FEBRUARY 15, 2022
CELEBRATE BLACK HISTORY MONTH!
EARLY VOTE NOW!
|
|
Click on the Contribute button to help turn Montgomery County Blue!
Please consider becoming a sustaining member at $10 per month
|
|
Montgomery County Democratic Headquarters
704 N. Thompson St. #195
Conroe, Texas 77301
936-703-5841
|
|
|
In this issue:
Who's on your Ballot?
Final Friday Speaker Series
Democratic Party Convention 2022
Joe's Corner
"Save America from What?"
Sample Ballot
Early Voting Information
Applications for Vote by Mail Ballot
Top Ten Reasons to Vote in the Democratic Primary
Conversation With the Candidates
Young Dems
Upcoming Events
|
|
Run for Precinct Chair - Vacant Precinct Chairs
Shop the Blue Store (New Items)
This newsletter is published on or about the 1st and the 15th of every month. Email content for consideration to communications@mcdptx.org
no later than 3 days before publication.
|
|
Montgomery County Democratic Headquarters Hours
Hours of operation: 10:00 am to 4:00 pm.
Due to the continuing spread of COVID, our policy now is to require wearing a mask to come inside and to comply with social distancing rules. The best way to reach someone at the MCDP headquarters is to call or leave a message at 936-703-5841 or send an email to mcdpoffice@gmail.com. For urgent matters, please text 404-431-6551 or email chair@mcdptx.org outside of office hours.
|
|
WHO IS ON YOUR BALLOT THIS YEAR?
|
|
Charlene Glover to Speak about Black History for Our
Final Friday Presentation on February 25, 2022
Charlene Glover is a Montgomery County Democrat, a member of the Texas Coalition of Black Democrats, and a member of our Social Justice Committee who comes to us with years of corporate experience in business administration, financial accounting, and computer technology. She has also owned and operated several small businesses including a certified USDA organic produce farm.
But she has also been a long-time community activist. In Albany, Georgia, she was awarded the Martin Luther King, Jr. Dream Award for outstanding leadership and community involvement for her social, economic, and political ministry in Southwest Georgia.
Charlene is now senior pastor of the Trumpet of God Ministries in Montgomery Texas where she continues to be a servant-leader who seeks to be a bridge-builder. Her presentation on Black History will be based on her belief that:
"Black History should not be seen as separate from American history; instead, it is a time to commemorate the culture, the contributions, the tragedies, the triumphs, the perseverance, and the incredible resilience of African Americans, which affirms that every human being is created in the Imago Dei (the image and likeness of God), Genesis 1:26-27."
Remember you must register in advance to attend the Final Friday program. The link is highlighted in blue below. You may also watch on Facebook Live, or RSVP at 936-703-5841 to watch in person from Montgomery County Headquarters if you have limited internet access or prefer to attend in person.
Topic: MCDP Final Friday Speaker Series - Black History Month
Time: Friday, February 25, 2022 , at 6:30 p.m.
Register in advance for this meeting:
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
|
|
Top Ten Reasons to Vote in the Democratic Primary
For a long time, there were few, if any, Democratic candidates on the Primary Ballot and the good Democrats in Montgomery County got in the habit of voting in the Republican Primary in order to at least have some voice about our County elected officials. During the time of Republican dominance in our County, the Democratic Party got smaller and fewer Democrats risked putting themselves forward as candidates.
Here are ten good reasons to vote in the Democratic Primary (and not to vote in the Republican Primary).
-
This is a year when we can actually turn Texas Blue. Let’s all vote for Democrats in every possible election from now on!! Monetary support from national PACS and other national organizations is determined by the statewide turnout at the Primary and General Elections. Our Statewide Candidates don’t get funding, we see very few national ads, and we are left entirely on our own and that’s because we don’t get out and vote in the Primary for our statewide candidates.
