A Greater County.

A Brighter Future.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The new voter suppression law was made to lower turnout among groups like young people. We must seek out potential young voters, provide them with the knowledge to navigate the voting process, and rally them to the polls. Building on the work of our voter education group from earlier this year, our organization can educate, register, and mobilize young voters by:

• Targeting schools and events in the county that have many potential young voters

• Leading the effort to develop a voting guide, with specific requirements that candidates speak to issues affecting young people

• Partnering with growing immigrant communities (and developing relationships with community leaders) to develop native-language election literature, particularly in Spanish

• Using past voter data to target potential young voters at the individual level

• Revamping our website into a convenient space for voting-related information

Our organization cannot simply be a random gathering of people. Instead, we must interact with young people in our county person by person, building relationships instead of simply filling seats. We can deepen our interpersonal relationships throughout our organization by:

• Maintaining contact with members and potential members throughout the year

• Attending and partnering with other active young professional organizations in developing community events

• Organizing college campuses and unorganized precincts using young talent

• Planning successful events, including the Gantt-Watt reception and a YD Field Day

Our organization is uniquely positioned to serve as a training ground for Mecklenburg County’s future leaders. We must actively seek out young people who want to serve and foster their leadership skills once here. We can develop our young talent by:

• Developing mentorship relationships among members and young elected officials

• Strengthening leadership and campaign staffing skills through training opportunities

• Recruiting Young Democrats to serve in party, civic, grassroots, and elected positions

• Maintaining a list of members interested in running for office in the future

While all of us value progress, we all contribute in different ways. Our goal as an organization should be to have various ways for people to get involved – even if that involves challenging the traditional political models. We can ensure a variety of opportunities to serve by:

• Engaging in action-oriented events, rather than depending solely on general meetings

• Increasing the number of community service opportunities

• Discussing personal strengths with our members and directing talent to appropriate fields

• Assembling groups of people to accomplish the various actions in this Plan

Over the next year, we hope to achieve the following measurable indicators of success:

• Increasing young voter turnout in Mecklenburg County, when compared to 2010
• Organizing each college campus and precinct where our members live
• Growing our membership into the largest county chapter in the state

Although not as easily measured, we also hope to achieve success in the following ways:

• Electing Democratic candidates that speak to the issues of young people
• Engaging more young people in Mecklenburg County’s political process
• Fostering an organization that impacts and remains relevant in the lives of young people
• Serving as a positive example of what a Democratic organization should be