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Good morning Young Democrats,

I hope you all had a joyful 4th of July! We are getting ready to build CYD’s most progressive platform ever, and with the current state of our nation, we need to take a stand for our values now more than ever!

As many of us celebrated Pride Month over the past few weeks, the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community have continuously been under attack. MAGA extremists all over the state and the country are targeting the LGBTQIA+ community, repealing reproductive rights, spreading anti-AAPI hate, attacking workers’ rights to dignity and fair pay, and destroying our environment. Now more than ever, we need to come together to send the clear message that Young Dems will not stand idly by while Republicans plot to take away our rights.

That is why I want to invite you to join us at the upcoming California Democratic Party Executive Board meeting on August 18 – 19 in Visalia for our CYD State Leadership Committee (SLC) meeting. Here, we will work together to build CYD’s most progressive platform ever! We will come together in California’s beautiful Central Valley for a weekend of action, fun, and comradery to craft a platform that loudly proclaims our values and the policies our elected leaders must pursue now to protect our most fundamental rights, save our democracy, and counter right-wing extremism. Your voice and your values are a crucial part of CYD deciding its direction for future activism and action. If you want to be a part of this conversation, come join us in Visalia!

I will be sharing more details in the coming weeks about our welcome reception, training, and the full business agenda, but I encourage you to register now and make your plans to attend SLC on August 18-19!

Chartering Updates

At Visalia, we are also going to be chartering new CYD chapters early! If you are looking to start a new Young Democrats chapter or did not get the chance to re-charter during the last CYD State Convention in May, it is not too late. You may apply to have your charter approved at the August SLC Meeting – the next time our CYD voting body will convene – via our mid-year chartering process. You can find all the chartering forms and steps at http://cayoungdems.com/chartering/. Please provide all required documents and information. Per CYD Bylaws, your chartering packet and payment is due fifteen (15) days prior to the August SLC Meeting. Thus, the deadline for submission is Friday, August 4th at 11:59 PM.

Some chapters have been conditionally chartered–those that did not turn in all their required chartering forms but were approved under the condition that they would turn in those forms. If your chapter received conditional chartering approval at our May 2023 State Convention, your updated and complete chartering packet is due prior to the August SLC in Visalia. Please be in touch with your Regional Director to make sure you know what information needs to be fixed and provided to be approved. You can re-submit your chartering packet via the regular chapter chartering form at http://cayoungdems.com/chartering/.

Young Democrat Trainings

We are actively organizing to build the next generation of progressive leadership. We are partnering with young activists in Ventura County to host a Youth Civic Engagement Fair on August 5th from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., which will bring different youth organizations together to share knowledge and resources to promote social justice and change! Come join us at the event to see me give a keynote speech. This event will have live music, food trucks, guest appearances, and other entertainment. For more details, please click here or below.

YDA Convention Highlights

California Young Democrats are also leading the way at the national level. We are excited to announce that California had big wins at the Young Democrats of America (YDA) Convention last month. Congratulations to the following California delegates who won board positions on national caucuses:

Rachel Bracker, YDA Women’s Caucus Chair

Zachary Kihm, YDA Hispanic Latinx Caucus Vice Chair

Alondra Esquivel Garcia, YDA Hispanic Latinx Caucus Treasurer

Adrian Ballesteros, YDA Hispanic Latinx Caucus Vice Chair of Political Affairs

Jeanie Le, YDA API Caucus Executive Vice Chair

Parshan Khosravi, YDA Labor Caucus Secretary Treasurer

Jason Park, YDA Environmental Caucus Executive Vice Chair

Jill Morton, YDA Environmental Caucus Parliamentarian/Vice Chair of Governance

Additionally, California led the YDA Platform/Resolutions Committee, pushing over 50 proposals and effectively crafting a progressive national platform. Please see Zachary Kihm’s full 2023 YDA Convention Platform/Resolution Committee Report here.

And our work in YDA is not done – two of our CYD members are running for YDA positions this week! Annie Koruga will be running for YDA Disability Caucus 2nd Vice Chair, and Martin Pierro will be running for YDA Disability Caucus Treasurer. The election will take place on Sunday, July 9th at 11:00 am PDT/2:00 pm EST. Please help us make sure our CYD members are elected and turn out to the virtual election here.

Our mission is to empower Young Democrats. We are highlighting Young Democrats’ voices because Young Democrats are the leaders of today and will be the backbone of the future. Your voice matters to us. Feel free to tag CYD at @cayoungdems on Twitter or Instagram for a retweet or share.

If you’re a Young Democrat, CYD Alumni, or a friend of CYD, please help our efforts by donating today!

Democratically yours,

Giovanni Chavez

CYD President