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Happy Thursday and the Start of Spring to our Fellow Democrats!
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** CORONA VIRUS UPDATE
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Our office is officially closed. Stacey is at the office managing day to day happenings, but all of our volunteers are home and will be so for the foreseeable future.
Any and all in-person Democratic meetings that were previously scheduled are canceled. If you need to speak to someone please do not come to our office, instead please call Stacey at 772.226.5267.
We hope you are all safe, healthy and staying home as much as possible. This new, unchartered territory we are navigating is filled with so many questions and concerns. But it is also a time to slow down, catch up on some projects around the house and relax a bit (unless you have kids that is). However you are spending your time, stay healthy!
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AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM ALERT INDIAN RIVER
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Indian River County does not currently have any confirmed cases of the coronavirus. We know you may have questions so we have activated our Emergency Information Center. Operators are standing by to assist with your questions. Please dial 772-226-4000. The Emergency Information Center will be open from 8:00 a.m. through 5:00 p.m. beginning today through Saturday and hours will be adjusted as needed.
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** PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY
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We are happy to report that because of our rigorous campaign to get people registered to vote by mail, we had a terrific turnout of Democrats in the Presidential Primary this week. Comparing the 2020 election to 2016’s election, we had 41% of our Democrats voting compared to 37% voting four years ago (see article in TCPalm here ([link removed]) ). That is a very robust turnout since there are very real public health concerns attributed to public gatherings.
Never before have we witnessed the immediate need to vote by mail. If you have not registered to vote by mail, either email our office at to be mailed a registration form or go to the Indian River County Supervisor of Elections website: [link removed]
where you can register directly.
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** ELECTION RESULTS
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Despite Covid-19 concerns, Democrats showed up to vote! The final results for the presidential primary in Indian River County were as follows:
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* Joe Biden received 9,077 votes. Which is 66.5% of the votes.
* Bernie Sanders received 2,325 votes. Which is 17% of the votes.
* 14,627 of Republicans voted for Donald Trump which is 93.7% of the votes.
Turnout:
* 29,324 IRC registered voters turned out to vote which is 33.29% of registered voters.
* In 2016, 11,057 Democrats turned out to vote in the Presidential Primary. In 2020, 13,674 turned out to vote.
The great news is that Democrats turned out at higher percentage than Republicans. 41% of Democrats voted in comparison to 28% of Republicans. Way to go IRC Democrats!
Early Voting:
* Democrats who voted in early voting were 3,440.
* Republicans who voted in early voting were 3,005.
These figures show that Democrats are motivated to get out and vote, despite a national pandemic. While 41% of Democrats voting is an increase, we need to increase it substantially for the general election in November. There is a lot of work to do in the coming months!
Statewide Vote By Mail and In Person Early Vote:
* 141,560 more Democrats voted by mail this year than they did in 2016.
* 74,031 more Democrats voted early in person this year than they did in 2016.
* That’s already a 2% increase over 2016 early and vote by mail votes cast in Florida. With our close margins that’s a very large increase.
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** WHAT’S HAPPENING AT THE OFFICE?
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The office is pretty quiet, but the work continues. We have done the research and begun to continue our most vital organizational meetings virtually through Zoom. We will continue to work with technology to stay in communication so that our operations continue as we strategize our efforts to get out the vote and registering people to vote by mail, including an aggressive marketing campaign.
Just as we finished printing all the vote by mail canvassing sheets for each precinct, and were beginning to roll out canvassing plans, we are suddenly faced with a new reality. We are figuring out how to change course and the best way to proceed. There are a few different ways we can reach out to voters and continue to accomplish our goals. Our main priority is the safety and health of our volunteers.
For more information on how we will be proceeding, see the Precinct Action Committee News below. Rest assured that our work isn’t done and we will continue to strategize so that we are successful in November!
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** PRECINCT ACTION COMMITTEE NEWS
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** Due to health concerns arising from the COVID-19 Pandemic, all canvassing activities have been suspended until further notice. However, the Democratic Executive Committee and the PAC remain committed to our mission of reaching out to all IRC Democrats, even in this difficult time.
The Precinct Action Committee (PAC) is continuing to meet weekly, now via Electronic Conferencing Calls. The PAC will continue its work, to ensure our precinct captains are supported and successful. This week we strategized new and better ways to stay in contact with each other, with our volunteers and with Indian River County Democratic Voters.
In the weeks and months ahead, we will have trainings, virtual phone banking events, and virtual group mailing events – all via Electronic Conferencing Calls!!
Precinct Captains and volunteers will continue phoning and mailing letters to all Democrats, with our main focus being to encourage more Democrats to sign up to Vote By Mail. Now more than ever before, Voting by Mail is the best way to exercise your Right to Vote!
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** 8TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT DNC DELEGATE SELECTION
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Delegates will be selected to attend the Democratic National Convention in Milwaukee in July. By FDP rules, at least one Indian River County Democrat must be part of the Florida Delegation. We are awaiting instructions on how the Congressional District 8 Caucus will move forward. It was originally planned for April 4^th. We will get this done.
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** DEMOCRATIC CLUB UPDATE
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Stay Safe...Stay Connected...Stay Energized
Even though we are ready to work even harder for Democratic victories in 2020, what is most important now is to stay home and stay well. In response to CDC recommendations, the Democratic Club has cancelled its April meeting. Additionally, the Cinco de Mayo fundraiser is postponed to a later date.
The Hibiscus Festival has also been cancelled/postponed. Please keep checking Facebook and your emails for updates on events and GOTV activities you can do from home.
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** ONE LAST WORD FROM OUR DWC ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITTEE
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Food for thought - “In the fight against climate change we often overlook the impact of the food we eat. Yet, according to the United Nations ([link removed]) , producing the livestock we eat generates as much climate pollution each year as all the tailpipe emissions from all the vehicles in the world.
Red meat—from cows, sheep, goats and pigs—is a leading source of this pollution. The emissions are produced when we use energy to grow feed for the animals to eat, clear forests that could absorb climate pollution to make way for pasture land, and generate methane through the digestive processes of the animals themselves. If Americans ate just a quarter pound less beef each week for a year, it would be like taking 10 million cars off the road for one year.”
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** That’s all folks! Stay healthy!
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Democratic Executive Committee of Indian River County
2345 14th Ave.
Suite 7
Vero Beach, FL 32960
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