37th District Democrats Endorsements

The 37th District Democrats met on Monday evening June 8, at the Rainier Valley Cultural Center to vote on endorsements of candidates.  The 37th District Democrats are the first legislative district organization to hold an endorsement meeting, providing a possible bellwether for what may happen in other districts and in the primary and general elections.  The endorsed candidates are:

Seattle Mayor:  dual endorsement:  Joe Mallahan and Mike McGinn.

Seattle City Attorney:  Pete Holmes

Seattle Council #2:  dual endorsement:  Richard Conlin and David Ginsberg

Seattle Council #4:  David Bloom

Seattle Council #6:  Nick Licata

Seattle Council #8:  dual endorsement :  David Miller and Mike O’Brien

Court of Appeals, Div. 1, position 3:  Anne Ellington

King County Exec.:  dual endorsement :  Dow Constantine and Larry Phillips

King County Council #5:  Julia Patterson

Port of Seattle #1:  John Creighton

Port of Seattle #3:  Rob Holland

Port of Seattle #4:  Max Vekich

City of Renton Council #2:  Jim Flynn

City of Renton Council #6:  Terri Briere

City of Renton Municipal Court Judge:  Terry Jurado

City of Tukwila Council #7:  De’Sean Quinn

Seattle School District #5:  Mary Bass

Seattle School District #7:  dual:  Charlie Mas and Betty Patu

The 37th Legislative District stretches from Madison Valley to  Renton and includes the entire Rainier Valley as well as parts of Beacon Hill, downtown Seattle, Renton, Tukwila, and unincorporated King County.  The 37th District Democrats meet regularly on the second Monday of the month at the Rainier Valley Cultural Center, 3515 S. Alaska Street, at 7:30 pm.  Meetings are open to all. 

Brendan Patrick
Chair, 37 LD Democrats

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Endorsements Meeting June 8 2009

It’s that time of year again! At our June 8 General Membership Meeting we will be endorsing candidates seeking office in the August 18 Primary Elections.  During the Meeting we will be endorsing candidates in any or all of these races.

King County Executive

King County Assessor

King County Council Position 5

Port of Seattle Commissioner Position 1, 3 & 4

Mayor of Seattle

Seattle City Attorney

Seattle City Council Positions 2, 4, 6 & 8

Seattle School Board Director Positions 5 & 7

For those of you who want to do some research on who is running and what their platforms are the King County Democratic Central Committee has a terrific resource on their website (www.kcdems.org). Under the 2009 Elections section you will find a link to the “Races & Candidates” page, which contains the names of the candidates, their website and the completed KCDCC Questionnaire.

As a reminder to all members the 37th LD Democrats require all candidates seeking our endorsement to submit in writing a declaration that they are a Democrat. Also a sole endorsement can only be obtained by a 3/5th majority vote of the members present and a dual endorsement is out of order until the third ballot.  Each candidate seeking our endorsement will be given one minute to address the membership followed by a two minute member debate period using a 30 second for/30second against format.

Our June 8 meeting will take place at our new meeting location the Rainier Valley Cultural Center 3515 S Alaska St, Seattle.  The social half-hour will begin at 7pm and the meeting will be called to order promptly at 7:30pm.

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Chair’s Corner by Brendan Patrick

Let the races begin!

            June marks the real beginning of campaign season.  For the past several months candidates have been getting ready:   tweaking their campaign plans, raising funds, and practicing their stump speeches.    And stump they did at our May meeting, where 21 candidates introduced themselves and answered your questions!

But that was May and this is June.  Filing week is June 1 to 5, when the candidates must officially and finally declare their candidacies.  On June 2 many of the candidates will be at the candidate’s forum sponsored by the 37^th together with other Seattle legislative districts.  

Here in the 37^th, campaign season kicks-off with our endorsement meeting.  This year’s meeting falls on Monday, June 8, and I hope you can make it.   This is our opportunity to endorse the candidates whose visions include the interests of our economically, racially, and culturally diverse district.   Our 37^th’s endorsement meeting is the first among the legislative districts, so our impact will be large.  Please plan to attend! 

Our endorsements are only the first step in ensuring our candidates reach the offices they are running for.   We need to communicate our endorsements to voters who trust our endorsements and use them as a guide.   Between now and the August 18 primary, and again between the primary and the general election on November 3, our common task is to get out the vote for our candidates. 

There are two things you can do to help:

(1)     Canvass a precinct.  Whether you are a precinct committee officer or not, you can walk a precinct and distribute information about our endorsements.    Canvassing is a great way to get out and meet your neighbors, register new voters, and distribute our slate card with our endorsements.  With just a few hours on a weekend afternoon, you magnify the impact of our endorsements.   Get involved now by contacting our third vice chair, Pam Keeley.  (206.234.9315 or pcolead@37dems.org)

(2)    Make a donation.  If you don’t like to canvass, you can still make an significant impact by making a contribution.  While our membership dues  cover our meeting costs , newsletters, and other incidental expenses, our funds for getting out the vote generally come from contributions above the basic membership level.   These contributions pay for printing our slate cards and for mailing slate cards to secure apartment buildings and other areas canvassers can’t reach.   You can contribute by either mailing us a check or using a credit card online at www.37dems.org. 

Every hour of canvassing and every dollar contributed helps ensure that our endorsements reach the voters.   It’s simple math:  the more you help, the more voters we reach.   By working together—each doing what he or she can–we ensure that the voice of the district is heard and represented in local government.  

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2008 Caucus Review

On Sunday June 28 from 2:00pm- 4:00pm at the Columbia City Library, 4721 Rainier Ave S Seattle, the 37^th District Democrats will be holding a 2008 Caucus Review session.  The session is open to anyone who participated in the 2008 Caucuses.  Its primary purpose is to identify concerns regarding the Caucus Process, what lessons were learned and what recommendations can be made for improvements to the Caucus Process.

If you would like to participate please contact Gwen Rench at 206-324-3786 or gwenrench@att.net.  Comments will be accepted via e-mail until June 28.

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May General Membership Meeting Recap

The May General Membership Meeting was a long one, but hopefully everyone found it to be informative.  We heard from over 20 Candidates for elected offices, mostly for Seattle City Council , of course.  It seems that a running theme amongst all the candidates was transparency and accountability in government .  With so many candidates out there it should make for an interesting primary season.

We also heard from State Senator Adam Kline on the 2009 Legislative Session that ended in late April.  He gave us some of the highlights and lowlights including the passage of the restoration of voting right for ex-felons, the granting of full legal rights for domestic partners and the cutting of funding for social services, healthcare and education.

We also passed three resolutions supporting the March with Mothers, Healthcare for All rally, the Nickelsville Homeless Encampment and the Re-naming of the West Seattle Bridge.

Sadly this was our last meeting at the Central Area Senior Center, please join me in thanking the management and staff for all they have done for us.

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