-
Did you know Precinct Judges are named based on which Party’s Gubernatorial Candidate receives the most votes in this year’s General Election? The more voters we can turn out in the Primary, the more voters we can turn out in the General Election. Right now all but one of the 111 Montgomery County Voting Precinct Judges are Republicans. These Judges determine the number of clerks at each voting location and run the election at the precinct level. Voting irregularities, questionable behavior, and anything else related to the election are managed by the Judge. Research tells us that we could readily “flip” about 20 precincts in Montgomery County if all of our Democratic voters voted in the Democratic primary instead of crossing over to vote in the Republican Primary.
-
To be a Delegate to the County Democratic Convention, you must be a Democratic voter who resides in the County and has voted either in the Democratic Primary or signs an oath of affiliation with the Democratic Party and has not voted in another Party’s primary or convention or supported a candidate of another party. As a delegate you can vote on Resolutions and Rules. You will also be eligible to serve as a Delegate to the State or National Convention. Without you as a voting Democrat, we lose your input, your voice, and your energy. And you lose options to serve. Attending the Convention might be the best way to get excited and empowered by the growing Democratic presence in Montgomery County. NOTE: you may attend the Convention as a Visitor if you didn’t vote as a Democrat in the last Gubernatorial Primary but you won’t be able to vote or propose resolutions or rules changes.
-
If the number of voters in the Democratic Primary continues to grow we will continue to have more and stronger Democratic Candidates. In this political environment, our candidates become disheartened by the number of Republican voters and are discouraged by the lack of support. They risk a lot of money, time, energy, and heart for a cause that feels “hopeless.” Let them hear your voices through your Primary vote! And any other way you can provide support!
-
Success Breeds Success! As we grow the number of Democrats voting in the Democratic Primary, our Candidates gain support from State and National Organizations and from the media. The momentum is already growing and the turnout by Democrats in this primary will make a huge impact.
-
Your local Democratic candidates need your support. Educate yourself about the candidates and vote for the best! They all need your support. The Democratic candidates have put themselves out there to run in a Republican-dominated county. Don’t let them stand alone.
-
To serve as a Precinct Chair you must meet the same qualifications as a Delegate above. If you are interested in your neighborhood, have any organizational skills, and want to explore how to become a Precinct Chair - contact mcdpoffice@gmail.com!
-
Work at the Polls as a clerk! Again, you need to be a true Democrat to help out as a Democrat at our polls as a Judge or Clerk during the early voting period and on election day. The easiest way to be credentialed as a Democrat is to vote in the Democratic Primary. This is an easy and fun way to be involved in the democratic process and help ensure the sanctity of our elections.
-
Complete your identity as a proud Democrat. As you can tell from this list, essentially you are not “seen” as a Democrat by the Party (in the databases and systems) unless you vote in the Democratic Primary.
-
We need your voice and your support! Every single vote counts starting at the local Precinct level. The impact cascades. Make all Montgomery County Democratic voices heard loud and clear through your vote in every election. There are truly more of us than we know.
BONUS: One of the most direct ways to help a candidate is to sign the candidate’s petition to qualify to be on the Primary ballot. A certain number of qualified signatures can be used in lieu of a fee to qualify for the ballot. If you help a candidate by signing that candidate’s petition to be on the ballot, if you vote in the Primary you must not vote in the other party’s Primary.
|
|
Democratic Party Convention 2022 |
|
What Goes on at a County Convention?
The Committees
There are four committees at the County Convention. If you are a delegate, you may volunteer to be on any of the committees. Contact Amy Hamrick Lewis, our County Chair, or Natalie Ward, our Convention Committee Chair at MCDPoffice@gmail.com if you would like to volunteer for a committee now as many of the committees begin functioning well before the convention to be prepared for the convention itself.
Credentials Committee: The job of this committee is to be sure that each convention attendee is a qualified participant and is assigned to the correct precinct. To be eligible a person must be a Democratic voter who resides in the jurisdiction where the convention is being held and has either voted in the Democratic Primary or signs an oath of affiliation with the Democratic Party and has not voted in another party’s primary or convention or supported a candidate of another party. If you intend to attend the Democratic County Convention on March 19th at Oak Ridge High School as a credentialed participant (a delegate), you can pre-register now at this link: https://txdem.co/Convention-RSVP
Rules Committee: All-Party Conventions are governed by the Rules of the Texas Democratic Party (TDP) and, unless otherwise required by the TDP Rules, Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised. The Rules Committee can propose additional guidelines for the operation of the County Convention, for example, a time limit on debate. They can also propose rule changes to the TDP to be considered at the State level.
