Hello my fellow Young Democrats-

Tonight, we will be electing our 2022 AYD Executive Committee.

When: November 17, 2021 at 7 PM

Where: 1351 N Rolfe St, Arlington, VA 22209

We will be electing our new executive board for the 2022 calendar year.

Here are the statements for the candidates.

President

Tenley O'Hara - Hi there,

My name is Tenley O’Hara and I'm running for President of Arlington Young Democrats. The Virginia 2021 General Election did not pan out the way we wanted it to and is a reminder that Virginia is still Purple. There are many lessons to take away from this election and hopefully this will serve as a wake up call to help prepare us for midterms. Many of these races were incredibly close, often less than a percentage point or two, and it is promising to see that Virginia is trending more and more Blue. Votes matter and I want to help build our volunteer base to help increase our GOTV (Get out the vote) potential.

I joined the AYD Executive Board in 2018 as Digital Director and served in that position almost daily for two years before I was elected as AYD Secretary last year. In my capacity as Secretary, I authored the weekly AYD newsletter, kept the AYD Executive Board meeting minutes, and was chair of the AYD Communications Committee. I helped promote and did my best to attend as many general body meetings, social hours, committee meetings, caucus chair meetings, joint events, and fundraisers as I could. I wanted to get to know our community and be aware of everything happening in our organization in order to effectively communicate it to our membership. This role required great attention to detail, a high level of dedication, and leadership skills that will serve me well as president.

With the skills and the institutional knowledge I’ve gained over the past three years, and with the help of the rest of the incoming AYD Executive Board, I will do my best to foster a social and inclusive space for all our members by increasing membership outreach. I will also work to maintain and increase diverse voices in our organization by highlighting these communities and meeting them where they are. Finally, I will work to make sure we have a solid volunteer base to assist in the efforts to protect and win democratic seats at the local, state, and federal level for the 2022 election cycle.

I will do my best to serve this organization and I hope I have your vote.

Vice President

Maya Jones - This year has been a year of excitement, as we swore in the first Black and Southeast Asian woman to be the Vice President of the United States, but also a year of fear as we saw the denigration of our Nation's Capitol. In November, despite our best efforts, the Commonwealth of Virginia reaffirmed she is a purple state by returning into Republican hands. Now is not a time to fear, rather it is a time to come together and FIGHT for our values.

I have served as Secretary, bringing new ideas to the board and championing a constitutional change to add a Diversity and Inclusion Director to the board, which I served as this past year. As D&I Director, I worked with affinity groups planning events that celebrated and highlighted culture and success, created a partnership with the DCYDs, knocked on doors in districts that had candidates of color, and worked with the board to ensure we continue to have policies that consider all Arlington Young Democrats.

If elected as VP, I will continue growing AYD's membership helping inspire new young leaders and giving people the space they need to grow. I also will help us lead strong outreach efforts to elect Democrats in Arlington, in Virginia, and beyond. Finally, I will strive to help AYD spend every dollar raised on electing Democrats, so we can see the policies we want to be passed by our elected officials.

Let's work together to MAKE CHANGE HAPPEN in 2022!

Secretary

Yint Hmu - This last election did not go the way we wanted. And all indications point to the fact that the 2022 midterms will be a hard battle. There are majority making congressional districts right here in Virginia. Elaine Luria in VA-02, Abigail Spanberger in VA-07, and Jennifer Wexton in VA-10. Just recently, after the statewide GOP victory, the RNC announced that they were adding VA-10 to the list of their targets for potential pickup opportunities for 2022.

The point that I’m trying to make is that this will not be easy. And communications from the AYD will be critical in mobilizing and organizing folks from our safe blue bastion up here to go and support our very unsafe districts across the state. A good digital communications program can achieve that. Mobilizing and organizing people will accomplish two things: we will help defend our vulnerable seats across the state, and increase the membership and capacity of AYD. If elected, this will be my number one priority.

