New DCD Constitution Now Viewable Online

Click on this link or the link at the right to go to the club constitution page. The currently viewable constitution was decided on 6/4/08 during a club meeting. It's still pretty ugly but the HTML will be cleaned up soon. You can still view the old 5/16/07 constitution by clicking a link on the right of the constitution page.

UC Davis Leads California Colleges in Number of New Registered Voters

Davis College Democrats has teamed up with Students for Barack Obama at UC Davis to register over 900 voters since school started less than a week ago! To put this number into perspective, Bush won Florida and stole the 2000 election with only 537 votes. UC Davis currently leads all California colleges and universities with new registered voters, smashing San Luis Obispo's record of 450.

Let's keep up the momentum! DCD and SFBO have a new voter registration goal of 5,000 by October 20th, which we can only do if we have committed boots on the ground. DCD and SFBO will be tabling out on the MU every Monday through Friday, 10 AM - 5 PM until election day (November 4th). Please get in touch with Jack Zwald, our Campaign Coordinator, and let him know when you're available to help register new voters on the quad and promote DCD.

Here are some other upcoming DCD events:

First Official Meeting
We'll discuss leadership opportunities and voter registration, and (even more importantly) the food will arrive at 7:00 (yay for free pizza). At 7:15, Students for Barack Obama will be holding their kickoff meeting.
Date: Wednesday, October 1
Time: 6-7 PM
Location: Giedt Hall 1002
Facebook event page: http://www.new.facebook.com/event.php?eid=44865691944

Rally: "Democrats Unite for Change" with Lt. Governor John Garamendi
Davis College Democrats and UC Davis Students for Barack Obama are proud to kickoff the year with Lt Governor John Garamendi.
Come rally with the most powerful Democrat in California's state government! Register to vote and learn how you can make a difference.
John Garamendi is the current Lieutenant Governor of California and is committed to protecting students and education.
Through his 32 years of public service he as always put students first. He protested and marched with students against the governor's proposed $5 billion cut to public schools. As a UC Regent he proposed a five-year moratorium on fee and tuition increases.
On health care, the economy, the environment, supporting veterans, and on social justice he has been one of the strongest leaders for our state.
"As a society, we have no greater responsibility than educating our children!" -- John Garamendi
Stay tuned for more exciting speakers!
Date: Thursday, October 2
Time: 12-1 PM
Location: Freeborn Plaza, between Freeborn Hall and the MU Bookstore
Facebook event page: http://www.new.facebook.com/event.php?eid=24188148238

BBQ/Tailgate Plus Voter Registration at home football game: UC Davis vs. Northern Colorado
Enjoy good times and good eats with the Davis College Democrats. We will register new democratic voters not just at UC Davis but more importantly, register visiting Coloradans before the all important November elections. Every new Democratic Coloradan registered will help tip the balance in this critical swing state.
Date: Saturday, October 4
Time: 3-6 PM
Location: Aggie Stadium

Stay tuned to this page or sign up to our facebook group at http://www.new.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2200021792 for more updates!

Davis College Democrats Endorse Christopher Cabalden and Cecilia Escamilla-Greenwald

The Davis College Democrats (DCD) followed up last week's City Council Candidates' Forum and Candidate Questionnaires by providing a huge splash for one candidate. After intense and heated debate on the subject, the organization came to a near-unanimous decision to support the campaign of UC Davis alumnus Cecilia Escamilla-Greenwald.

The support for Cecilia Escamilla-Greenwald came from her commitment to preserving the vibrant downtown, maintaining open space, and stance as a strong advocate for student and renter interests. Jack Zwald, Freshman Outreach coordinator, said, "I support Cecilia because she is the best candidate for students rights."

"I'm glad that our club was able to come together and reach a consensus on endorsing one qualified candidate," said Don Gibson, Vice President of Membership for the organization.
Though the discussions pertaining to the forum, questionnaire, and endorsements have been particularly fiery and at times contentious, the organization is excited about investing their time and energy into electing their preferred candidate.

"It was a very difficult decision for most club members," said Brandon J. Craig, Vice President of Internal Affairs.

That wasn't the only endorsement DCD made, though. The organization also voted to support Christopher Cabaldon, Mayor of West Sacramento, in his bid to represent the 8th Assembly District. They plan to campaign on his behalf in order to secure the seat, which is being vacated by Assemblywoman Lois Wolk as she aims to become the State Senator for the 5th District. She, too, has been endorsed by the club.