Nominations Committee: It is the job of the Nominations Committee to recommend to the Convention a slate of at-large delegates to fill out the County or Senate District delegation to the State Convention. In order to complete its assignment, the Committee will have to have reports from the precinct caucuses regarding delegates selected from the precincts. In making its recommendations the Committee should keep in mind the need for diversity of both ethnicity and constituency groups in a delegation and should strive for reasonably equitable representation.
Resolutions Committee: At the beginning of the Convention, the Chair will announce where and with whom resolutions shall be filed and the filing period must remain open for at least one hour following that announcement. Any participant (delegate) in the Convention can submit a resolution. A resolution is a brief statement that expresses the position of the Convention on an issue or subject of interest to the body. The resolution points out why the Party feels a certain way and what actions the Party proposes to take based on those feelings. Resolutions can and do cover a wide array of topics. They can be memorials or congratulations, or issue-oriented. They can be local, state, or national in scope.
The job of the Resolutions Committee is to recommend to the body what resolutions the County should forward to the State Convention for consideration. The Committee should also be sure that resolutions it favorably recommends are in the correct format and accurately worded so as to express the position of the Convention.
A copy of the Resolution form to be used for submission at the County Convention is available at https://txdem.co/Convention-Resolution. Resolutions can also be presented in person at the County Convention until 10:15 a.m. Forms will be available at the convention for that purpose.
USEFUL LINKS FOR THE STATE AND COUNTY CONVENTION
Call the Montgomery County Democratic Party at 936-703-5841 or Email us at MCDPoffice@gmail.com if you have questions or need information.
We hope to see you on March 19th at Oak Ridge High School. In-person registration begins at 8 a.m. The Convention will gavel into session at 9 a.m.
Here's the signup link for volunteers for convention 2022
Submitted by Margie Kremer
|
|
Take part in the 2022 Texas Democratic Convention!
Our 2022 Texas Democratic Convention is just around the corner, and we need you to sign up today if you want to be a delegate.
You can take the first step to become a state delegate on Saturday, March 19th at your local County/Senate District Convention.
This is a great opportunity to get more involved in Democratic politics. You’ll be able to advocate for the issues that you care about and connect with fellow Democrats in your community.
In 2020, we had the most successful virtual state convention in the country -- raising well over $1 million and setting the tone for the Democratic National Convention.
I hope that you’ll join us, and I’m looking forward to seeing you this summer.
Adelante,
Gilberto Hinojosa
Chair, Texas Democratic Party
|
|
|
|
We're In Joe Biden's Corner!
The President has many success stories in his first term and we want to tell everyone about them!
|
|
Farmers Flourish under Biden's Recovery from Trump-era Trade Wars
Source: NBC News on MSN.Com
Here is some more good news and another Biden-Harris Success.
Patrick Westhoff from the University of Missouri Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute said, "We had farm revenues in 2021 close to record levels in 2013."
Montana Farm Union President, Walter Schwetzer, "In 2019, our administration was at war with all of our customers."
Under Biden, "The nation is rebuilding our relationships with our customers." Biden is allowing price to be the guiding factor instead of governmental bailouts.
Submitted by Michael Stacy & Charlotte Harris
|
|
When I first saw one of Trump’s signs that said “Save America”, my first thought was “save America from what?” Save America from affordable healthcare? Save America from affordable college? Save America from clean air and clean water? Save America from good-paying jobs? Republicans should add additional words to make it clear from what they believe America needs to be saved from.
Of course, Democrats should make signs that say “Save America, for affordable healthcare vote Democratic”; “Save America, for affordable college vote Democratic”; “Save America, for clean air and clean water vote Democratic”; “Save America, for the right to vote Democratic”; “Save America, for good-paying jobs vote Democratic.”
