Because This Is America!

Weekly News, Updates, and Events

We As Democrats Believe:

"Until justice is blind to color, until education is unaware of race, until opportunity is unconcerned with the color of men's skins, emancipation will be a proclamation but not a fact."

 

-- President Lyndon Johnson

 

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NEWS






 




Georgia Primary Highlights Election Challenges

 


First the good news from Georgia: The state sent absentee ballot requests to every voter in the state, which resulted in record turnout. Democrats turned out at a rate three times the turnout rate in the 2016 primary.  The bad news: in-person voting was a mess, with long lines and polling locations closed. Widespread problems were reported with new voting machines. The Republican Secretary of State, who is the top election official in Georgia, blamed county election officials for the problems, and local officials blamed the Secretary of State.




 


Local election officials reported numerous challenges to in-person voting, including worker shortages, no-show workers, polling places shut down after workers test positive. training cancellations and last minute facility cancellations. While imperfect, voting by mail appears to have worked better than in-person voting.

 

Georgia is expecting yet another primary in August, and a vigorous debate about improving voting procedures has already begun. Some Republican legislators have already opposed mailing ballot applications to voters in August. You can read more about the Georgia election here and here.


 

Governor Cooper Signs Law to Make Voting by Mail Easier

 


(From NC Policy Watch) Gov. Roy Cooper signed House Bill 1169 into law on Friday. Though the measure became entangled in a last minute effort by Republicans to resurrect their enjoined voter ID law, voting rights/good government advocates are claiming victory and dismissing the voter ID push as, in effect, too little, too late. As he signed the bill Cooper said, “Making sure elections are safe and secure is more important than ever during this pandemic, and this funding is crucial to that effort. This legislation makes some other positive changes, but much more work is needed to ensure everyone’s right to vote is protected.”

 

The legislation includes these provisions:


Reduces the absentee ballot witness requirement from two to one

Allows voters to submit an absentee ballot request form via email, online portal, fax, mail or in person (prior to this bill, NC voters could submit an absentee ballot request form only by mail or in person)

Gives counties greater flexibility in where they assign poll workers, better allowing them to address possible poll worker shortages at precincts

Allocates state matching funds to take advantage of federal CARES Act and HAVA money

Allocates funds to counties to prepare for elections amid COVID-19, including the purchasing of personal protective equipment for use at polling places and increasing recruitment and compensation of poll workers

Allocates funds for election security and continuity of operations in case of disaster


​However, it should be noted that none of the new provisions are a complete solution to the underlying challenge of voting by mail: longer processing time due to a likely surge in ballot applications in October, and increased mailing times. Apply now for a vote by mail ballot to ensure that your vote counts.

President Donald Trump has blasted out unsupported claims that mail-in voting leads to fraud despite the fact that the President himself votes by mail. Trump's opposition didn't stop North Carolina legislators from giving HB 1169 bipartisan support. Allowing voters to cast their ballots by mail is seen as critical in the wake of recent botched elections in Wisconsin and Georgia in which voters were forced to risk their health standing in line for hours to vote during a pandemic. 

​Click here for comments on the bill from Common Cause. Click here for an article in the New York Times.

 


Trump Demands Full House for RNC Convention Appearance, Will Not Appear in Charlotte

 

Last week, following President Trump’s latest tantrum, the president’s team released a new statement that the President will now be holding his acceptance speech portion of the Republican National Convention in Jacksonville, Florida. This statement came as a shock to no one, as not only a week before Trump went on a tirade against Governor Roy Cooper unwillingness to hold a full-scale, in-person convention in Charlotte because of the public health and safety risk that it would pose to North Carolinians.

 

According to CNN, Republican National Committee Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel announced on Thursday that President Donald Trump will accept the Republican nomination this year in Jacksonville, Florida. Trump will make the speech at the 15,000-person VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena, the release said. Because the party signed a contract to hold the convention in Charlotte, they are obligated to hold some portion of the convention in the North Carolina city. But the announcement now guarantees that this year's Republican convention will be unlike any other in modern history, where delegates officially elect their nominee in one location, while the nominee accepts the nomination hundreds of miles away. 

 

Even Trump apparently recognizes the danger of holding a rally of thousands of cheering supporters packed into an indoor arena. He will hold a political rally in an indoor arena in Oklahoma next week, his first amid the coronavirus pandemic. Trump's organizers have demanded that attendees sign a waiver that absolves the president’s campaign of any liability from virus-related illnesses such as the one that already has killed more than 115,000 Americans, according to The Guardian. 

 

Trump Rally in Tulsa Marred by Juneteenth Controversy



Trump's Tulsa rally originally was scheduled for June 19th, a day many African Americans celebrate as Juneteenth, commemorating the day in 1865 when Texas slaves learned about the Emancipation Proclamation. Trump announced Friday that he was moving the rally date back by a date to avoid the holiday. Trump's campaign initially chose that day to hold a rally in the city that was the site of one of America's worst massacres of African Americans in 1921. This is the President who recently answered protests against racial injustice with tear gas and threats of military dominance on the streets of America. He told a Fox News interviewer last week that the Juneteenth date was unintentional, but “you can really think about that very positively because a rally to me is a celebration.” See a Washington Post article about the Juneteenth controversy here.

