DPLC 2020 Organization Elections Voters’ Guide The DPLC is holding its biennial Organization Meeting online via Zoom on Sunday, December 13, at 4:00 p.m. On Sunday, December 6, all PCPs will receive a secure electronic ballot, which they will use to vote for DPLC Officers, At-Large Members of the Executive Committee, and Delegates to the State Central Committee (SCC) and 4th Congressional District Central Committee (CD4). Any Democrat registered in Lane County is eligible to run for a position, and the following Democrats have stepped forward to serve as DPLC leaders for the next two years: CHAIR CHRIS WIG It has been one of the great honors of my life to have served as your chair for the past six years. In that time, we have worked together to: • Create a training program to teach student interns how to work on campaigns. • Strengthen relationships with our legislators and host lobby day events at the Capitol. • Flip two seats on the Lane County Board of Commissioners from red to blue and establish a Democratic majority. Over the past year, we worked together to meet the challenges posed by Covid-19 by: • Creating a ‘Neighborhood Leader’ organizing program in each house district. • Moving our Central Committee meetings and training programs to the Zoom platform. • Defending our progressive champion Congressman Peter DeFazio from a well-funded general election challenge. If I am re-elected to serve as your chair, I hope to work with you to on the following goals: • Establish the Neighborhood Leader program as a permanent part of the DPLC by recruiting 100 new neighborhood leaders. • Protect our Democratic majority on the Lane County Board of Commissioners by re-electing Democrats in East Lane and Springfield. • Support the next generation of Democratic leaders by identifying and training candidates to run for positions up and down the ticket. If you support these accomplishments and goals, then I humbly ask for your vote to serve another term as DPLC Chair. Please contact me by phone – 541-623-0330 – or email – [email protected] – with your questions and concerns. Thank you. VICE-CHAIR LAURA GILLPATRICK I’m currently serving as Vice-Chair and would be honored to continue serving. At the basic level the role of the Vice-Chair is to take the place of the Chair when they are not available. This generally means being ready to run meetings as well as stepping into the Chair’s place in regard to attending meetings, representing at events, etc. I believe I bring a wide breadth of knowledge and experience to the role of Vice-Chair as I’ve served on the Executive Committee on the DPLC since 2005 and have served in many positions including House District Chair, Community Action Chair, and Organization Chair, as well as serving on most of the committees at one point or another. Campaign-wise, I’ve also worked on numerous campaigns in field, canvassing, phone banking, and fundraising. I also have extensive experience in recruiting, training, and retaining volunteers. My general philosophy as Vice-Chair is to be useful wherever I can; whether it’s assisting with keeping our database is up to date, launching new programs, or chairing special committees. While Covid has challenged all of us this year, it has also forced us to work in different ways, mainly in a virtual environment. I would like to take the lessons we learned and focus on continuing to build our party, specifically focusing on the rural areas of Lane County. I would like to ask for your vote and support in order to continue to serve as your Vice-Chair. SECRETARY CELINE SWENSON HARRIS I have been honored to serve as Secretary of the DPLC for the past seven years. As Secretary, I am responsible for taking minutes at both the Executive and Central Committee meetings, as well as assisting with the selection of our meeting location and speaking programs. Over the past several years, I have helped to provide support to our standing committees, overseen our field campaigns, managed DPLC staff, and co- facilitated our internship program and organizing trainings. Over the next two years, I will focus on building on our successes to protect our Democratic majority on the Lane County Commission, support the growth of our newly established Neighborhood Leader program, and continue to develop and refine our organizing trainings to ensure that we keep investing in the future leaders of our party. It is truly an honor to serve as a party officer for this organization and an inspiration to help facilitate the work that our PCPs do every year to support Democratic causes and candidates throughout Lane County. I humbly ask for your vote to serve another term as your DPLC Secretary. TREASURER EMILY KEIZER I have been honored to serve as DPLC Treasurer for the past four years, and I would love the chance to keep doing this work – to keep accounting for every penny in our bank account and ensuring donations and expenditures are reported to ORESTAR, the Secretary of State’s system for disclosing campaign finance transactions. Over the past two years, I’ve done treasury work for multiple candidates and elected officials. I’m currently treasurer for two of our legislators, Rep. Marty Wilde and Rep. John Lively, and I handle Rep. Nancy Nathanson’s campaign finance reporting. I’m also treasurer for Lane County Commissioner Joe Berney, Eugene Mayor Lucy Vinis, and have worked on City Council races in Eugene and Springfield. The DPLC is able to do everything it does because our supporters believe in us. Part of that faith comes from knowing we manage our money well, and I’m dedicated to continuing that transparency. The treasurer’s job isn’t just to report to ORESTAR; it’s also to report to the Central Committee so that you have a clear picture of our finances. Though it’s not part of the treasurer’s job description, I love helping plan fundraisers like the Roosevelt Dinner and the Chili Cookoff, and it helps make those events profitable to have our treasurer involved. In the next two years, I’d like to explore investing some of the money in our bank account and writing a budget that reflects our expected income as well as expenses. I’d be thrilled to receive your vote. AT-LARGE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEMBER (VOTE FOR 2) LISA FRAGALA I was honored to be asked by the DPLC's chair, Chris Wig, to serve as an At-large Executive Committee member this last year, and I would be thrilled to continue in this position. As a local 2nd grade teacher, LCC Board of Education member, and Lane County Labor Council member I'm interested in bringing advocacy for working families to a role on the Executive Committee. I've been a life long Democrat and believe in the power of effecting progressive change through electoral politics. Though I still have a lot to learn in this area, I've worked on a variety of political and advocacy campaigns both locally and statewide. I want to continue to support the DPLC in our endeavors to grow political power and make Lane County a strong progressive region in Oregon. Another value I would bring to the DPLC Executive Committee is a strong commitment to racial and social justice. I have a life long commitment to speaking up and helping to organize for these critical values. I would be honored to have your support for a seat on the DPLC Executive Committee. Please vote for Lisa Fragala for the At-large seat on the DPLC Executive Committee. JASON “MANNY” MAHNESMITH I go by the name Manny Mahnesmith. I am an NCO (non-commissioned officer) in the Army National Guard with 9+ years of service, one tour in Afghanistan and recently supported the National Guards response to Oregon's forest fires. I am President of the Eugene Badgers, a non-profit youth sport organization partnered with Empower Lv. I am a community volunteer member with non-profits like Suddenly Sleepy who advocate and raise money for sleep disorders. I work and volunteer at Springfield High as a coach for the swim, wrestling and track teams and prior volunteer for the Lane County Sherriff Search and Rescue. I have formal education from Lane Community College, Oregon State University and Military educational schools including leadership academies. I have experience planning events, delegating work and leading others. I am experienced with community out reach and fund raising. I am running for these positions because I want to take a more active role in my community, continue to serve my community and continue to learn. I am confident I able to meet the expectations for these positions and the trust of my peers. Thank you for this opportunity. HUNTER SPENCE The student vote is an integral, although often overlooked, demographic in Lane County. With nearly 25,000 voting-age students regularly enrolled at the University of Oregon, mobilizing this population is essential to ensuring Lane County has progressive representation up and down the ballot. As the President of Oregon College Democrats, a student at the University of Oregon, and native-Eugenian, I am well-positioned to understand and communicate the needs of students to the Lane County Democratic Party. Furthermore, my experience interning with Congressman DeFazio’s office at the height of the impeachment proceedings and during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, gave me a broader perspective of the diverse needs of Lane County constituents outside of the Eugene metro-area. This experience was pivotal for me to better understand how to balance the needs and hopes of the student vote up against the broader Lane County population.