Congratulations to new Senators-elect Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock who won their run-off elections in Georgia this week and flipped the U.S. Senate from a Republican majority to Democrat (with Vice-President Elect Kamala Harris able to cast a tie-breaking vote). Collin County volunteers helped in the effort by manning local phone banks in get-out-the-vote calls to voters in the Peach State. Well done all!

The CCDP has offered this training several times in past years and we've received much positive feedback. If you are interested or have questions, contact Barb Walters at bwalters@collindemocrats.org.

Carrie Petersen, who has served as the CCDP Secretary for a year and a half, Office Manager for nine months, and Chair of the 2020 Ann Richards Dinner, let us know shortly after the election that she needed a break and was resigning from these positions as of the end of 2020. With all that she has done we can understand why! She's planning to get some rest, and then focus her energies on building the Allen Area Democrats (formerly the HD89 Democrats). She'll still be volunteering to help with a few office related things, so we won't lose her completely.

Thanks again to Carrie, and please let her know how much her work has been appreciated!

McKinney City Council: The make-up of the council continues to be in flux as it was discovered that Chris Thornton, newly appointed council member for the seat vacated by La’Shadion Shemwell, doesn’t actually live in District 1. His house is 10 feet from District 1 but he actually lives in District 3. You’d think that a regular voter would’ve known that. The Council agreed to appoint Angela Richardson-Woods, the person they should’ve appointed all along. Ms. Richardson-Woods has amazing qualifications. She’s worked for 25 years as a Community Program Specialist with the USDA Rural Development Agency and has a Master’s Degree in Community Development. This just goes to show that, once again, a woman can be twice as qualified as a man and still get overlooked.

Frisco City Council: An ethics complaint was filed by Martin Woodward against Mayor Jeff Cheney and Council Members John Keating, Brian Livingston, and Dan Stricklin (who won the run-off against Laura Rummel). Since both Frisco and the state of Texas have ordinances requiring wearing a mask and maintaining social distance in public during the Covid-19 pandemic, elected officials are subject to Frisco’s Code of Ethics if they violate them. In Frisco Ordinance No. 20-11-73, the city supported Governor Abbot’s $250 fine for non-compliance in addition to making violation a criminal misdemeanor.

On December 4, Keating, Livingston, and Stricklin all attended a public event at Stonebriar Country Club in Frisco. Pictures posted to social media clearly show none of them wearing masks or maintaining anything like six feet distance. The room was packed with maskless people sitting as close as sardines. On December 10, Cheney, Keating, Livingston, and Stricklin attended a public event at Verona Village in Frisco. Pictures posted to social media (including on campaign pages!) again show no masks or social distancing. Mr. Woodward asks that the four men be removed from their positions because, if they’re not required to follow the law, why should anyone else? Why indeed. I’m grateful Mr. Woodward took this action. Perhaps it’s time for more of us to do so as well.

Join Beto O'Rourke and your local Democratic clubs as we brainstorm about what's next for Collin County. Beto's excited about our future and we are too! We can't wait to hear his take on the next steps to make a difference right here in our own communities. Don't miss this LIVE special event!

When: January 22, 6:30 p.m.

Where: Virtual Event

Sign up: Here

Join WOW Dems as we combine our general member meeting with Inauguration Day - Wednesday, January 20 at 7 p.m. - to celebrate the Inauguration of President Joe Biden & Vice President Kamala Harris AND to vote on WOW Dems Board for 2021-2022!

To celebrate, WOW will put together a PARTY BOX for you. Party Box orders must be placed by January 15 at 10 p.m. and can be picked up at various locations (details to follow) starting January 16 at 10 a.m.

You can don your party supplies and sip your signature drink while you vote on the WOW Dems 2021-22 Board and brainstorm ideas for your committee! We will give our members a chance to join breakout rooms based on their interest and involvement in our committees and plan for this coming year.

This meeting will be VIRTUAL over Zoom. Register now. You'll be emailed a Zoom link the day of the meeting. NOTE: You MUST register via the Mobilize link below to join the meeting:

That’s the concept of Dallas Dinner Table, an independent non-profit organization focused on improving race relations in the DFW metroplex, “One Dinner at a Time.” The next Dallas Dinner Table event will take place virtually on Monday, January 18, 2021, from 6:30 to 8:30 pm. Central time. Participants will gather online in separate breakout rooms for guided conversations. The Dallas Mavericks, the Leadership Sponsor, and PepsiCo and Frito Lay, the Presenting Sponsor, are supporting the 2021 event.

Registration is free, but sponsorship donations are encouraged. To register, please click here. To learn more about sponsorships, click here. Participants will need to have Zoom on their device or download it at zoom.us in order to participate.

The CCDP physical office is closed until further notice for safety. Our office staff are, however, working for you from home and available by telephone at 972-578-1483 or contact us on the web at collindemocrats.org