I am a campaign professional with a background in digital and field. During the 2020 elections, I worked as the Mobilization Director for the DPVA on the successful re-election of Elaine Luria in VA-02. And I am confident I can put my skills to good work as AYD’s Secretary.

Treasurer

Phil Kattato - I am re-applying for the position of Treasurer because I would like continue to take on serious responsibility to help advance the goals of Arlington Young Democrats, and on a larger scale, the Virginia Democratic Party. If I am re-elected Treasurer, I pledge to carry out my responsibilities faithfully and with the diligence and ethics expected of me. I understand that failure to carry out my role could result in violation of federal election laws that could severely damage the integrity of our organization. I request your support for this role and I won't let you down.

Campaigns Director

Colleen Moore - I am running to be Arlington Young Democrats’ next Campaigns Director because I am passionate about forging a more Democratic United States in the 2022 elections, from taking back the House of Delegates in Virginia to defending our majority in Congress. With a Republican Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and Attorney General, a Republican majority in the House of Delegates, and a Senate defending their Democratic majority in Virginia, it will be so important to elect Democrats in the 2022 elections. My track record and passion show that I am ready to take on this task for AYD.

Since moving to Arlington in 2019, I have been an active member of Arlington Young Democrats, as current Programming Director, as well as local progressive community groups. I have been working on the frontlines at the national and local levels to pressure policymakers to support progressive national security and foreign policy, lobbying to pass anti-nuclear resolutions in Arlington as an activist with Beyond the Bomb as well as federal legislation as the Advocacy Coordinator for Women Cross DMZ, a global movement of women mobilizing for peace on the Korean Peninsula. The past few years, I have volunteered for progressive Congressional campaigns as well as participated in phonebanking and canvassing for the 2020 Presidential race and the 2021 Virginia elections.

As your next Campaigns Director, I would use my skills, experience, and passion to map out what campaigns to prioritize and how we can elect more Democrats. I hope to earn your vote!

Membership Director

Daniel Gray - As Recruitment Director for the last year I have had the chance to work with the membership team and support the Membership Director. I have enjoyed that work and am excited for the opportunity to serve as Membership Director and ensure our membership events next year are even bigger successes. I would like to make sure the membership team works closely and productively together, and I would like to produce guidance documents that can serve as institutional knowledge to pass down to future directors. I am also excited to support the next AYD President's vision to expand AYD membership.

Diversity and Inclusion Director

No Candidates Applied

Political Director

Adam Chaikof - During my tenure as Political Director, AYD’s caucuses have organized several successful meetings, events, and drafted numerous resolutions. I’m seeking a second term as Political Director because I want to help our caucuses continue this momentum into 2022.

Community Service Director

Kenya Pennington - We are only as good as our connections to the community were within. I would love to integrate AYD into the Arlington community more! One idea is organizing a donation drive to support families in need due to COVID in Arlington County! This could be completed through accepting donations of winter clothing, PPE, blankets, etc. at a park in the county. AYD could coordinate with a local organization(s), such as a women’s shelter or an adult day care home, to drop off the collected items. This event could occur monthly or quarterly depending on interest from the community.

Party Representative

No Candidates Applied

There are no contested elections and therefore in accordance to the rules, all votes will go to voice votes by acclimation. Due to this, leadership presiding over the elections have determined there will not be any absentee votes sent out to those who applied for them as it is not necessary.

Reminder: for the positions of Diversity & Inclusion and Party Representative, we will be accepting floor nominations tonight during the meeting. All of those who wish to be nominated by floor nomination must be in attendance to accept the nomination. If after the floor nomination process there still are vacancies, those positions will remain vacant until after the next board is officially sworn in and up to a special election process at the discretion of the next board's leadership.

Thank you and see you tonight.

For those who wish to be in attendance, we will be streaming via Zoom. https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIqcOqprjMqGtYzjg3OFvrCdI9SJLy6Uk0T