While the SDGOP spin blog poops all over itself trying to figure out who’s going to run the opposition party, Dana Ferguson can’t find any Democrats ready to say they think a snap chair election is a good idea:
Heather Halverson, chair of the Minnehaha County Democratic Party, said she felt the efforts to elect a new chair nearly half way through Tornberg’s term seemed “sudden.” Despite that, she said she would listen to arguments on both sides and decide how to vote on Saturday.
“If it seems like something that might help the party move forward, then I might vote to support it,” Halverson said. “But if it’s too much of an upheaval, I’m not sure I can vote for that.”
Jeff Barth, who challenged Tornberg for her position in 2014, said he wouldn’t be in attendance at the meetings Saturday but felt the effort to oust the party head was being brought in poor taste.
“I don’t particularly care much for the ploys intended to manipulate the process essentially at the last second,” Barth said [Dana Ferguson, “Democrats to Consider Replacing Chair at Party Meeting,” that Sioux Falls paper, 2017.04.26].
Commissioner Barth usually chooses words sharply, but “last second” doesn’t quite capture what’s happening here. A “last-second” change in this case might be right before the 2018 election, or before the 2018 convention, with all the candidates, strategy, and messaging in place. The snap election that Rachelle Norberg and other Democrats are calling for at Saturday’s meeting in Sioux Falls is about as early and sensibly timed as such a move can be. We’re a year out from the primary, before any Democrats have declared for major offices. We have a vacancy in the party executive director position, an opportunity for the chair, current or new, to put a key person in place to help define the direction and tone of the 2018 campaign. The move for a snap election is happening in conjunction with McGovern Day, the party’s flagship statewide fundraiser and a speech by DNC vice-chair Rep. Keith Ellison, which should draw greater attendance than a typical Central Committee meeting. That party event also includes caucuses of the College, High School, and Young Democrats and a panel discussion with leaders from numerous blossoming activist groups, making it a prime event for the chair, current or new, to have meaningful conversations with key groups that can bring new energy and play an integral role in planning an executing a Democratic recovery.
Chair Halvorson’s concern about “suddenness” also seems misplaced. Prominent Democrats Paula Hawks and Frank Kloucek called for a party shake-up last November; Democrats have spent five months mulling this possibility. I’d argue that, as a party that should have been implementing a vigorous and visible multi-pronged recovery and resistance plan since November 9, the South Dakota Democratic Party doesn’t have time for much more deliberation. If we need upheaval (and heading toward an election in which we will be calling for wresting power from the Trump/Daugaard/Lederman regime, we need to use upheaval as a good word!), we need it right away. Think of “sudden” as an acronym for “Should’ve Undertaken Democratic Doings Earlier than Now!” (Yeah, I had to stretch for that.)
Planning a snap election for new Democratic Party leadership on McGovern Day is not sudden, last-second upheaval. It does not show “bad taste.” It shows courage, inclusiveness, and good timing… all of which are good characteristics for a Democratic Party leader.
Republicans fear change. That’s why the extremist blog is so agitated that Dems will embrace it.
Update: Paula Hawks wants to be chair, reports Scott Ehrisman.
Cory, you are not wrong with your critique of me but… “a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that” I should explain my comment.
Bringing the proposed changes forward with the minimum legal notification does not reek of “Good Faith” so I don’t love it. Bold would have been to make the declaration six weeks ago but perhaps the proponents of change were afraid they would not prevail. Meanwhile the results of this last election cannot be put solely at Ann’s feet. What about Hilary? What about Joe Lowe and the executive board? Maybe it is my fault. Did all our candidates work hard?
Don’t for a moment think that I don’t want Paula in the job. I have always liked her and have been impressed with how she grew as a candidate in the last go round. But just as a news flash, there is no “pie in the sky.” The fierce struggle for party titles and position does not move us forward into relevance.
Good luck this weekend.
When you have to change the rules so that you may immediately oust a chairperson who is two years in to a four year term, that is “sudden, last-second upheaval.” I’m not saying there shouldn’t be an examination of job performance and a corrective action plan, but I haven’t heard of anything that would justify the immediate termination of the current chair. Constant churning of leadership sends the wrong message to people on the inside and outside of the party. To circumvent the established process for leadership to be chosen looks chaotic and will not contribute to growth of the party. In fact, it will be even harder to get people involved with the party. The Democratic decline in SD is a long-term trend that started way before Ann Tornberg took on the position of chairperson.