 

Volunteers Sought for Ongoing COVID-19 Virtual Phone Bank 





Are you worried about the consequences of 4 more years of awful leadership in our highest elected office? One of our most urgent priorities now is to ensure that Democratic voters are able to vote safely in November. 

We may not be able to knock doors, but we can do it virtually! We want to reach out to our fellow Democrats by phone to check-in and ask how they are doing and to help them apply early for an absentee ballot for the Nov. 3 election.  We want every possible vote to be counted, and to make that happen we need to start NOW!

We Need:


Phone knockers to call people. All you need is a computer or tablet and a phone in the safety of your own home and on your own schedule!  

Data captains to pull lists of those who need help getting their absentee ballot request form.  

Fullfilment volunteers to mail or drop request forms at voters’ doors.


 Email Susanne Werner, [email protected], or Joanne Durham, [email protected] to get connected to this critical effort.





 

EVENTS






 

NHCDP Town Hall With Four Council of State Candidates -- June 15

 

When: Monday June 15, 7:00 p.m.

Where: Zoom

 


Join us for a Town Hall meeting with four Council of State Candidates: Ronnie Chatterji candidate for Treasurer, Wayne Goodwin, candidate for Commissioner of Insurance, Jenna Wadsworth, candidate for Secretary of Agriculture and Jessica Holmes, candidate for Secretary of Labor,

 

Please click this link to register in advance.

 

You will receive a confirmation email with a link to join the meeting.




 

Dialing for Democrats from a Distance -- Wednesdays through July 1

 

When: Wednesdays, 5:00 to 8:00 p.m.

Where: Call from your home

 

NCDEMS invite you to drop in to a Zoom phonebank party at your convenience between 5 and 8 on Wednesdays to call voters in the 7th Congressional District from the comfort and safety of your home. To participate, click here.

 

Coffee with Clayton Hamerski, Candidate for Register of Deeds -- June 20

 

When: Saturday June 20, 10:00 a.m.

Where: Zoom

 

Clayton Hamerski is holding a Coffee with Clayton this Saturday at 10 a.m. The subject of the coffee is Consumer Protection and the role of the Register of Deeds in protecting New Hanover citizens from fraud. Here's a link to join Clayton's coffee:  [link removed]

 

 

Progressive Caucus Town Hall with Cal Cunningham, Candidate for Senate -- June 20

 

When: Saturday June 20, 11:00 a.m.

Where: Zoom

 

The Cunningham campaign and the North Carolina Democratic Party will conduct a Progressive Caucus Virtual Town Hall. RSVP is required at the link provided. We will send out the Zoom link to those who RSVP. To register for the event click on this link: [link removed]

 

NHCDP Town Hall With Josh Stein and Yvonne Holley -- June 22

 

When: Monday June 22, 7:00 p.m.

Where: Zoom


 

Virtual Town Hall For Attorney General Josh Stein and Lieutenant Governor candidate Yvonne Holley.

 

Please register in advance for this meeting:

 

[link removed]

 

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting. 

 




Murphy to Manteo Tour by Cal Cunningham -- June 23, 24, 25 

 

When: June 23, 24 and 25 various times

Where: Zoom


The Cal Cunningham campaign is currently planning a state-wide, Murphy-to-Manteo fund-raising tour of North Carolina, and they want all the counties in Central North Carolina to be a part of it.  Cunningham's race for Senate has gathered tremendous momentum over the last couple of months thanks to our supporters across North Carolina. Media outlets and election analysts from across the country are calling this race the "hinge state" -- Democrats' best chance for re-taking the U.S. Senate in 2020. The campaign asks that Eastern NC residents join them Thursday, June 25 at 5:00 p.m. for this virtual fundraiser. 

To RSVP to the event, use the link here.

The tour will be held over the course of three virtual events the evenings of June 23, 24, and 25. The details for each of the events are listed below and linked to their RSVP page.



Western NC: Tuesday, June 23 at 6:30 PM EST



Piedmont: Wednesday, June 24 at 6:00 PM EST



Eastern NC: Thursday, June 25 at 5:00 PM EST




 

Virtual Town Hall With Judge Chris Brook -- June 28 

 

When: Sunday, June 28, 3:00 p.m.

Where: Zoom

 

In less than 5 months, a fair and independent judiciary will be on the ballot. Please join Judge Chris Brook for a virtual town hall to learn more about the important work of the Court of Appeals and why we need fair, impartial, and respectful judges in North Carolina. Contributions are welcome, but not required. RSVP here.

 

 

 

 

 

NHCDP Virtual Happy Hour With Board of Elections Chair Tom Pollard -- June 29



 

When: Monday June 29, 7:00 p.m.

Where: Zoom

 


Join us for a discussion with New Hanover County Board of Elections Chair Tom Pollard about the Board of Elections' plans for a very challenging election this Fall.



 

 

 

 

 

 

Best,

Richard Poole, Chair

News Content by James Cummings

 

If you have any announcements, comments, questions or concerns regarding this email series, please contact the Editor here.


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| Paid for by the New Hanover County Democratic Party |
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Mailing Address: 

NHCDP

PO Box 3036

Wilmington, NC 28406 

 

Office Address:

5041 New Centre Drive

Wilmington, NC 28403

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