We, the Alexandria Young Democrats, in order to further the ideals and principles of the Democratic Party, to promote the election of the party’s candidates for public office at all levels, to encourage the involvement of young people in civic and political affairs, and to promote harmony and fellowship with one another, establish this constitution of the Alexandria Young Democrats.
Article I Name, Affiliation, Object
Section 1: The name of this organization shall be the “Alexandria Young Democrats”.
Section 2: The objectives of the Alexandria Young Democrats shall be:
To support and elect Democratic candidates for public office;
To widen and increase the interest, knowledge and participation of young people in government, the political process and civic involvement;
To train and develop young people for positions of leadership;
To increase the role of under-represented people in our Party, government, and society; and
To provide opportunities for young people to network and socialize.
Article II Policy
Section 1: The Alexandria Young Democrats shall contribute to the activities, growth, and influence of the Democratic Party.
Section 2: The Alexandria Young Democrats shall support and endorse only those candidates for public office who have been nominated or endorsed by the Democratic Party.
Section 3: The Alexandria Young Democrats shall recruit members from the entire community.
Section 4: The Alexandria Young Democrats shall not act in any manner inconsistent with this constitution; the Alexandria Young Democrats shall be affiliated with and should act with consideration of and in a manner consistent with the Virginia Young Democrats, the Young Democrats of America, the Alexandria Democratic Committee, the Virginia State Democratic Party, and the National Democratic Party.
Article III Membership
Section 1: Membership in the Alexandria Young Democrats is open to any member of the Alexandria community who is between 13 and 39 years of age and believes in the principles of the Democratic Party. No person will be denied membership on the basis of race, creed, gender, religion, economic status, national origin, sexual orientation, or sexual identity.
Section 2: No person will be considered a member of the Alexandria Young Democrats until a membership form, as approved by the Alexandria Young Democrats, has been completed. Membership renewal will occur as established in the By-Laws.
Article IV Officers
Section 1: The officers of the Alexandria Young Democrats shall be President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership Director and Party Representative. These officers shall perform the duties prescribed by this constitution and the by-laws adopted by the Alexandria Young Democrats. No person may hold more than one of these offices at a time. The collective of officers is known as the Executive Committee.
Section 2: Duties
President- Presides over meetings of the Executive Committee and the general membership; exercises general managerial tasks with respect to the operation of the group; establishes and terminates special committees as needed and appoints a chair to such special committees; shall be notified of each committee meeting and serve as a voting member of all committees; and shall exercise such other powers and duties as may be assigned to the office of President by other provisions of the constitution and under the by-laws.
Vice President- Presides over the organization in the absence of the President; oversees the schedule and the presentations of meetings of the general membership and programs outside of regular general membership meetings; shall be notified of each committee meeting; oversees all committees created and sustained with the Alexandria Young Democrats; and shall exercise such other powers and duties as may be assigned to the office of Vice President by other provisions of the constitution, under the by-laws, and delegated by the President.
Secretary- Transcribes minutes of the meetings; provides a written report of meetings of the Executive Committee and the general membership; and shall exercise such other powers and duties as may be assigned to the office of Secretary by other provisions of the constitution, under the by-laws, and delegated by the President.
Treasurer- Establishes procedures to handle disbursements and expenditures; tracks and reports all receipts and disbursements; maintains all financial records; should the need arise, will prepare and submit financial and filing reports as required by law; ensures financial records are open to inspection by any member of the Alexandria Young Democrats at any reasonable time; creates a budget for approval by the general membership during the first meeting of each year; ensures approved budget is sustained throughout the year and reports monthly on the status of the budget; serves as Chair of the Budget Committee; and shall exercise such other powers and duties as may be assigned to the office of the Treasurer by other provisions of the constitution, under the by-laws, and delegated by the President.
Membership Director - Oversees all membership drives and recruitment; maintains a database of members; oversees membership renewal; and shall exercise such other powers and duties as may be assigned to the office of Secretary by other provisions of the constitution, under the by-laws, and delegated by the President.
Party Representative- Coordinates relationships with other recognized Democratic organizations; manages the Alexandria Young Democrats resolution process; votes in the common interest of the Alexandria Young Democrats as a member of the Alexandria Democratic Committee’s Executive Committee; and shall exercise such other powers and duties as may be assigned to the office of Party Representative by other provisions of the constitution, under the by-laws, and delegated by the President.
Section 3: Each officer shall be elected by a majority vote of the club. Each officer shall serve until his or her successor is elected, and each officer’s term shall begin upon adjournment of the meeting at which he or she was elected. The President shall serve no more than three consecutive terms. Each officer shall serve a term of one year and the term will end at the conclusion of the annual election.
Section 4: Only members in good standing at the time of the election shall be eligible to run for a position on the Executive Committee or vote for the officers of this organization. Members in good standing consist of those members who have fully completed their membership form.
Section 5: In the event of a vacancy or temporary absence in, or inability to carry out the duties of, the office of President, the Vice-President shall assume the office. In the event of a vacancy or temporary absence in, or inability to carry out the duties of, any other office, the Executive Committee may elect a replacement, provided that, other than in an emergency, the position has been vacant for at least 30 days. The President may make an interim appointment to fill a vacancy between meetings of the Executive Committee.
Article V Meetings
Section 1: Notice must be given to the Executive Committee and the general membership of each regular and special meeting.
Section 2: The regular meetings of the Alexandria Young Democrats will be held at least once a month unless otherwise ordered. Special meetings of the Alexandria Young Democrats general membership may be called by the President, a majority of the Executive Committee, or by written request to the President and the Secretary by any ten (10) members of the general membership.
