Party committed to helping diverse representation of Oregon Democrats become delegates
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Andrew Gorry / press [at] dpo [dot] org / (503) 239-8634
PORTLAND, Oregon (September 15, 2015) –
The Democratic Party of Oregon has released training materials and will begin conducting workshops all over Oregon to show Democrats how they can help nominate and elect a new Democratic President of the United States.
The workshops, which will begin this fall and end in May, will help Democrats learn how they can be elected as delegates to the Democratic National Convention, which will be held in Philadelphia, July 25-28, 2016.
Oregon Democrats interested in attending these workshops should register at www.dpo.org/2016convention. At the same website, they will also find training materials and information about running for delegate, available immediately.
“Getting elected as delegate to the Democratic National Convention is an exercise in local, grassroots democracy,” said Frank Dixon, chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon. “If you want to go to Philadelphia and be part of this historic event, now’s the time to start planning and organizing.”
Democrats who want to be delegates to the national convention will be able to register as candidates on March 1, 2016, using an online form on the Democratic Party of Oregon website (www.dpo.org/2016convention). All information about how the Party elects its delegation to the national convention will be on that website.
Elections for delegate will be held on a regional basis at district caucuses on June 4, 2016 and at a state convention on June 18, 2016.
Oregon will have 74 delegates and four alternates. Forty-one delegates will be elected at the district conventions, and 20 at the state convention. Thirteen delegates will be automatically selected because they are elected officials or members of the DNC.
“We invite every Oregon Democrat to stand for the presidential candidate they believe in most, and help pick the 2016 Democratic nominee,” said Frank Dixon, chair of the Democratic Party of Oregon.
The Party’s goal is to have a delegation to the national convention that reflects Oregon’s Democratic voters.
“The Democratic Party of Oregon is committed to providing every opportunity to welcome all people who share our common values and principles. Establishing representation goals for our delegation to this historic event serves to further hold ourselves, as a party, accountable to that commitment,” Laura Calvo, the chair of the DPO’s Community Involvement Committee, said.
In order to reflect Oregon’s Democratic voters as best as possible, Oregon Democrats have established representation goals. They are:
- Youth, 12 members of the delegation
- People with disabilities, 11
- Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual or Transgender, eight
- Latino or Hispanic American, seven
- Asian American/Pacific Islander, four
- African American, three
- Native American, two
For the first time, the DPO has established goals for youth and for people with disabilities. The delegation must also be balanced by gender.
Oregon’s Democratic presidential primary, held on May 17, 2016, will determine the composition of Oregon’s delegation to the national convention. Under DNC rules, candidates must earn at least 15 percent of the vote in each district and statewide in order to have delegates.
For more information, please check the Democratic Party of Oregon’s website at www.dpo.org/2016convention or call 503-224-8200.
Interested people can also go directly to the following documents:
A basic information sheet about the delegate selection process:
A slideshow walkthrough of the delegate selection process:
The full Democratic Party of Oregon Delegate Selection Plan:
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