The Tompkins County Democratic Committee [TCDC] held its first meeting of 2023 on January 26. It marked the start of my second year as Chair of TCDC, and I convened the meeting with some thoughts about the committee that I wanted to share with all of you.
Although we are a relatively small committee in a relatively small (population-wise) county, TCDC is critically important at the local, state, and national levels. Most of our efforts go toward electing Democrats at the local, state and federal level. Locally, that means electing mayors, town supervisors, town and village lawmakers and members of Common Council and the Tompkins County Legislature. All those positions and more are at stake in this year’s election cycle.
Every two years we pitch in with other county committees in the relevant districts to elect Democrats to the New York State Senate and Assembly, and to the U.S. House of Representatives. Every four years we work to elect a Democratic Governor and President of the United States. Every six years we join Democrats statewide to elect Democrats to the U.S. Senate. In the 2022 election cycle we worked for candidates for State Senate and Assembly, the House, Governor and U.S. Senator.
As you can imagine, there’s rarely an idle moment; we are always either working toward elections or planning the next cycle. To win, we must excel at every step in the process: Seeking out Democratic candidates for office and carrying petitions to get them on the ballot; fundraising and donating the proceeds, as TCDC, to their campaigns; volunteering, whether with TCDC elections activities or with individual campaigns, and that crucial last step: getting Democrats out to the polls to vote.
With so much to do, and so much at stake at all levels, it’s critical that all of us continue to work together, with transparency, and be respectful of each other’s opinions.
I sincerely thank every member for your commitment to volunteer and/or donate to enhance the success of “Your Tompkins County Democratic Committee.” It really takes all of us.