February 20 – How To Get Elected to the Special State Convention, pt 2

This email was sent on February 20, 2020. To sign up for this email newsletter, please click here.

Fellow Democrat!

The 2020 Election is just around the corner, and you can be part of the Presidential Election process here in Arkansas. Our state and our party need your help to ensure we send our best slate of delegates to the National Convention.

During the Filing Period, many of you started this process by filing Form A with your County Party to potentially serve as a County Representative to the Special State Convention, where our 36 National Delegates will be selected. (If you need a quick reminder of what Form A looked like, click here.)

If you filed a Form A, you should have received your Form A receipt from the state party. If you didn’t, please send an email to delegateselection@arkdems.org or call the state party office.

Next week, county chairs will receive the ballots for the county representative elections that will be conducted by the county party. Additionally, they will also receive a “How to Conduct Your County Representative Election Guide” and Election Form, which will detail votes and other information to ensure the integrity of the election.

  • As a voter at the County Representative Election, you will receive a ballot, though you will *not* just select the individuals you want to serve at the Special State Convention.
  • You will also fill out your information, including your name, voting address, and contact information.
  • This is to ensure that you are an eligible voter, meaning that you are registered to vote in that county and that you did not vote in the Republican primary.
  • Also per DNC rules, this will not be a private ballot, meaning your decision also must be reflected publicly (more on that in next week’s email).

Before the Filing Period, the DPA Executive Committee allotted a certain number of County Representatives to the Special State Convention from each county. (click here to see that breakdown)

If Democrats in your county filed more Form As than the allotted number of county representatives, then your county party will have an election to determine who will serve on the Special State Convention. That election will occur at the first county party meeting following the March 3 Arkansas Primary. Be sure to contact your local county party soon to find those meeting details.

Over the next few weeks, we will break down the details and process of that election. But here are some things you should keep in mind as we get closer to the March 3 Primary.

  1. You cannot vote in the Republican Primary on March 3 and serve as a County Representative to the Special State Convention. While you do not have to vote in the Democratic Primary on March 3, DNC rules state you cannot vote in the opposite party’s primary.
  2. All Democrats that attend the county party meeting after the March 3 primary can vote in the County Representative election — not just county party members. This is a DNC rule, so make sure you can attend and also bring some friends! (Although, please do consider joining your county party.)
  3. If you are elected as a County Representative to the Special State Convention, you will be required to identify your presidential candidate preference. You will do this by completing Form A – 2 at the sign-in table at the Special State Convention on May 30, 2020 in Little Rock. So please begin considering who your candidate may be. You do not have to announce your presidential candidate preference at the county party meeting, but it could be beneficial to have considered it beforehand.

As always, if you have any questions about the Delegate Selection Process in Arkansas, please send an email to delegateselection@arkdems.org or call the state party office.