Meeting minutes | DPPC BY-Laws PDF

Democratic Party of Pulaski County By-laws

Article I: Name

This organization shall be known as the Democratic Party of Pulaski County (DPPC). The by-laws and all official acts and proceedings shall be binding on all officers, members, and subordinate bodies where applicable.

Article II: Mission

The mission of the Democratic Party of Pulaski County is to:

  • Build a strong County Party with emphasis on local-level engagement and activism to educate the community about the Democratic Party of Arkansas.

  • Recruit quality candidates to seek local, county, district, and statewide office.

  • Raise money to provide resources for county and statewide Democratic candidates.

  • Have an active role on the state level to express local concerns.

  • Maintain and grow the membership of the DPPC.

  • Elect members to the Democratic Party of Arkansas State Committee and participate in Democratic Conventions and activities of the Democratic Party of Arkansas

Article III: Membership and Organization

Elections for officers shall be held in January following a general election. Only DPPC members who are in good standing at least thirty (30) days prior shall serve as voters in officer elections.

The elected officers of the DPPC are Chair, First Vice-Chair, Second Vice-Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer. The Executive Committee shall be made up of the elected officers and the Chair Emeritus. Candidate(s) for elected DPPC officer positions shall be members in good standing for no less than 30 days prior to the officer election.

A member in good standing is anyone who has paid the member fees required by DPPC. Officers of DPPC must avoid public expressions of support, including campaign contributions, for candidates opposing Democratic nominees.

The Chair and First Vice-Chair shall not have the same gender identity.

The Executive Committee shall be responsible for the following duties:

  1. Call and preside at all meetings of the DPPC

  2. Oversee the day-to-day affairs

  3. Call meetings of the Executive Committee

  4. Make appointments to committees of the DPPC

  5. Serve as a signatory on DPPC accounts

  6. Coordinate programs at meetings that promote the mission of the DPPC

  7. Coordinate membership development programs

  8. Maintain the social media presence, website, email systems, and other digital media

  9. Record all minutes and votes of meetings and prepare them for consideration by the body

  10. Preserve all important records and papers

  11. Maintain the archives

  12. Maintain all financial records and provide regular reports at meetings

  13. Maintain accurate membership rolls

  14. Submit all records and information to the Democratic Party of Arkansas (DPA) as requested

  15. Submit all reports required by the Arkansas Secretary of State, Arkansas Ethics Commission, DPA, or by statue

  16. Prepare a biennial budget to be approved by the membership in even-numbered years

  17. Prepare a GOTV plan in election years

  18. Select the honoree for the Jeffrey Ledbetter Outstanding Young Democrat award

The Chair will maintain primary responsibility for duties numbered 1-5 above and other duties as they arise, including additional reports to the DPA or required by state statute. In the absence of an elected Chair, the First Vice-Chair will carry out assigned responsibilities until such time that an election can be conducted.

The First Vice-Chair will maintain primary responsibility for duties numbered 5-6, will serve as Chair when necessary, and complete other duties as delegated by the Chair.

 The Second Vice-Chair will maintain primary responsibility for duties numbered 7-8, will serve as Secretary when necessary, and complete other duties as delegated by the Chair.

 The Secretary will maintain primary responsibility for duties numbered 9-11 and complete other duties as delegated by the Chair. In the absence of an elected Secretary, the Second Vice-Chair will carry out assigned responsibilities until such time that an election can be conducted.

 The Treasurer will maintain primary responsibility for duties numbered 5, 12-15 and complete other duties as delegated by the Chair. In the absence of an elected Treasurer, the Chair may appoint a member of the DPPC to carry out assigned responsibilities until such time that an election can be conducted.

The Executive Committee will collectively be responsible for duties numbered 16-18 and any other duties not explicitly named. All duties may be reassigned between officers. All reports mentioned are subject to be audited by any officer or active member of the DPPC upon request.

The DPPC shall strive to reflect the diversity of Pulaski County in the election of its officers.

Chair Emeritus is the immediate past Chair of the Pulaski County Democratic Committee and shall serve as a counselor to the DPPC and the Executive Committee.

General Membership

The DPPC shall be composed of members who reside in Pulaski County, are members in good standing, and who file to join the DPPC during the primary election filing period. The DPPC may extend membership to county registered voters seeking membership outside the filing period. Aside from votes taken at the County Convention, in order to vote one must be a member thirty (30) days prior to any votes taken by the DPPC.

In accordance with State Party Rules, the DPPC may be composed of at least twenty (20) members.

The DPPC shall convene in an open, public meeting to be held not later than ninety (90) days prior to the opening of the filing period to fix and announce the ballot access requirements (fees/petitions) to be met by each candidate, and member fees for the next member term.

