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Stonewall DFL friends and supporters,
Caucus night is Tuesday, March 7th!
Remember to get out to your local precinct caucuses so that you can
be a delegate at your district convention and then the State
convention June 9-11 in Rochester to support Stonewall DFL's
endorsed candidates. Registration for your local precinct caucus
typically begins at 6:30 pm and the meetings begin at 7:00 pm.
Please see the information later in this newsletter for locations
and how you can get involved!
Join us at the annual HHH Day Dinner on
April 8th! Tickets for this event usually go quickly so act
fast. See the article below for more information on how to purchase
tickets to see keynote speaker Barack Obama. Tickets are first come,
first served. Availability is limited.
Support our newly endorsed candidates -
our recent candidate screening and endorsing convention was well
attended by Stonewall members and despite media critics and the
occasional comment from disappointed candidates, the convention was
well run and the process was fair and objective. One particular
columnist in our local LGBT media reported some half-truths about
our convention and process. Please feel free to contact either of us
if you have questions about this report.
Next month, we will have complete contact
information listed for all of our endorsed candidates so that you
can get involved with their campaigns. Stay strong. Stay proud.
Support our endorsed candidates!
With GLBT and DFL Pride,
| Paul R. Skrbec
|
Nancy Bernard |
Chair
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Associate Chair |
March 7th is precinct caucus night!
The Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor
Party will hold precinct caucuses on Tuesday, March 7, 2006
in precincts across the state. It is vital that members of the LGBT
community show up and support Stonewall DFL endorsed candidates.
What:
DFL Precinct Caucuses
Where:
In precincts across the state. Specific locations will be available
on the DFL
website calendar as they are set. (We recommend that
you narrow your search by City or County unit to help locate your
specific caucus.)
When: Tuesday, March 7, 2006 7:00 pm (must be open
at least one hour)
Click here for basic information about
precinct caucuses.
Hubert H. Humphrey Day Dinner with keynote
speaker Senator Barack Obama
Join fellow Stonewall DFLers at this year's HHH Day Dinner. Last
year tickets went so fast that we didn't even have time to
advertise them; this year we have a limited number of seats
available for purchase on a first come, first serve basis. To
reserve your seat, e-mail Paul Skrbec at pskrbec@comcast.net and
indicate the number of seats you would like to purchase. Tickets
cost $125 per plate. Checks should be payable to Stonewall DFL and
must be received in advance. Please join us!
2006 Humphrey Day Dinner
Saturday, April 8th
Hilton Hotel Downtown Minneapolis
1001 Marquette Ave S.
Minneapolis, MN 55403
6:00 pm - doors open
7:00 pm - dinner begins
2006 Membership Renewal
Renew your membership online today!
Just visit
www.stonewalldfl.org/membership/joinform1.php
and pay online. Our annual membership mailing was sent out last
month - if you didn't get one, you can still join today and help
support Stonewall DFL.
In order to be eligible to
participate in our 2006 April General Membership Meeting and
Elections, membership dues must be postmarked or submitted online
by 12 midnight, March 30th.
Your
membership pays for a number of vital activities like Pride events,
sample ballots and communicating to DFLers at conventions among just
a few…
2006 Endorsed Candidates
At the February 12th meeting of the Board of
Directors, the following candidates were endorsed or given
acceptable ratings by Stonewall DFL:
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United States Senate |
Amy
Klobuchar (endorsed); Ford Bell (acceptable) |
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Minnesota Governor |
Steve Kelley (endorsed); Becky Lourey (acceptable); Kelly Doran
(acceptable) |
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Minnesota Attorney General |
Matt
Entenza (endorsed) |
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Minnesota Auditor |
Reggie Edwards (endorsed); Rebecca Otto (acceptable) |
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Minnesota Secretary of State |
Christian Sande (endorsed); Mark Ritchie (acceptable).
|
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Minnesota Senate |
Sen.
Linda Higgins 58 (endorsed); Sen. Scott Dibble 60 (endorsed) |
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Minnesota House of Representatives |
Rep.