Section 3: Ten percent or no fewer than 10 of the Alexandria Young Democrat members in good standing shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of conducting business.
Section 4: In the event of an emergency, regular and special meetings of the general membership may be cancelled, postponed, or adjourned by the President with the approval of two officers of the Executive Committee.
Article VI Committees
Section 1: There will be an Executive Committee, the voting members of which shall be the officers of the Alexandria Young Democrats. The Executive Committee shall meet at least once per month or at the call of the President or any three members of the Executive Committee. Notice of the meeting will be given to each member of the Committee. Seventy-five percent of the officers shall constitute a quorum for the purposes of conducting business.
Section 2: There will be a Budget Committee to assist the Treasurer with the preparation of an annual budget. The Treasurer shall serve as Chair of the Budget Committee. The Committee shall consist of no less than four members in good standing and the members will be appointed by the President with the consent of the Treasurer.
Section 3: Standing committees shall be created within the by-laws and approved by the general membership. A Chair of a standing committee shall be elected by the general membership to a one-year term. Only members in good standing are eligible to run for Chair. Should there be a vacancy of a Chair, the President shall appoint a Chair to serve until the next election.
Section 4: Special committees shall be created by the President and can be terminated by the President at any time. The President shall be an ex-officio member of all committees.
Section 5: All committees develop policy and recommend passage or non-passage to the Executive Committee. Each committee, standing or special, shall submit directly to the Vice President all reports, policy recommendations, minutes of meetings, and any other information from such committees. The Vice President shall present recommended policy to the Executive Committee, which will consider the policy and recommend passage or non-passage to the general membership as required by this constitution or in the by-laws.
Section 6: Any member of the Alexandria Young Democrats may form a caucus to forward ideas, advance an issue, or propose resolutions.
Article VII Grievance and Disciplinary Proceedings
The by-laws shall govern all disciplinary and grievance proceedings.
Article VIII Parliamentary Authority
The rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the club in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with this constitution, the constitution of the Virginia Young Democrats, any applicable rule, or the Democratic Party Plan of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Article IX Amendment of Constitution
This constitution may be amended by a three-fourths vote of any meeting of the organization, provided that the text of the amendment has been distributed in writing to all members at least twenty days prior to adoption. Any proposed amendment not adopted at one of the three meetings following the meeting at which the proposed amendment was submitted to the general membership shall be considered rejected, and cannot be resubmitted for one calendar year of the date of the third meeting.
Article X By-laws
By-laws further governing the Alexandria Young Democrats shall be passed as needed. By-laws may be added, deleted or amended by a majority vote of members in good standing present and voting provided, however, that all proposed changes have been provided in writing twenty days in advance of the vote to the general membership.
Adopted by the Alexandria Young Democrats May 2005
By-Laws Of the Alexandria Young Democrats
By-laws further governing the Alexandria Young Democrats shall be passed as needed. By-laws may be added, deleted, or amended by a majority vote of members in good standing present and voting, provided that all proposed changes have been provided in writing seven days in advance of the vote to the general membership.
Section 1: Regular meetings will be conducted monthly unless otherwise ordered by the Executive Committee.
Section 2: Elections of the Executive Committee members and the Chairs of the standing committees shall be held annually during the December meeting.
Section 3: Standing committees are as follows:
Finance Committee – Plans and coordinates fundraising activities and reports such activities to the Executive Committee for approval. The Finance Director, as elected, serves as Chair of the Committee. Voting members of the Committee include the Committee Chair and any other member of the Alexandria Young Democrats in good standing and present at the meeting. The Vice President votes when a tie occurs. Do we want to combine this with the Budget Committee? The Budget Committee is a standing committee as it is created under the constitution.
Outreach Committee – Recruits members of the Alexandria community to join the Alexandria Young Democrats, with particular emphasis on the recruitment and involvement of under-represented people. The Membership Director will serve as Chair of the Committee. Voting members of the Committee include the Committee Chair and any other member of the Alexandria Young Democrats in good standing and present at the meeting. The Vice President votes when a tie occurs.
Resolutions Committee – Considers and votes whether to forward resolutions to the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee then considers all resolutions sent by the Resolutions Committee and recommends passage or non-passage to the general membership for adoption. Resolutions may be proposed to the Committee by any member of the Alexandria Young Democrats. The Party Representative shall serve as Chair of the Committee. Voting members of the Committee include the Committee Chair and any other member of the Alexandria Young Democrats in good standing and present at the meeting. The Vice President votes when a tie occurs.
Section 4: There are no membership dues. Members will be asked to make an annual voluntary contribution to assist with the operations of the Alexandria Young Democrats.
Section 5: Any member or officer of the Alexandria Young Democrats may be absolved
of membership and or duties when any two members of the organization bring good reason, including failure to perform duties, affiliation with another political party or acting against the Democratic Party or the government, with proof to the Executive Committee and the Executive Committee votes to forward the action to the general membership for a majority vote to expel the member or relieve the officer of his/her duties.
Section 6: Procedural Definitions
Notice, whenever required by this Constitution or By-laws, and unless otherwise ordered may be provided by postal mail, facsimile transmission or electronic mail sent to the appropriate address or number submitted to the Treasurer by each member at least three days in advance.
Ordered means the Executive Committee, or general membership when designated, has received an item in writing, considered the matter and taken a vote with enough active members present to conduct business.
Appointments means the designated appointer has selected and reported that selection of a member to an appointed position as dictated in this Constitution and/or the By-laws. All appointments shall last for one year or the remainder of a term.
A majority vote is 50 percent plus one of members in good standing and present.
Adopted by the Alexandria Young Democrats May 2005