 Proxy voting shall be permitted at meetings of the DPPC only by a vote of the DPPC to allow proxy voting. If proxy voting is allowed the following rules per Democratic Party of Arkansas Rules Article II, Section 2.01(41) shall apply:

  • no member shall vote the proxy of more than one other member

  • proxies shall be granted only when printed, dated, signed, and filed with the Secretary by the commencement of a meeting

  • no proxy shall be valid for more than one meeting

  • the Secretary shall preserve said proxies for no less than one year past the term of the Committee, at the Democratic Party headquarters as part of the records of the State Committee

DPPC member terms shall begin upon receipt of applicable membership form and serve for one calendar year.

Jeffrey Ledbetter Outstanding Young Democrat Award

When requested by the DPA Chair, the DPPC Chair shall present the Jeffrey Ledbetter Outstanding Young Democrat award to a young person that shares the same passion and dedication of its namesake. This award should reflect an enthusiasm and idealism that is inherent in youth and is present when one thinks of Jeffrey Ledbetter. Each young person chosen must have contributed to the success of the DPPC, the DPA, or Democratic candidate(s) by volunteering, recruiting members, raising funds, and/or showing aptitude for leadership.

Certification

Each quarter, the Treasurer shall digitally submit the complete contact information including: name, mailing address, phone number, and email address of each elected delegate to the State Committee as directed by officers or staff of the DPA.

Following the election of DPPC officers, the Chair shall submit the following to the Democratic Party of Arkansas County Party Review Committee:

  • A complete list of the name, address, phone number, and email address of each officer.

  • A copy of the DPPC bylaws.

  • A detailed plan for DPPC’s active support of Democratic candidates.

  • A detailed plan for DPPC’s community outreach.

  • A financial statement from the Treasurer listing the balance of all DPPC bank accounts, and any outstanding debt of the DPPC

Quorum

The quorum for the DPPC shall be 10% of the membership.

ARticle iV: MEetings

Meetings

All meetings of the DPPC are open to all members of the Democratic Party regardless of race, ethnicity, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, military status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or economic status. The DPPC shall hold at least four (4) regular meetings in a non- election year, and at least six (6) meetings in an election year.

Notice

The DPPC shall meet at the call of the Chair at such time and place as is designated in the call. Notice of call for meetings shall be communicated to the membership of the DPPC at least five (5) days before the dates of the meetings, provided that in case of an emergency, DPPC may be convened on two (2) days’ notice.

Special Meetings

Special meetings of the DPPC shall be called by the Chair upon request of one-fifth (1/5) of the membership of the full County Party. Upon failure or refusal of the Chair to call a requested meeting, those members requesting the meeting may issue the call. Notice of calls for special meetings shall be communicated to each member of the DPPC at least five (5) days before the date of the meeting, provided that in case of emergency, the DPPC may be convened on two (2) days’ notice.

The news media within the County may be informed of any meetings, whether special or regular, at the discretion of the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE V: Rules of Order

The official business of the DPPC shall be conducted in accordance with Robert’s Rules of Order (Newly Revised) when not inconsistent with the Bylaws or Rules of the DPPC.

ARTICLE VI: Pulaski County Convention

The DPPC shall hold a Biennial County Convention for the purpose of confirming delegates to the State Convention and electing county representatives to the State Committee, and for any other such purpose as may be required by state law or party rules.

Within the thirty (30) days following the general primary election, i.e., the primary runoff election, the DPPC will hold a County Convention. The Chair, Second Vice-Chair, or Secretary shall give adequate notice to members no later than one week in advance of said County Convention.

The Pulaski County Convention shall be composed of all DPPC members in good standing, where not in conflict with the rules of the Democratic Party of Arkansas.

The Pulaski County Convention shall be called to order by the Chair of the DPPC.

The County Convention shall also certify DPPC’s delegates to the State Convention. All members of the County Party at the time of the County Convention shall be eligible to attend the State Convention as a voting delegate.

The Chair and Secretary of the County Convention shall certify the names of DPPC’s State Committee representatives and State Convention delegates to the Secretary of the State Committee within seven (7) days of the election.

ARTICLE VII: Amending the By-Laws

Proposals to amend the bylaws must be submitted by a DPPC member to the DPPC Chair. The proposal then shall be submitted to the Executive Committee, which shall require a majority vote to amend. The Executive Committee shall then refer the proposal to the full County Party at least thirty (30) days prior to a vote. The proposal shall require a majority vote of the County Party quorum to be passed.

ARTICLE VIII: Election Commission

County Election Commissioner(s) shall be elected in January immediately following the General Election. Candidate(s) for Election Commissioner shall be paid members in good standing. The office of the Election Commissioner shall not be combined with any other County Party offices. Within ten (10) days of the date of electing the Election Commissioner, the Chair or the Secretary shall notify the Pulaski County Clerk in writing the name(s) and address(es) of the member(s) selected to serve on the Pulaski County Board of Election Commissioners in accordance with state law.

In the event of a vacancy in the position of the Election Commissioner(s), the Chair shall have the power to appoint an acting Election Commissioner to serve in the interim between the vacancy announcement and the election. The election to fill a vacated Election Commissioner must take place thirty (30) days after the announcement of the vacancy.

DPPC bylaws passed July 9, 2022.