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The Listener

Meet Steve Baker.

Steve Baker is a lifelong Democrat, a native Virginian raised in Winchester, VA. That’s Byrd Country. But Steve was never a Byrd Democrat.

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An Hour Today Can Mean Victory in the Fall

Report from Chairman Mike Lieberman

Our work in the Arlington Democrats is never done. We are faced in Arlington with elections every year. We have an educated electorate that requires regular engagement with our candidates in order to earn their vote. And we are challenged by a transience that turns over nearly one-fifth of our voters every four years.

To answer these challenges, it is not enough for us simply to engage every fall as our voters head to the polls. We must run a year-round operation to be effective. For the last several years, that is what we have done, and the results speak for themselves. Indeed, at a time when Democratic results across the state have flagged, Arlington’s turnout and Democratic performance numbers have stayed strong. But why?

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Terry McAuliffe – On Issues Important to VA Women

There is a clear difference:

Read More at http://terrymcauliffe.com/on-the-issues/women/on-issues-important-to-virginia-women/

James Lander Wins Democratic Endorsement for Arlington School Board

Arlington, VA – Earlier this evening, by a vote of 1144 to 1097, School Board Member James Lander was selected as the 2013 Democratic endorsee for the Arlington School Board. The vote was held over a two-day caucus on May 9 and May 11. Lander will run for re-election to the Arlington School Board as the Democratic Party’s endorsee in November.

Lander and Arlington County Democratic Chair Mike Lieberman issued the following statements regarding the vote:

James Lander: “This campaign has been a tremendous opportunity to re-connect with Arlington voters. I appreciate Barbara Kanninen’s spirited and well run campaign, and I thank her for her work to engage the voters of Arlington on the important issues facing our schools. I am humbled to have another opportunity to be the Democratic endorsee for the School Board, and I hope to continue my service to the students and families of Arlington.”

Mike Lieberman: “James Lander has been a strong voice for Arlington’s students in his four years on the board, and today’s vote is an affirmation of his record. We are proud to again have James representing us as our Democratic endorsee in November, and we will be working hard to ensure he has four more years on the School Board. I also want to thank Barbara Kanninen for running a thoughtful and energetic campaign, and giving Arlington voters a choice between two superb leaders.”

Update: Per the counting of provisional ballots, the final tally has been updated to Lander: 1144, Kanninen: 1098.

School Board Endorsement Caucus – May 9 & 11

Arlington democrats will hold a “firehouse primary” style caucus at two different locations on May 9th and 11th to choose an endorsee for November’s School Board race. Any registered Arlington voter may participate after signing an affidavit to support the winning candidate in the general election.

More details on times, locations, and voting are here and here. We hope to see you there.

And if you need more info on the candidates, you can find it on their respective websites:

Candidate Statements for School Board Caucus

Barbara Kanninen

We have great public schools in Arlington, but we currently face tight budgets, a rapidly growing student population, and other challenges. I am running for School Board because I’m ready to take on these challenges to help make our schools even better.

As a Ph.D. economist, I have 25 years of experience digging into data and budgets. As a children’s book author, I have worked with kids of all ages and backgrounds, skill levels, and needs. I co-chaired the School Board’s Early Childhood Advisory Committee and served on the Math Advisory Committee, as well as the Advisory Council on Instruction. I coached elementary and middle school Odyssey of the Mind, a program that promotes “thinking outside the box.” I’m a founding board member of the Youth Ultimate League of Arlington and founder and chair of Arlington/Alexandria Women for Obama, an activist, grassroots network of 600 women.

Here are a few ways I think we can improve our schools: I’d like to see us strengthen our science, technology, engineering, and math programs, as well as the arts and foreign languages. I’d like to make alternative programs—such as the Arlington Career Center—more accessible to more students. And I would like to see us make adult mentoring of students a priority. For more on my positions, go to http://www.barbarakforschoolboard.com/issues.php.

I would love to have your vote in the Democratic caucus, so that together we can strengthen our schools for the 21st century.

http://www.barbarakforschoolboard.com

James Lander

I’ve been honored to be an Arlington School Board member since 2010. My mission has been to find more ways to inspire, support, and empower our young people. My goal is to ensure all students fulfill their potential, work toward their dreams, and become successful, caring adults.