Keith Ellison 58B (endorsed); Rep. Diane Loeffler 59A
(endorsed); Rep. Frank Hornstein 60B (endorsed); Rep. Karen
Clark 61A (endorsed); Rep. James Davnie 62A (endorsed) |
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Hennepin County Attorney |
Andy
Luger (endorsed); Mike Freeman (acceptable) |
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Ramsey County Attorney |
Susan Gaertner (endorsed); Cory Tennison (acceptable). |
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City of Minneapolis, Board of Education |
Pam
Costain (acceptable), Tom Madden (acceptable), Jill Davis
(acceptable), Polly Harrison-Townsend (acceptable), John Quincy
(acceptable) and Joe Erickson (acceptable) |
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Hennepin County Commission |
Peter McLaughlin, District 4 (endorsed); Gail Dorfman, District
3 (endorsed); Greg Gray, District 2 (endorsed) |
Please support these candidates at your local precinct caucuses on
March 7th! Become a delegate and support them at each convention
along the way.
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Candidate News and Notes |
All endorsed candidates are
allowed up to 300 words per newsletter.
To
submit material for the next issue, e-mail
newsletter@stonewalldfl.org by Friday, March 17, 2005.
The next issue will be published on Tuesday, March 21, 2005. |
MN House 64A - Erin Murphy
Greetings Stonewall DFLer’s,
My name is Erin Murphy. I am
delighted to have the endorsement of the Stonewall DFL for my
candidacy in 64 A. For me, Stonewall represents integrity and
courage, critical elements of leadership. Minnesota needs your
leadership at the Capitol. I am excited to work with you now and
into the future.
Together we will defeat efforts to
place a ban against gay marriage in the state constitution. We will
do so because it is discriminatory. I will be a clear voice for
equality for every Minnesotan, regardless of sexual orientation.
Working together we will bring well reasoned and persuasive
arguments to the legislative process and we will prevail on this and
other issues we will face.
The next few weeks are important. With
your help, I will win this election for the House. We are making
significant progress reaching out to the people who live in 64 A.
We are door knocking the district this
Saturday, February 25, beginning at 10 AM. Doorknockers are
gathering at 898 Osceola Avenue in St. Paul. We would love your
help. Please join us! Contact Kendal Killian at kendalkillian@hotmail.com
or 612-432-3434.
If you want to volunteer but cannot
join us this weekend, please contact my volunteer coordinator Nancy
Carrier at 651-731-2560 or
necarrier@hotmail.com. Please remember to attend your caucus on
March 7, 2006 at 7 PM. The 64 A Caucuses will be held at Ramsey
Junior High in St. Paul.
After the
caucuses, we will shift gears, making contact with delegates and
alternates in preparation for the April 8 senate district
convention. With your help, we will win. There are sweet
victories ahead for us. Let’s work to make them a reality.
Submit your nominations for the Allan Spear
award!
This year's Board of Directors are pleased to announce the return of
Stonewall DFL's Allan Spear Award. The award is given out to a
person that has distinguished service to the political process,
activism and who has made a significant impact on Stonewall DFL over
the past year.
The award will be announced at this year's annual membership meeting
on Sunday, April 9th at the Hennepin County Government Center
Auditorium starting at 1 pm. Past recipients have included Allan
Spear, Tim Bonham, Alan Hooker & Jill Schwimmer.
Allan Spear was a Minnesota State Senator from 1972 to 2000. Spear
was the first publicly elected official in Minnesota to come out of
the closest while in office and be re-elected. During his tenure of
office, he was one of the strongest defenders of GLBT rights in the
Twin Cities. Many of the rights and privileges that we have today
are due to his efforts. The Allan Spear Award is dedicated to his
spirit and service.
To nominate someone for this award, please contact Paul Skrbec at pskrbec@comcast.net. Please
include the name of your nominee and a description of why you think
the person is deserving of the award in your e-mail. Nominations
will be accepted until Friday, March 17, 2006.
* Committee members are Paul Skrbec, Del Jenkins and past award
recipients Tim Bonham, Jill Schwimmer and Alan Hooker. Current
committee members and past award recipients are not eligible for
this year's the award.
Director At Large positions available
We currently have 3 positions available for
Director At Large on the Board of Directors, we are looking
for males or females, preferably from a suburban city or greater
MN to serve on the Board until our April annual general membership
meeting. Women strongly
encouraged to apply.
Regarding the appointment of vacant seats, our
constitution now states:
Section 5. Vacancies
Vacant offices shall be filled by appointment
of the Board of Directors by majority vote until the next
scheduled April general membership meeting of the Stonewall DFL.
All prospective candidates must submit a letter and or resume in
writing at least 10 days in advance of a vote to fill the
vacancy.