Submitted by: Sean Horrigan
|
|
Our Montgomery County Candidates
|
|
Above are the listed early voting locations from www.montgomeryvotes.org, you can vote at any of these locations during February 14-25.
For voting March 1st, Election Day, you must vote in your neighborhood precinct. Many precincts have changed due to redistricting. Please be sure to check your precinct voting location at www.montgomeryvotes.org before you go vote!
To check your current precinct number go to montgomeryvotes.org, elect Your Registration Status, enter your information and see Voting Precinct. |
|
Texas has new political maps. See which districts your home is in.
|
|
2022 PRIMARY ELECTION EARLY VOTING STARTS FEB 14, RUNS THRU FEB 25. ELECTION DAY IS TUESDAY, MARCH 1! |
|
Twenty twenty-two (2022) is the year we can make big changes to the political landscape in Montgomery County! Voting precincts that have more votes cast for the Democratic candidate for Governor in November will be officially BLUE for the next FOUR years, which means the Presiding Judge in every election in those precincts will be a DEMOCRAT.
THIS IS HUGE!
To make this happen, we need to increase voter turnout in our purple Precincts! This starts with the March 1st Primary Election!
There are ELEVEN new precincts in Montgomery County - some created because of increases in the number of registered voters and some changed unexpectedly due to redistricting.
We will continue to distribute literature to Democratic households alerting them how to vote in the March Primary Election. This is an easy and FUN way to get involved and help save Democracy!
Contact MCDPTX to volunteer - 936-903-5841
|
|
Applications for Vote by Mail Ballot |
|
VOTING BY MAIL?
VOTE BY MAIL BALLOTS ARE TO BE TURNED IN TO ELECTION CENTRAL ON FEBRUARY 18TH, AT Elections Administrator
9159 Airport Road
Conroe, TX 77303
The Montgomery County Elections office is rejecting approximately 40% of applications for Mail-In Ballot (due to a newly enacted law). Their advice and the advice of the Secretary of State is to provide BOTH the last four digits of your social security number AND your Texas driver license/ID number on your application. Please take care to get your application in on time and fill it out carefully. For more detailed information, and to download an application go to montgomeryvotes.org.
Some ballots have also been rejected because the applicant did not mark the Party of their preferred Primary. Be sure to check the "Democratic Primary" box to receive the correct ballot.
If your application was rejected, you will receive it back with a reason noted and an opportunity to make corrections.
We know all this is very confusing but the Texas Democratic Party (TDP) has people standing by and resources to help us through the process. Do not hesitate to contact us at the MCDPTX office 936/703-5841 for help. For more information from TDP or to track your mail in ballot application click on the links below:
If you are over 65 and have voted in at least one of the past few Democratic Primaries, you probably received a Ballot By Mail application from the Texas Democratic Party or will receive one shortly. This is a valid application and may be completed and returned to the Elections office in Conroe. For questions call the MC Elections Office at (936) 539-7843.
Applications for a mail-in ballot must be received no later than Feb. 18, 2022, to vote in the March 1 Primary. If you don't recall which ID # you used to register to vote, write in both DL# & last 4 digits of SSN.
|
|
Conversations with the Candidates |
L- R, Angela De La Cruz Garcia, Kris Black, Robin Fulford, Josh Tut, Laura Jones, Bob Mabry, Amy Hamrick Lewis, Carol Ortiz, Caroline Stansky, Peggy Roscoe, Kim Valdez, Ginger Blair, Bob Sullivan, and Diane Sullivan. |
The Montgomery County Democratic Party hosted a Candidate’s Forum on Saturday, February 5th, 2022, at Conroe’s Activity Center in Candy Cane Park to provide an opportunity for all residents to drop by for a conversation with their candidates in an informal and friendly setting. Those who attended were rewarded with plenty of face-to-face discussion and access to our outstanding Democratic Candidates.