Along with my board colleagues, I’ve worked to enhance the student experience without breaking the budget, a big challenge with dramatically increasing enrollment. My initiatives include expanding elementary student access to science, technology, engineering, and math; developing minority student mentoring programs that engage families and the community during critical middle-school years; improving the Arlington Career Center curriculum; and ensuring the hiring and retention of the best and brightest educators for our students.

I helped ensure Wakefield High School was renovated as a 21st Century education center while ensuring each dollar was spent wisely. I am proud to help Arlington maintain its outstanding reputation as a top school system in our nation.

I seek a 2nd term because there is still more work to be done. I bring an important perspective to the School Board’s work and collaborations, enhancing the decision-making process and providing insights about our diverse student body. My second term agenda includes continued expansion of critical programs that raise individual academic learning and achievement, empowering parents to be active participants in their children’s education, and engaging our community to support our students.

I ask for your support and vote for another term to carry on these efforts.

http://www.jameslander.org

The World Did Not End on March 1st

On Wednesday, April 3rd, Robert Levinson, Senior Defense Analyst with Bloomberg Government joined our monthly meeting to discuss sequestration and the impact on the Washington, DC region.

Robert digs into sequestration and breaks it down into an easy to understand way and speaks in a conversational manner.

- The world did not end on March 1st with sequestration.

- Sequester was designed to be severe, but it relieves politicians from having to make hard choices.

- The word, sequester, was adapted to describe across the board cuts in the 1980′s. The original term considered was quarantined.

- Social Security is exempt.

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McAuliffe becomes nominee for Governor

Terry McAuliffe officially became the 2013 Democratic nominee for governor as of Tuesday, April 2.

On that day, the Democratic Party of Virginia (DPVA) certified that McAuliffe had submitted enough—far more than enough—petition signatures—to stand. And since no one else submitted any signatures, McAuliffe is automatically the Democratic nominee.

McAuliffe needed to submit 10,000 signatures. He beat that by a mile, submitting more than 35,000.

Charniele Herring, chairman of DPVA, said, “We believe that this is the most signatures any candidate has collected for governor in Virginia history. The momentum from volunteers and outpouring of support across the commonwealth is a true sign of the energy behind Terry McAuliffe’s campaign.”

McAuliffe said about 500 volunteers circulated the petitions.

DPVA also certified two candidates for lieutenant governor and two for attorney general, the other statewide posts up for election this year. Democrats will choose from those candidates in a primary Tuesday, June 11.

The lieutenant governor candidates are former Virginia Technology Secretary Aneesh Chopra of Arlington and State Senator Ralph Northam of Norfolk.
The attorney general candidates are State Senator Mark Herring of Loudoun and former federal prosecutor Justin Fairfax of Fairfax County.

The GOP will hold a state convention rather than a primary to choose its candidates.

To learn more about Terry McAuliffe for Governor, visit http://www.terrymcauliffe.com.

12th Annual Charity Benefit Date Auction

The Arlington Young Democrats are hosting their 12th Annual Charity Benefit Date Auction, this year benefiting Doorways for Women and Families. This fun and entertaining night will be held Thursday, March 14 at the Clarendon Grill; the fun starts at 7:00 p.m, don’t miss out on this chance to support the Arlington Young Democrats!

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2013 8th CD Democrats Call to Convention

Pursuant to the authority provided by the Virginia Democratic Party Plan, the Eight Congressional District Democratic Committee (District Committee) hereby calls a Convention to be held at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, May 18, 2013, at the following location:

Robert E. Lee High School
6540 Franconia Rd
Springfield, VA 22150

Registration shall start at 9:00 a.m.

Arlington Democrats will soon decide its delegation to the convention. In the meantime, if you’d like to pre-file to run for membership on the 8th CD Dem Committee, fill out the form on the last page of the Call, and follow the provided instructions.

Download the full Call to Convention here.
NB: This document has been updated to reflect a newer mailing address for forms.