MONROE COUNTY STATE OF THE UNION WATCH PARTY
Tuesday January 24th 8:00pm - 10:30pm
Presented at the Groove Lounge at the Bottlecap
1128 Simonton St, Key West (Corner of Catherine St)
You are all invited to join a "State of the Union" video presentation at the Bottlecap. They will have all of their TVs and their stunning 8' by 10' HD Projection Screen tuned to the President's address to the nation on Tuesday night!
Come and join your fellow Democrats and others who will be on hand to listen and watch as President Barack Obama follows a 221 year tradition in giving Congress and the people of America his take on the State of the Union.
Many thanks to The Bottlecap for again sponsoring this exceptionally civic-minded gesture! See you all there!
For more information on any of the above please call 305-741-3244 or email floridakeysdemocrats@gmail.com
One of the most important tools that we will need going for us in 2012 is a strong "VOTE BY MAIL" turnout!
At this time the Republican campaign on getting 2012 Absentee Ballots is leading us by a 3 to 1 margin! WE CAN DO BETTER!
You can help us get a head start on the election!
You can now vote from home by mail!
You don't need to be out of town either - using an Absentee Ballot to Vote by Mail from your home is now available to any registered voter in Monroe County for any election!
WHY VOTE BY MAIL IS BETTER
- No waiting for hours in line
- No polling place intimidation
- No confusion about where to go to vote
- No need to make arrangements for childcare or time off from work
- No malfunctioning voting equipment
- No need to hire and train poll workers
- Increased election process integrity through signature verification
- Lower election administration costs
- Increased voter turnout
If you are a qualified registered voter in Monroe County you are entitled to vote by absentee ballot. If you request an absentee ballot right now you can ask to have it sent to you for all of the elections through November 2014 - how convenient is that!
Check out this advice from Joyce Griffin, Monroe County Assistant Supervisor of Elections. Joyce has just setup an online request form that you can use to submit your request to have an absentee ballot sent directly to your home:
"Vote by mail ballot requests are being accepted now. Time does get away from us, meetings last longer, traffic gets busier, and you just don't know what is going to happen. We can take a request that will last through November 2014. We can accept the request by phone, mail, fax, or email. For a request to be complete we need the voter’s name, address, date of birth, where to send the ballot and for which elections a ballot is needed. If the request is in writing, we need the voter's signature. You can also request a vote by mail ballot by going to our website."
CLICK HERE FOR YOUR ABSENTEE "VOTE BY MAIL" BALLOT
Presidential Preference Primary: January 31, 2012
With books closing for new registration and party changes on January 3, 2012
Primary Election: August 14, 2012
With books closing for new registration and party changes on July 16, 2012
General Elections: November 6, 2012
With Books closing for new registration on October 9, 2012
If you have any questions please call the Supervisor of Elections office at:
(305) Key West 292-3416 Marathon 289-6017 Key Largo 453-8740
A VERY IMPORTANT REQUEST
Please go online today and request your Absentee Ballot - if you do it by the deadline at 5:00pm on January 25th you will get one by mail in time to vote in the upcoming Presidential Preference Primary on January 31st and support passage of the extremely important .5 mil Referendum to Save Our Schools.
While our candidate, President Obama, doesn't need to be in this Primary everyone should vote - it isn't just for Republicans. Democrats and Independents alike should vote to support the passage of this important referendum. It is important to understand that no matter how anyone votes on the referendum it will have no impact on your individual tax bill. To learn more about the critical need for its passage please visit the website of the Monroe County School District.
Please go online and request your Absentee "VOTE BY MAIL" Ballot Today!
CLICK HERE FOR YOUR ABSENTEE "VOTE BY MAIL" BALLOT
BRICK BY BRICK ~ PAVING THE ROAD TO EQUALITY- Ybor - Tampa
The Florida GLBT Democratic Caucus’ Winter Conference, which will be hosted by the Hillsborough County GLBTA Democratic Caucus, is just around the corner!
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The Conference will begin with a welcome reception on Friday, February 10th; Saturday will begin with a full Caucus Business Meeting and the day will continue with 'not to miss' training and breakout sessions and will end with an exicting suprise event (details unveiled soon); and a farewell brunch on Sunday, February 12th.
Make plans now to join us for the 2012 kickoff event for the Democratic Progressive movement in Hillsborough County, Florida!
Registration and hotel booking information is on the website – http://glbtdemocrats.tklapp.com/events/winter-conference.
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Start now to help us get President Barack Obama re-elected to finish the CHANGE that we all voted for in 2008! Help us re-elect Senator Bill Nelson so that Democrats can retain control of the Senate. The winners of this election will determine the make-up of the Supreme Court for decades to come.
