state. Stop in to chat with progressives in your area or just to hear updates from progressives across Texas. Join us July 28 as we launch this new initiative. (Link coming soon.)
Registration is required for all of these online meetings.
January 25, I led the coordination efforts for the Texas Progressive Caucus’ State Chair Candidate Forum in Fredericksburg, Texas.
February 8, TDP Chair Candidate Forum in Houston, co-hosted by Harris County Democratic Party, among others.
February 16, I attended and shared information with a Fort Bend moms’ group who met for coffee in Sugar Land to connect with like-minded people and share information on local school board races, how to get involved, and upcoming events.
February 26, HCDP Audit committee meeting at HCDP offices in east Houston.
March 3, TDP Finance Committee meeting (virtual).
March 10, TDP Finance Committee meeting (virtual).
March 12, HCDP Steering Committee meeting (virtual).
March 14, CD38 general meeting in Spring.
March 22, I presented at the Fort Bend area Mothers For Democracy meeting in Missouri City on best practices for effective school board election organizing.
March 23, HCDP county executive committee meeting in east Houston.
March 28, TDP Chair Candidate Forum in Austin.
March 29, SDEC first quarter (Q1) meeting in Austin.
April 9, TDP Campaigns Committee meeting (virtual).
April 12, TXPC first quarter (Q1) meeting (virtual).
May 12, SDEC special meeting (virtual).
May 17, attended Indivisible Katy Huddle organizing workshop in Mission Bend (TXPC sponsored lunch).
May 21, CD38 general meeting (virtual).
May 24, Coffee with the Chairman, state tour stop in the Heights.
May 24, Chat with the Chairman, state tour stop in Conroe.
June 10, Vice Chair of Finance Candidate Forum (virtual).
June 10, HCDP Steering Committee meeting (virtual).
June 11, TDP Finance Committee meeting (virtual).
June 14, SDEC second quarter (Q2) meeting in Denton.
June 18, TDP Campaigns Committee meeting (virtual).
June 21, TXPC second quarter (Q2) meeting (virtual).
June 22, HCDP county executive committee meeting in east Houston.
Monthly TDP Stakeholder meetings (virtual).
Monthly HCDP Rules committee meetings (virtual).
Monthly municipal utility district meetings in the Galleria - my MUD held its FIRST election last year only because I shared filing information with the community.
Monthly Katy area progressive women’s happy hour in Katy.
Statewide/lege candidate support meetings.
School board candidate support meetings.
Comment or contact me if you have any questions, especially about how to get more involved. There is a lot of work to do and many ways to participate!
In Solidarity,
Angel Viator Smith
she/her
CD38 SDEC Committeewoman
Support my travel to state committee meetings and other local advocacy (AND independent book stores!) when you buy your favorite books at the above link. I’ve also included lists of books banned from local school districts.
Tips are also always welcome:
No posts
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.