Some of the attendees and Candidates are pictured above.
|
|
We are so excited to watch our Young Dems group participate in important party activities such as block-walking, canvassing, phone banking, working elections, and volunteering at headquarters! On Saturday they attended training to work as student clerks on Election Day and on Sunday they helped block-walk precincts 10 and 20!
Follow us on Instagram @montgomeryyoungdems to keep up with new information and opportunities to get involved!
|
From left to right: Caitlyn Walls, Allie Clark, Destiny Martinez, Marilyn Rosales, Noon Mabrooke, Isabella Cordoba, Huda Jamal |
|
|
HELP WANTED: Newsletter Editor Volunteer, MCDPTX Communications Committee
We are looking for a talented, computer-savvy volunteer to join our Communications Team to edit and publish our bi-monthly newsletter. Please contact us ASAP to apply. Email Chris Powell, Communication Committee Chair at chrismpowell@chrismpowell.com
|
|
IMPORTANT REMINDER
IN PERSON POLL WORKER TRAINING IS ENDING SOON!
|
|
Find your training options here: http://elections.mctx.org/training/treg.html. In-person training is mandatory for Judges and Clerks. Contact Claretna Vaxter at claretna34@gmail.com if you can help on March 1, 2022. Clerks and Judges are still needed! Now that we have 111 precincts we need about 400 hearty Democrats to staff the polls! Workers are paid and students can be clerks as well.
|
|
2022 PRIMARY ELECTION EARLY VOTING RUNS FEB 14 THRU FEB 25. ELECTION DAY IS TUESDAY, MARCH 1! |
|
February 25, 2022- Final Friday : Charlene Glover to Speak about Black History for Our
Final Friday Presentation on February 25, 2022
|
SAVE THE DATE - MARCH 19, 2022, 10:00 am – 6:00 pm
MONTGOMERY COUNTY DEMOCRATIC CONVENTION
If you wish to be a delegate at the State Convention, be a member of a committee or join the planning team please contact Natalie Ward at treasurer@mcdptx.org. More details to come.
|
|
Event Calendar - For more details, click on the image and follow link to the MCDPTX.org website; click on the date to view event.
|
|
Other Groups & Community Events: |
|
Hello, everyone! Local Democrats are hosting a fundraiser for Lina Hidalgo, at Glade Gallery, from 5-6 pm on February 18, 2022. If you can’t afford the entry fee or you prefer to financially support our local candidates, consider coming by the bar at the Glade before 6 pm. Lina will hang out with us at the bar for a few minutes before heading back to Houston.
Our awesome and courageous local candidates will also be in attendance and this will be a great opportunity to get to know them.
|
|
|
Wednesday, February 23, 2022
6:00 PM to 8:00 PM CST
4526 Research Forest Drive · The Woodlands, TX
How to find us:
If the weather is good, we'll be outdoors. If not, we'll be in the section straight back from the entrance.
|
|
Call the Montgomery County Democratic Headquarters office at 936-703-5841 or email mcdpoffice@gmail.com f or more information about becoming a precinct chair or volunteer opportunities!
Vacant precincts:
5, 8, 19,22, 23, 51,60, 72,102,110 (Commissioner Precinct 1)
11,28,30,34,65,66,74,81,91,104,106,107,108,10 (Commissioner Precinct 2)
3,46,58,59,70,80,87,101,103 (Commissioner Precinct 3)
2,7,14,16,17,25,36,37,41,42,52,53,54,55,94,111 (Commissioner Precinct 4)
|
|
Check out the Blue Texas Store
Many items are unique and handmade.
We have new Blue Texas Tote Bags. Use them to tote your swag, books, pencils, etc. with the Blue Texas Spirit.
To buy items on line, call 936-703-5841, check the price, pay in Act Blue or when you pick up your items. (No shipping.)
|
|
Please consider becoming a sustaining monthly donor or making a one-time donation to support MCDP TX. Click to donate through ActBlue. |
|
|
Paid for by the Montgomery County Texas Democratic Party, www.mcdptx.org. This communication is not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
