As part of the Indiana Democratic Party's reorganization, which occurs every four years, the Grant County Democratic Party will be reorganizing in 2025.
What does reorganization mean?
The reorganization of the Indiana Democratic Party (IDP) is a bottom-up process. First, new central committee officers are selected at the county party level. After that, the central committees in each congressional district will be elected, and following that, the state central committee officers will be elected.
So here in Grant County, reorganization will be an election for Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer. The reorganization meeting will take place on the first Saturday in March (this year March 1), as required by IDP rules. More details about the meeting will be announced when they are available. Voting will be done in person, all PCs should reserve this date and plan to participate. A quorum is required to conduct the vote.
Who can participate in the reorganization vote?
To vote in the Grant County reorganization meeting, you must be a precinct chair (PC) or vice precinct chair (VPC).
Both elected and appointed PCs can vote in reorganization, with one caveat: PCs must be appointed by Jan. 31 to vote in the reorganization meeting on March 1. (Our current PCs are listed here.)
>> If you are interested in consideration by the County Chair for appointment as PC, please complete our interest form here as soon as possible.
All appointed VPCs can also vote in the reorganization meeting if they have been appointed by Jan. 31. PCs have the right to appoint their VPC, but if the position stands vacant, the County Chair can also make that appointment.
Responsibilities of a PC:
PCs are neighborhood captains, the grassroots of the Democratic Party. They are elected to four-year terms, or in the case of a vacancy, appointed by the Chair of the County Party.
PCs are the direct liaisons to their precinct, and can help provide information, answer questions, recruit volunteers, and carry concerns back to the County Party. A PC's official responsibilities also include voting in any official County Party matter, including Reorganization, filling office vacancies, and more. (You can learn more in IDP's PC handbook.)
How can I run to be a county party officer?
Details on this process will be available soon.
>> If you are interested in declaring candidacy for the offices below, we encourage you to develop a written candidate statement now to prepare for submission when those details are announced.
Eligibility:
The following are qualifications to serve as a Grant County Democratic Party Central Committee officer:
Grant County resident
qualified voter
member of the Indiana Democratic Party (determined as follows: their most recent Indiana Primary Election vote was cast in the Democratic Party primary; or the County Chair certifies that the person is a Democrat)
Officer responsibilities:
Here is a look at the responsibilities of each county officer, as outlined by IDP rules:
Chair
The duties of the County Chair include:
submitting the following to the State Chair upon request:
current county committee membership lists, including a listing of officers, which shall be provided within 30 days of the request, or in the case of the precinct committeeperson elections and appointments, 10 days thereafter;
any computer files of voter information to which the county chair has access;
all county election results;
recruiting Democratic Party candidates for all offices at each election;
filling promptly by appointment any vacancy in any office at each election;
filling promptly by appointment any vacancy in the office of committeeperson or vice committeeperson of any precinct;
developing and implementing a polling, registration, and get-out-the-vote plan;
participating in training and other workshops;
administering county committee finances; and
enhancing the visibility of the county party.
Vice Chair
Note: According to IDP Rule 9 - Gender Equality, all gender identities are eligible for all offices and appointments, however, the Vice Chair must be of a different gender than the chair. In reorganization, the chair is elected first, and no candidates of the same gender as the newly elected chair may stand for election as vice chair.
The duties of the County Vice Chair include:
to preside at any county committee meeting at which the Chair is absent;
to perform all of the Chair’s duties while acting in such capacity; and
to perform duties delegated to them by the Chair.
Secretary
The duties of the County Secretary include:
to keep proper records of county committee proceedings and of the organization of the committee;
work with the county Central Committee when necessary on the drafting of correspondence;
to perform such other duties delegated by the County Chair or assigned by
the Central Committee.
Treasurer
The duties of the County Treasurer include:
work with the county Central Committee to ascertain the best procedures for the collection and custody of all money belonging to the Grant County Democratic Party;
work with the county Central Committee to ensure that an accounting of the condition of the treasury is provided at each meeting;
work with county Central Committee when necessary to review all payments of bills as directed by the Chair;
ensure that the books are made available for inspection, examination, and audit if/when required;
assist with fundraising;
comply with the campaign finance provisions of the laws of the State of Indiana and of the United States;
make all records of expenditures available for inspection upon written request by any county Central Committee member. Such reports are confidential and may not be disseminated.
Can candidate slates run together?
During reorganization, candidates can certainly make reciprocal endorsements and present themselves as a slate, but votes for each office are conducted separately. The election of one candidate who has identified themselves as part of a slate does NOT mean that any other candidate in the slate is automatically elected.
District and State Central Committee reorganization
Reorganization of district and subsequently state committees are also governed by IDP rules, as follows.
District committee:
There are district committees in each of Indiana's congressional districts, therefore, Grant County is currently in District 5. This committee consists of County Chairs and County Vice Chairs of each of the counties comprising the district.
IDP rules set the reorganization meetings for district committees on the second Saturday in March (this year, March 8).
The following are qualifications to serve as a District Committee officer:
Congressional District 5 resident
qualified voter
member of the Indiana Democratic Party (determined as follows: their most recent Indiana Primary Election vote was cast in the Democratic Party primary; or the County Chair of the county where the candidate resides certifies that the person is a Democrat)
note that it is NOT a requirement that the person be a County Chair or Vice Chair to stand as a candidate for District Committee officer.
Notice of the details of the reorganization meeting will be provided to the committee members at least 10 days prior to the meeting. (These voting members will be the County Chairs and Vice Chairs elected the week before in their counties.) Information will also be provided about how to declare candidacy for an officer position.
State committee:
The Indiana Democratic State Central Committee consists of the elected and appointed officers of the committee, the District Chairs and District Vice Chairs, National Committee members from Indiana, representative(s) of each recognized caucus who carry one total vote on the committee, and other appointed voting and non-voting officers as nominated by the State Chair and ratified by the State Central Committee. Certified Councils may also appoint a non-voting representative to serve on the State Central Committee in an advisory capacity. (More information about recognized caucuses and certified councils is available in the IDP rules.)
IDP rules set the reorganization meeting for state committee on the third Saturday in March (this year, March 15). At this meeting, officers will be elected in the following order: Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer. After the election of officers, the State Chair shall nominate, with consent of a majority of the State Committee, one person to the office of Finance Chair and five people to the office of Deputy Chair. The five Deputy Chairs shall not be all of the same gender identity, and each Deputy Chair shall represent a different region of the state.
Duties of the state officers and chairs are outlined in the IDP rules.
Notice of the details of the reorganization meeting will be provided directly to the state committee members.