34th District Democrats Membership Meeting Minutes

June 8, 2022 – Virtual meeting held via closed ZOOM

6:30 Call to Order by Chair Carla Rogers 

Opening Ceremonies

• Land & People Acknowledgement – First Vice Chair Rachel Glass 
• VIP Acknowledgements
  • Senator Joe Nguyen said a few words and thanked the 34th for having him. 
  • King County Conservation Supervisor Chris Porter reminded folks to remember native plants during gardening and yard work, to promote local pollinators. 

Approval of Tonight’s Agenda and Last Month’s Minutes 

• Rachel Glass moved and Ann Martin seconded to approve the agenda. Passed by unanimous consent.
• Ann Martin moved and Tamsen Spangler seconded to approve the minutes. Passed by unanimous consent.

Budget and Membership Reports

• Treasurer Julie Whitaker reported on the budget since last meeting.    
  • Budget increased largely due to membership renewals and donations 
  • Current membership is 257 as of 6/6, including 101 PCOs 

Annual Fundraiser Spotlight

• Paint the Night Blue: July 14, 6-8 pm at Arthur’s in West Seattle
• Buy your ticket tonight and get a t-shirt! https://secure.ngpvan.com/s7IxFM809EGI_IBM2bz4MA2 
• Funds raised go towards electoral vote and getting out the vote. We are a grassroots organization and run off of fundraising to continue our work. 
• Volunteer opportunities available in lieu of purchase, contact ginatopp@gmail.com.   

Zoom Tips 

• We must keep the timer up for speeches
• Those making speeches will be the first windows in the gallery

Endorsement and Voting Process

• Speaking, Motioning and Voting Eligibility

• • • 34th Member by deadlines (May 11 for new members and June 7 for renewing) 
    • Reside in the district

• We have validated our member list and our tally team will be using that to validate all the votes this evening

• Tally 

• • • Tally committee compares the membership list to the votes cast
    • External votes cast are added to the results

• Some or all of the results will be announced after the program
• Phone number provided for those who are unable to vote by Zoom

Endorsements 

• Board Proposed Slate:

• • • Sara Smith moved and Tamsen Spangler seconded to request unanimous consent for the endorsement of the block as recommended by the Board. Approved by unanimous voice vote. 

• King County Prosecutor

• • • Gina Topp moved and Nick Bonazza seconded to endorse Leesa Manion. Gina ceded her time to Leesa who spoke in favor of her endorsement.  Endorsed by unanimous consent. 

• House of Representatives Position 1

• Fiasili Svusa moved and Michelle Thomas seconded to endorse Emily Alvarado for House of Representatives Position 1. Fiasili ceded her time and Emily spoke to her endorsement.  Art Chippendale spoke against the endorsement. 

• • • Lauri Hennesy moved and Nick Bonazza seconded to nominate Leah Griffin for House of Representatives Position 1. Lauri spoke for Leah’s nomination. 
      • First ballot was split between nominees with 3 no endorsement votes
      • Second ballot was split between nominees 
      • See the tally report on our website for full details. 
    • Michelle Thomas moved and Ann Martin seconded a dual endorsement.  Michelle ceded her time to Ann who spoke in favor of the motion. 
      • Third ballot resulted in a dual endorsement.  

• Seattle Municipal Court Judge Position 3

• • Shirley Wilson moved to endorse Adam Eisenberg and Carolyn Ladd seconded. Shirley ceded her time to Adam who spoke for his nomination. 
  • Amy Sundberg moved and Katherine Woolverton seconded to endorse Pooja Vaddadi.  Amy spoke on behalf of Pooja’s nomination then ceded the remainder of her time to Pooja, who also spoke on behalf of their nomination. 
    • First ballot was split between nominees with 6 no endorsement votes
    • Second ballot was split between nominees 
    • See the tally report on our website for full details. 

• Shirley Wilson motioned and Adam Day seconded for a dual endorsement ballot.  Shirley ceded her time to Adam who spoke for the motion.
  • Third ballot won with dual endorsement.  

• Seattle Municipal Court Judge, position 7

• • • Seferiana Day moved to endorse Damon Shadid and Carolyn Ladd seconded.  Seferiana ceded her time to Damon who spoke for his nominations. 
    • Shirley Wilson moved to endorse and Soleil Lewis seconded Nyjat Rose-Akins.  Shirley ceded her time to Nyjat who spoke for her nomination. 
• Shadid won the endorsement on the second ballot with 62% of the vote. 

Program: Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, presented by Kate Stockart 

• Founded in 2013 by Shannon Watts 
• Supports BE SMART which teaches safe storage of firearms https://besmartforkids.org/ 
• Learn more: https://momsdemandaction.org/ 

Announcements

• • Campaign Events are posted all through the election
  • Pop Up Social – June 17, 5:30 – 8, Logan Brewing Co., Burien; they are getting bigger every month, come join the fun! 
  • NO MEETING in July, attend the fundraiser on July 14!
• Next meeting is August 10, 6:30pm 

Upcoming Outreach Events 

PCO Plan for the Primary and Beyond

• Primary Kick Off Event at C&P Coffee – July 9th, 10-1pm, 
• Primary Sample Ballot
• Primary Focus – 34th Precincts
• General Election GOTV Kick Off 
  • Membership Meeting, Wed, Sept 14th, 6:30pm IN PERSON!  Election walk-pieces and sample ballots will be distributed. 
• Focus – Rep. Schrier Field Trips to the 8th CD to maintain majority in the house 
• It’s election time, and time to get out the vote! 

Inspiration by Rachel Glass 

Kentucky Derby horse Rich Strick was 80 to 1 odds to win, and won after starting at 91st place.  Excellent jockey skills were key. Rachel sees ways to use this as inspiration to go against the prevalent narrative of the group in power in elections.  

Adjourned at 9:41pm by Carla Rogers, Chair