By Paul Davis:
Four young Democrats from Fairfax County were recently elected members of issues caucuses at the national level. The elections took place at the 2019 Young Democrats of America convention on July 16-22 in Indianapolis, Ind.
The Fairfax Young Democrats elected are:
- Bo Cherif, Black Caucus
- Dan Rosenberg and Denver Supinger, Jewish Caucus
- Jessica Sun, Disabilities Caucus
The four were members of a six-person FYD delegation to the convention, including Ariel Garayar and me, Paul Davis. The event encompassed four jam-packed days of training, policy discussions, prolific speakers, and networking.
Several Democratic Party luminaries spoke to convention delegates from community organizers to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and even some 2020 presidential candidates. Presidential candidates Pete Buttigieg, Marianne Williamson, Seth Moulton, and Wayne Messam provided their campaign visions to the crowd of young activists.
Arguably, however, Indiana Democratic Party Director of Engagement Dana Black stole the show with an invigorating speech!
The convention’s purpose is to elect a new body of leaders and to develop the organization’s platform ahead of the 2020 presidential elections. Over 1,200 Young Democrats between the ages of 14 and 35, from 43 states, the District of Columbia, and the commonwealth of Puerto Rico attended the national convention.
YDA’s organizational structure mirrors the Democratic National Committee organizational structure with some slight variations. In addition to electing new executive leadership for YDA, delegates participated in elections of leadership for its various issues caucuses. The issue caucuses help formulate policy and create advocacy strategies around specific matters important to democratic constituencies.
With a new YDA leadership team now completed, the focus of FYD turns back to the Commonwealth of Virginia. In 2017, we were able to expand the youth vote and FYD is looking to increase our numbers even beyond that. Our members have come back to Fairfax County energized, focused, and ready to flip the General Assembly in 2019.
Paul Davis is the Co-President of the Fairfax Young Democrats, and a member of the Hunter Mill District Democratic Committee
Photo: Presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg addresses Young Democrat convention at which Fairfax representatives took 4 national seats/ Photo by Abi Brand