WE NEED YOU NOW!
In January we will start our campaign of fundraisers, rallys, and candidate events focused on getting Democrats elected county-wide and turning Monroe County solid BLUE for President Barack Obama!
Accomplishing all of this will take a lot of work and we really need a lot of people to join us on this critically important election - re-electing our President, keeping control of the Senate, and taking back the House!!!.
We have some very serious needs to make this all work:
• On average, in Precincts that have a committed Precinct Committee and neighborhood volunteer team the turnout may increase our vote as much as 6 points on election day. Given our political demographics that will almost surely help us win by itself! Over the next few weeks many of you who have either shown your interest in helping us by volunteering or making a contribution will get an invitation to take on an important role in 2012. Please follow-up and join our team to make certain that we succeed! If somehow we missed asking you to work with us please let us know and we will get you helping in whatever way that you can!
• In the last session of the Republican led legislature Florida passed a host of rules and laws, and signed by Governor Rick Scott, designed for no other reason but to suppress Democratic voter turnout. Many of these new laws have shut down or substantially impeded voter registration drives. These new restrictions often have hidden costs for voter registration drives. Many groups are simply unable to comply with the new laws without abandoning or cutting back on their voter registration efforts. These groups review forms for completeness and accuracy. They monitor their volunteers and follow up with voters if they need more information, and with elections officials to guarantee that voters get on the rolls. Tight deadlines can stop this review process, and even a longer deadline is a problem when it is enforced with heavy penalties. For instance, the League of Women Voters of Florida had to shut down operations rather than risk that state’s fine scheme: just 14 forms lost in a hurricane or car accident could have bankrupted the organization.
We will not be intimidated by these onerous new Republican laws - we will register voters - and we will comply with these laws until the Justice Department determines them to be Unconstitutional!
We have a strategy in place to protect the Florida Keys Democrats and our volunteers who will work to register new voters even in the face of this Republican attempt at intimidation! If you can commit to helping us accomplish this task we will train you and get you certified under the new laws without personal risk. To make this happen we need serious, dedicated, detail-oriented volunteers - won't you step up to this important challenge?
• All of this effort will cost money. Again, an invitation will be made to the many individuals who have generously contributed to support the work of the Florida Keys Democrats. Thank you for everything that you have done - so far! We need you now more than ever. You will be so important in sponsoring our many events, in fact without you we won't be able to achieve our goals!
Please say that you will be there for us - this election is just too important to reduce your commitment or to sit it out!
Along with major donors and event sponsors we look forward to a host of smaller ticket fundraisers - Rick Boettger and Cynthia Edwards recently hosted a Fundraising BBQ at their home and raised nearly $2,500 for the Democratic cause. You can help us at any level, making a personal contribution, hosting a fundraiser at your home, chairing or sponsoring one of our major events - all of your efforts will contribute to our march to victory in 2012!
Please contact me with any great ideas, questions, or special offers of support at any time.
I can be reached at 305-587-6909 or at keywestphil@gmail.com
Phil Schaeffer, Chairman
Monroe County Democratic Executive Committee
P.O. Box 761
Key West FL 33041-0761
http://floridakeysdemocrats.org/
keywestphil@gmail.com
ASSOCIATE MEMBER
The Monroe County Democratic Executive Committee (DEC) has reorganized itself to create three Regional Committees in the Lower, Middle, and Upper Keys to provide on the ground support for election campaigns and Get Out The Vote efforts at the local level in each of these distinct communities.
This action creates a strong and unified organization across Monroe County as we prepare for the upcoming elections this year and especially in 2012. The Regional Committees will consist of all currently elected and appointed DEC members and Democratic officeholders as well as all Associate Members from that region.
The DEC has also established an ASSOCIATE MEMBER category for registered Democrats who wish to become more engaged with us in election campaigns and "Get Out The Vote" efforts.
Participation in the DEC as an Associate Member requires a contribution of $25.00 every 12 months, such contribution to be made on the anniversary of the Associate Member’s initial contribution.
Associate Members may engage in discussion and vote on matters within and germane to their Regional Democratic Committee but are not full voting members of the DEC for official matters and shall not be included in quorum calculations. However all Associate Members are encouraged to attend regular DEC meetings. Associate Members who are active in working to build the Party and who regularly attend meetings may be given priority to fill vacant DEC seats.
We will need to have all of you helping our Democrats to a win in this year's local elections! Heading into the important elections of 2012 it will be critically important to get every vote we can to re-elect President Obama and Senator Nelson, along with a full slate of offices county-wide. We can't do any of this without your help so please join us as an ASSOCIATE MEMBER to get our local campaign organization up and running!
