IYD Appoints New Leadership
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Arielle Brandy (Left), James Wells (Right)
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Hi Fellow Young Democrat,
When a vacancy occurs on the Executive Committee of the Indiana Young Democrats, we are tasked with filling the vacancy within 30 days in a fair and transparent manner as prescribed by our organizational governing documents. Yesterday, May 8th, the Executive Committee met via Zoom to fill the vacancy for president.
The following appointments were voted and approved by the Executive Committee effective May 8th, 2020.
- President - Arielle Brandy
- Vice President - James Wells
- Secretary - Ethan Hudson
- Congressional District 6 Chair - Nick Dunlap
- YDA National Committeewoman Representative - Dyna Martinez
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President, Arielle Brandy (CD-2) - Arielle Brandy is a proud Afro-Latina voting rights advocate and Hoosier mother, born and raised in the Rust Belt city of South Bend, IN. She is a graduate of Indiana State University and a founding member of the St. Joseph County Young Democrats chapter. Since 2011, Arielle has served the state of Indiana as an Executive Board Member for Indiana Young Democrats, most recently as a two term National Committeewoman. She was most recently the Indiana State Director for the Pete for America Campaign, Political Director for the Eddie Melton Gubernatorial exploratory committee and for 3 years, Arielle served as the Democratic Board Member of Voter Registration for St. Joseph County. In 2016, she served as the Regional Field Director for the IDP Coordinated Campaign for Evan Bayh for US Senate, John Gregg for Governor and Lynn Coleman for Congress. Standing strong with women’s rights and advocating for women’s healthcare accessibility & policies, she now serves on the Planned Parenthood Advocates of Indiana/Kentucky PAC and is a proud board & alumnae member of the inaugural class of Hoosier Women Forward. She is dedicated to advocating for the Black & Brown community and strives everyday to bridge the gap between government and the community.
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Vice President, James L. Wells (CD-7) - James Leonard Wells, Jr., born and raised in Gary, IN is the former Secretary of the Indiana Young Democrats. Upon graduation in 2013, he enrolled in classes at Ball State University (BSU) where he would go on to create his own major called Urban Statesmanship and lead the Ball State University Democrats as President from 2014 to 2015. He was also elected in 2016 as the President of the Ball State University Student Government. After graduating with his Bachelor’s degree, James joined the Indiana Young Democrats as the Communications Director in 2018, bringing with him years of experience in campaign volunteering through phone banking and canvassing. James has volunteered on local races such as Congressman Pete Visclosky in the IN 1st Congressional District, State Senator Tim Lanane, State Representatives Sue Errington and Melanie Wright, and national races with the Obama 2008 Campaign and the Hillary for America Campaign. As Communications Director, he would be a part of the team of young, Democrat Hoosiers who brought and hosted the Young Democrats of America National Convention to Indiana in 2019. At that same convention, many of his peers approached him to run for Chair of the LGBTQ+ Caucus, which he won unopposed. At the start of 2020, James was appointed by the Indiana Young Democrat Executive Committee to fill the role of Secretary and elected to the Indiana Stonewall Democrats Board of Directors. He is dedicated to community and economic development through the use of equitable, sustainable, and resilient urban planning techniques. James' local chapter of membership is the Marion County Young Democrats.
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Ethan Hudson, Dyna Martinez, Nick Dunlap (Left to right)
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Secretary, Ethan Hudson (CD-6) - Ethan currently works as a Legislative Assistant for the Indiana Senate Democratic Caucus. Prior to his work in the Indiana Senate, Ethan was campaign coordinator for State Senator Tim Lanane's 2018 reelection campaign and was an intern in the Washington D.C. office of U.S. Senator Joe Donnelly. Ethan is the founding President of Delaware County Young Democrats and a member of the 2019-2020 Indiana Emerging Leaders class. He is currently in his second year of law school at IU McKinney School of Law and lives in Marion County.
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National Committeewoman, Dyna Martinez (CD-7) - Dyna is a College Senior majoring in Political Science, Psychology and Civic Leadership, concentration being International Affairs/Legal Studies , with a Mathematics, Business and Women's Studies minor. Her future career goals are to attain a Juris Doctorate and to make an impact on the international and/or Domestic system to better society and open possibilities for future generations. She is excited to represent Indiana on the National level not only as the Legislation Committee Vice-Chair, YDA Hispanic Caucus Vice-Chair of Political Affairs and Hispanic Outreach, but now as Indiana National Committeewoman.
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District Chair, Nickolas Dunlap (CD-6) - Born in Goshen, and raised in Richmond, Nick has lived and worked in Indiana for most of his life. He has worked on many campaigns more recently with Florida's 2018 recount campaign and Indiana’s 2018 coordinated campaign in Henry, Randolph, and Wayne Counties. Past campaigns include Wisconsin Senator Baldwin’s 2012 election as well as Senator Sander’s 2016 presidential primary election. Besides the political campaign work Nick has done, he has also worked with Indy Pride working since 2017 on the Indy Pride Festival as Logistics Director.
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The bylaws are available on our website. If you would like a pdf copy of the bylaws, please request one from the IYD Ethan Hudson, at [email protected]. The current term for IYD President will end June 30th, 2020. An election for a full term will be held in the summer of 2020 for all the positions appointed above. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
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Our statement on recent police shootings.
The Indiana Young Democrats strongly condemn the misuse of power by the police and the targeting of disenfranchised communities. We stand in solidarity with the Black community and support all non-violent protests. We urge everyone protesting to continue to follow CDC guidelines on social distancing and wearing face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic.
We need to unite as a community and demand justice for black lives lost while continuing the fight for better policies, procedures and dismantling the systemic racism and mistrust that exists in our criminal justice system. Read our full statement below.
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New brand, same mission.
We are 2️⃣days away from launching our new brand identity and logo. Join us Monday via social media at noon as we launch with a new video. You won’t want to miss it!
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Save the Date: IYD Virtual State Convention
We’re going virtual! Mark your calendar for June 20th, 2020. Indiana Young Democrats from across the state will come together to elect new leadership, learn from the best in the game, and hear from great speakers.
Note: Any person eligible to be a member of the Indiana Young Democrats shall register and pay dues not later than June 10, 2020 in order to be considered a member in good standing and vote at the convention.
Details about registration and our program to be announced this coming week. Stay tuned!
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Democratically yours,
Indiana Young Democrats |
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