A 2023 MCDCC Recap and a Look at the Year Ahead

A 2023 MCDCC Recap and a Look at the Year Ahead

A LOOK BACK AT 2023

On this day, we reflect on the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and recommit ourselves to the service and empowerment of others. DNC Chair Jaime Harrison recently said, “Inspired by Dr. King’s legacy, [democrats] will continue marching towards an America defined by freedom and justice for all.

In 2024, MCDCC will work to ensure that the Democrats hold the White House, keep the U.S. Senate and the Maryland 4th, 6th, and 8th Congressional Districts Democratic and boost Democratic candidates across the county and throughout Maryland. As we march towards the 2024 elections, we should take an opportunity to reflect on the work accomplished in 2023.

Filling General Assembly, Board of Elections, and MCDCC Vacancies

A key MCDCC responsibility, mandated by Maryland’s Constitution, is to nominate candidates to fill General Assembly vacancies for appointment by the Governor.

Through the work of our Rules Committee, MCDCC streamlined the legislative nomination process and provided extensive outreach and community engagement within the notice period of a vacancy. Partnering with our district clubs/caucuses to hold candidate forums for district residents resulted in increased community input through hundreds of letters of support for candidates.

During this process, MCDCC received applications from an extremely diverse array of candidates and extensive community input, with a total of 53 candidates and 1332 letters of support, respectively. We made five vacancy nominations in the first five months of 2023 resulting in Montgomery County’s most diverse legislative delegation in history.
Pictures of Bernice Merku-North, D-14 Delegate, Greg Wims, D-39 Delegate, Ariana Kelly, D-16 Senator, Sarah Wolek, D-16 Delegate, and Ryan Spiegel, Dal, D-17 Delegate.

The MCDCC is responsible for nominating the Democratic members of the Montgomery County Board of Elections. We had 14 applicants for 4 seats and the Maryland Senate confirmed all 4 of our nominees.

Left to right: Nominees David Naimon, Daniel Koroma, Keyna Anyiam, and Margie Delao (substitute).

The MCDCC filled four central committee member vacancies from a pool of 22 candidates.

The core focus of our work at MCDCC is building our party’s strength and presence through outreach, organizing, and fundraising.

Organizing

Precinct Organizing: Every four years, the MCDCC Precinct Organization organizes a precinct recommitment process. This is a time for the MCDCC to check in with its precinct officials to ensure that they would like to continue their service with the Democratic Party. With the largest precinct organization operation in the state, it is an opportunity for the MCDCC to take stock of our grassroots infrastructure and make sure we have party volunteers who have taken on the job of energizing Democratic voters county-wide.

Club and Caucus Organizing: Currently, we are undergoing a re-chartering process to help organize our Democratic clubs and caucuses.

Issues-Oriented Organizing: In May, the MCDCC passed a resolution in solidarity with Montgomery County union members to fully fund the proposed Montgomery County Public Schools budget and the county union’s collective bargaining agreements. In 2024, Democrats will be working to ensure that the right to choice is protected on the ballot.

Fundraising

In 2023, the MCDCC committed itself to rebuilding the Forum/Founders Circle program, with the largest number of members to date at 60. We appreciate the support we received from the community and our Democratic supporters to meet our fundraising goals and are especially grateful to Bel Leong-Hong, Devang Shah, and Ike and Catherine Leggett for hosting these events. We are planning to hold more Forum/Founders Circle events in the next few months.

Catherine and Ike Leggett host a Forum/Founders Circle event featuring U.S. Senator Ben Cardin.

The MCDCC Annual Fall Gala was a sold-out event attended by Democratic supporters and elected officials. We recognized our Champions of Democracy: Diana Conway, Patricia Levee, Mayur Mody, Emily Ackerman, Mumin Barre and Ken Reichard.

Scenes from the 2023 Fall Gala

1st Row: Honoree Mumin Barre and Rep. Jamie Raskin; Councilmember Gabe Albornoz, Sen. Will Smith, County Executive Marc Elrich, Honoree Emily Ackerman, Rep. Jamie Raskin, and U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen.

2nd Row: Filled banquet room; Honoree Bel Leong-Hong and Chair Saman Ahmad; Honoree Mayur Mody and County Executive Marc Elrich.

3rd Row: Honoree Pat Levee and Del. Joe Vogel; Honoree Ken Reichard and Former County Executive Ike Leggett; Members of the Montgomery County Womens Democratic Club.

Outreach

When we talk about building the Democratic Party, we have to be creative about expanded our base. One of our key initiatives has been to hold a series of candidate bootcamps. The first two sessions we held were wildly successful. The first session, held in July, was a Political Candidate Bootcamp – How to Run for Office. The second, in December, was training on how to become a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. Over 110 people attended these two sessions, many of whom had never attended a Party event in the past.