Florida Keys Democrats Are Starting Now To Win the 2012 Elections!
Learn About Our $20.12 for 2012 Campaign
And Signup Today.
2012 will be a pivotal election nationally and we have an important role to play in that contest. The most important of course is the re-election of President Barack Obama! On the state level Senator Bill Nelson will be met with a strong challenger funded with enormous resources.
While we are a small county every vote counts in this Democracy and our votes are as important as anyone’s vote in Miami or Palm Beach. We must Get Out The Vote in 2012 to help keep the White House and U.S. Senate in Democratic control.
In addition to those important races we also need to re-elect our State Representative Ron Saunders so that he can continue doing his best to hold at bay any of the excesses of the Republican dominated state legislature.
Added to that our State Senator and all of the Monroe County Constitutional Officers are also up for election along with several City, County, School Board and other commission seats – we will really have our hands full in 2012. I should note that along the way we will also need to marshal critical support for our local candidates in 2011 in the Key West and Marathon City Commission races as well as the Key West Utility Board.
Nothing on our agenda will happen without money. Fundraising starting NOW is critical. Along with the races for the Presidency, U.S. Senate and Florida State Representative in 2012 we will have another 15 – 20 very important local races that immediately affect our way of life. It will be an enormous challenge for us to be able to provide GOTV and financial support for all of these candidates.
As we look towards the 2012 elections we need your financial help.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR $20.12 for 2012.
Just think, for the price of one lunch per month, you can help us protect our Democratic values in 2012.
Here's how it works, click on Contribute, enter your credit card information and we'll bill your credit card now for $20.12 each month, for 11 months, until the 2012 elections.
Or you can change the amount to be as little as $5, $10, $25, or even more, and then select "Each Month" and for the next 6, 10, 12, 18 or even 24 months – we'll charge whatever you decide you can afford to give. You can help us buy training materials, organizing supplies, train better candidates, and build all of the community organizing structure that we will need to get out the vote.
Even a $5 a month recurring donation will make a big difference to us! . . . or you can make a much appreciated one-time contribution as well!
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR $20.12 for 2012.
The Monroe County Democratic Executive Committee is proud of the work that we did in the Florida Keys to elect Democrats in 2010: by sending out over 10,000 pieces of mail we increased absentee ballot requests by over 10%, we also completed almost 5,000 phone calls and went to over 4,000 doors reminding people to vote, and we gave a final push with a targeted robocall to over 8,500 voters in Monroe County on the morning of election day!
All of this work is done by by volunteers, but opening and operating an office isn't cheap: rent, phone lines, office supplies, refreshments, literature, buttons--it all adds up. Helping to fund Democratic candidates and bring their message to the community also needs critical funding.
The Monroe County Democratic Executive Committee relies exclusively on funds from individuals like you to pay for the bulk of the costs of our GET OUT THE VOTE efforts as well as for our work in supporting candidates.
The principles and ideals of the Democratic Party include the right of all people to have freedom of expression, religion and the pursuit of happiness as well as a quality education, a clean and safe environment, a secure and healthy future, a fair living wage, secure retirement, equal opportunity, and access to quality health care. This is what we are fighting for as Democrats – won’t you please consider taking an active role in the Monroe County Democratic Party and help us pursue these goals with your contribution today?
We can win if our voters are informed and turn out to vote.
Please help the Democrats win in 2012. The most effective dollars are those that are contributed in the initial phase of the election cycle. Early money gets the ball rolling and will help determine the perceived viability of the Democratic Party in Monroe County. This will create the momentum we need in order to be successful in November 2012. Please help us win with your important contribution!
To build the necessary foundation today to win this year in November we need to build a base of regular, monthly donors to sustain our critical voter contact operations through 2011 and on towards the 2012 elections.
Help us change Florida politics. We can't do it without you.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR $20.12 for 2012.
Phil Schaeffer, Chair
Monroe County Democratic Executive Committee
keywestphil@gmail.com
The Administration's Accomplishments!
Like all presidents, Barack Obama has made mistakes. But, as a presidential historian, I have been struck by claims being put forward by Obama’s many critics and the news media that he has accomplished little when, in fact, his presidency is easily one of the most active in history.
Moreover, the President has faced venomous incivility and relentless opposition unlike anything in recent memory. As such, with all the misinformation circulating on talk radio, at town hall meetings, and in the blogosphere about the President, here is a fact-checked list of some of President Obama’s initiatives.
Robert P. Watson, Ph.D.
Lynn University
09/11/10 (update to my 07/21/09 list)
Read the record for yourself!