Brandon Key, a Vice President of Finance for the club, as well as a student intern on the Cabaldon campaign, said, "As a member of DCD and a staffer on the Cabaldon campaign, both Christopher and I are very happy to have won the support of every young democratic organization in the 8th Assembly District, along with a few across the river as well. Christopher is incredibly well prepared for the position and will be a strong leader for affordable education in the Assembly."

Davis College Democrats President Max Mikalonis is looking forward to campaigning for these great candidates. "We are excited about taking an active role in our community, and by campaigning on behalf of these student friendly candidates we hope to further raise the profile of student and young voter issues. College and Young Democratic voters will be the margin of victory come November, but we are mobilizing our peers for June in order to create positive change in the City of Davis and around the State."


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The answers to our questionnaire can be found here: http://daviswiki.org/Davis_College_Democrats/City_Council_Candidates_Questionnaire,_2008

City Council Questionnaire Finally Answered!

All five democratic candidates have answered our 12 questions! For our club endorsements I hope everyone can start to read through then and find who you believe is best for Davis.
http://daviswiki.org/Davis_College_Democrats/City_Council_Candidates_Questionnaire%2C_2008

State Assembly Candidates Questionnaire

You can also check it out on daviswiki at: http://daviswiki.org/Davis_College_Democrats/State_Assembly_Candidates_Questionnaire%2C_2008

• Will you work to get rid of the state requirement that forces cities to grow by a certain percentage every year by county?


• California is facing a huge budget deficit. What do you think about the governor's plan to fix it and what are three specific provisions you would have in a bill aimed at fixing the state's budget shortfall?


• How have you supported students and/or Young Democrats?


• Do you support same-sex marriage?


• How do you plan to support College Affordability?


• What is your position on having lower punishment for non-violent crimes and drug possession?
  


• How will you fix the broken prison system?


• What do you think is a reasonable living wage and would you support implementing it? In your opinion, what does it mean to have a living wage?


• How do you propose to achieve the goals set forth with AB 32?


• Would you support the California High Speed Rail Initiative that is on the November ballot? How will you work to alleviate traffic concerns in this Assembly District?

Vice President of Membership Don Gibson to be a Delegate to the Democratic National Convention!

Davis College Democrats is proud to announce that one of our own, VP of Membership Don Gibson, will be the only male delegate representing Hillary Clinton from California's 1st congressional district at the Democratic Party National Convention in Denver in August (now that's one long run on sentence). Last Sunday, at a high school in Napa, one of two caucus sites in the 1st CD for people running to be Hillary delegates, when the votes from both caucus sites were finally tallied, Don Gibson won more votes than any other delegate, male or female, and more votes than all his male competitors combined. Regardless of which candidate you support, both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton were awarded a set number of delegates from California on Super Tuesday (oh so very long ago) and this is a huge victory for both Don and our club. We would also like to congratulate delegates throughout the state for their wins and especially CD 1's female delegate Pamela Cahill, and our young Democrat colleagues Ryan Loney and Paula Villescaz.

Davis College Democrats City Council Questionnaire

Check it out on daviswiki:

http://daviswiki.org/Davis_College_Democrats/City_Council_Candidates_Questionnaire%2C_2008

Growth Policy:

· What do you feel is an ideal growth rate in Davis?

· High housing, rental prices, and a less than 1% vacancy rate cause 8,000 UC Davis students to live outside of the City of Davis. How will you work to create affordable housing in Davis?

· Do you believe there should be separate policies relative to group housing such as differences between Greek and Cooperative housing?

Student Issues:

· Do you support the tenant bill of rights as proposed by Lamar Heystek? See link http://daviswiki.org/Tenant_Rights

· What is your position on the current Davis Model Lease? And what changes or improvements would you suggest?

· Do you believe that students and faculty living on campus, including the West Village expansion, should have the ability to vote in city elections?

· How can the City of Davis better promote a positive relationship with the university and its students?

· How will you ensure that downtown Davis continues to meet the needs of students including safe entertainment options?

Social issues:

· Would you support the protection and expansion of family planning resources in the city?

· A living wage was just discussed at a recent city council meeting. How do you feel we should best implement a living wage and how much should it be?

· How will you address homelessness in Davis?

Environment:

· What have you done or will do in Davis to ensure that our city stays at the forefront of good environmental policies including alternative energy?

· One major issue with biking is plant material that is left in the bike lanes. What will you do to ensure that we do not have waste causing bikers to crash and increase bike safety in general?