If you are
interested in applying for this position, please submit your
letter of intent to pskrbec@comcast.net. Your letter of intent should include a
statement about why you would like to serve, what relevant skills
you could bring to the table and any other information about
yourself that you think would be valuable for the board to know
about. All people that would
like to be considered for this position will need to attend the
November Board of Directors meeting.
Annual membership meeting
This year's annual membership meeting will be held at the Hennepin
County Government Center Auditorium on Sunday, April 9 starting at 1
pm. Topics for this meeting will include suggestions for amending
our organization's constitution and the election of officers and the
board of directors. More detailed information on the agenda for this
meeting will be coming in March.
In order to be eligible to vote at this
meeting, members must pay dues prior to
12 midnight, March 30th.
Visit the Stonewall DFL web site
www.stonewalldfl.org/membership/joinform1.php and join or renew
online today!
Rules
regarding general election, constitutional amendment and endorsement
votes
Eligibility for voting is
granted to active members that have satisfied the annual dues
requirement for membership 10 days prior to an announced vote.
Section 4. Voting
Subsection A.
Balloting Procedure
Active members of the Stonewall DFL shall be eligible to vote.
The method of balloting at general membership meetings or other
meetings of the Stonewall DFL shall be by voice vote, unless a
secret counted ballot is required. At any general membership
meeting the total number of allocated votes cast at the time of
balloting shall be the basis for determining whether a majority
or two-thirds majority exists in counted votes. Votes requiring
a two-thirds majority for passage may be taken by voice vote,
however any call for a division of the house is a call for a
counted ballot. All meetings shall use one person one vote.
Subsection B.
Absentee Balloting
Voting by absentee ballot shall be accomplished by submitting a
specifically worded, authenticated and dated ballot to the
person chairing the general membership meeting or other meeting
at or before the time of voting. All ballots other than
authenticated electronic ballots shall be placed in a sealed and
signed envelope by the voter before submitting them. The option
for authenticated electronic absentee voting shall not be used
in a way that results in discrimination to Stonewall DFL members
without access to electronic media. There shall be no voting by
proxy.
Upcoming Stonewall DFL Meetings & Events
- Sunday, March 5; SDFL Board of
Directors meeting at 1:00 pm at the DFL HQ
- Tuesday, March 7; Precinct
Caucuses
- Sunday, April 9; SDFL Annual
General Membership meeting & Election of 2006/7 Board of Directors
at 1:00 pm at the Hennepin County Government Center Auditorium
- Sunday, May 14; SDFL Board of
Directors meeting at 1:00 pm at the DFL HQ
- Saturday, June 3; Fargo/Moorhead
Pride (tentative)
- Friday, June 9; 2006 DFL State
Convention – Rochester
- Saturday, June 10; 2006 DFL
State Convention – Rochester
- Sunday, June 11; 2006 DFL State
Convention & SDFL Board of Directors meeting – time/location TBD
held in Rochester
- Saturday, June 24; Twin Cities
Pride Festival
- Sunday, June 25; Twin Cities
Pride Festival & Pride Parade
- Saturday, July 29; Rochester
Pride & SDFL Board of Directors meeting in Rochester, meeting
location TBD.
- Sunday, August 13; SDFL Board of
Directors meeting at 1:00 pm at the DFL HQ
- Saturday, September 2;
Duluth/Superior Pride (tentative)
- Saturday, September 16; South
Central MN Pride/Mankato & SDFL Board of Directors meeting
location TBD
- Sunday, October 15; SDFL Board
of Directors meeting at 1:00 pm at the DFL HQ
- Tuesday, November 7; General
Election
- Sunday, November 12; SDFL Board
of Directors meeting at 1:00 pm at the DFL HQ
- Sunday, December 10; SDFL Board
of Directors meeting at 1:00 pm at the DFL HQ
DFL
Affirmative Action Statement:
The
goal of affirmative action is to recruit individuals for political
activity in the DFL and the Democratic process of our government.
The DFL is an active participant in the struggle to end all forms
of bigotry and discrimination. As part of our commitment to ending
discrimination, we seek to increase the participation of members
of those communities that have been traditionally shut out of
and/or underrepresented in the political process. As part of this
commitment, we will seek to elect members of these communities to
positions both within the DFL Party and in public office. These
efforts will be directed toward all underrepresented communities.
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