Info on Dem. precinct conventions

This is for the Democrats out there. Greens, you can ignore this
(although us Dems can still help you with your ballot access drive
this year).

Stan Merriman has written an excellent summary of what we all need to
know about Democratic precinct conventions. I posted it on the PAA
web page at http://www.paa-tx.org/node/1280 . You can also find it
in the FAQ's (Frequently Asked Questions), which you can reach by
clicking on the FAQ's link at the top of any PAA web page, so you
don't have to remember the link.

Stan's summary includes details of when, where, and what is a
precinct convention, why you should attend, and how to get more info.

We will probably have precinct convention training workshops before
the primary, as we did two years ago, so you will understand more
about how it works and how you can make a big difference in turning
the Democratic party around.

By attending your precinct convention, you get to vote twice -- once
during primary day (Mar. 7) for candidates on the primary ballot, and
again that evening at the precinct convention for resolutions you
care about, and for delegates to the next (Senate District and
County) conventions.

Your vote at the precinct convention is like 100 votes in the
primary. So few people attend their precinct conventions, especially
in non-presidential election years, that a small number of people end
up choosing the delegates to the state convention who in turn pick
the state party leadership, determine the party platform, determine
its policies, choose members of the DNC, etc. The right wing
religious zealots learned in the 1990's that with a small minority
they could take over the Texas Republican party, and that's exactly
how they did it. The majority of Republicans, who are moderate,
didn't get organized and few attended their precinct conventions, and
we all know what has happened since then.

The Dem. party already has a lot more progressives at the grassroots
level than at higher levels, and in 2004 we elected a substantial
number to leadership positions in the state party. I'm hopeful that
this year, with the help of all of you who don't plan to sign a Green
ballot access petition, we will really be able to turn the Texas Dem.
party around.

We'll have more info in coming weeks. In the meantime, all you Dems,
PLEASE plan on attending your precinct convention the evening of the
primary, Mar. 7 and put that on your calendar. Read the info on the
link above for more info, and watch for notices of workshops/training
sessions we'll have.

Bill