I have another proposal. Paula Hawks should take on the open Executive Director position and work with the existing chairperson. All of the ideas for change and new priorities could be carried out by a new Executive Director who should have day to day operational control. If the constraints and guidance imposed by the Chair and the Executive Board are too burdensome or send us in the wrong direction, then their terms will be up in a couple of years and we can clean house.
Wow! Go Paula Hawks! Top quality leadership right out of the chute!
As a former Democrat who left the party over it’s clearly growing ineffectiveness 3 years ago, I am taking a “wait and see” approach. I was a life long Dem who strongly supported Obama, but SD Dems have done little to seek out young people and people of color and poor people. Show me you can do something new.
Pure speculation here. Maybe, Darin, there will be created a Chair/Executive Director position like BJ Nesselhuf held. I don’t know anything about anybody’s plan though, and won’t be at McGovern Day.
Debating the timing of this may be the diplomatic or smart political way to handle it or shelve it for that matter, but at some point this manipulative debate needs to end and the grown-ups need to show up and rebuild the Party. And the grown-ups know who they are.
The grown-ups are not a congressional candidate who cannot get elected to Congress, nor a Party leadership which cannot get its candidates elected to office as well. The grown-ups are the ones with past experience, who understand it is about an effective GOTV and targeted voter registration. It is not about talking to the media more or having a stronger message. Although, media exposure and message are important, they are not the panacea.
There is an obvious polarization in this country and the only way a given party can have the upper hand against the other party, at this time in potentially purple areas, is by accepting the universe that they live in and maximizing their base. It is less about convincing and more about getting your base out. Recent polls about Trump’s popularity show him to not be popular, but he is still very popular with registered Republicans. This should tell us all, that, in order, to make the Democratic Party relevant in South Dakota again is more about groundwork and its substance, than the image of message. And only when we heed this understanding, will we, in my opinion, begin to turn South Dakota purple once again….
Where have all the grown-ups gone? In the words of the late Senator George McGovern from his 1972 Democratic Party acceptance speech, “Come Home, …..”
The Democratic Party has got to continue to be the grown ups in the room. They must be able to put their feet down without dragging them. The republican in Washington today wants another week to screw over South Dakotans of all parties. Democrats are saying no, finally…http://www.politico.com/story/2017/04/27/house-democrats-threaten-shutdown-obamacare-repeal-237688 We have all watched the way things have gone here for the several elections. It is one thing to see national defeats but to see the local ones from such a miserable, failed, corrupted crew that we have representing most districts in South Dakota is tiring. New leadership is the first start, whenever it comes. The sooner the better in this case.
I am now an Independent that will gladly switch back to Democrat following change. Sounds like there are two of us so stated on this thread. Believe me, there are more when the message comes through.
Coming home is vital. Every young person leaving for school in a blue state should maintain their SoDak voter registration and vote absentee. It’s ethical and it helps.
For all the discussion here (on the several threads on this “coup”), all I am getting is that the “Democrat” team needs more wins but not much at all about movement to transform SD to a better society. Is this all really only about the other guys having more elected payers?
Democratic issues seem to do well (even to the point of pushing the GOP to the left according to Stace Nelson – a claim I do not buy into) when separated from partisan label identification. Why is this discussion not issue driven?
Why can’t people and ideas be right and wrong independent of partisanship?
In SD, candidates (who are Democrat) are not losing to candidates (who are Republican); Republican is beating Democrat. It is all branding and labeling.
Ror– Your suspicion could be right–a combination Chair/Executive Director position could be in the offing. What I would say is why not keep both positions?
It is time for all hands on deck. We don’t have the luxury of having the equivalent of a Tea Party on the left wing of the SD Democratic party. When the typical SD legislative district has 3000 or more Republicans than Democrats, we can’t afford to kick people out of our tent or divide our forces. We need a uniter not a divider.
Elections should be essay tests – not multiple-choice.
To many chiefs will not be of service, it will only mean more nothing. Leaders need to be leaders, simple stuff. That is what unites. We had a listening tour, how did that work out? Nope, we need a leader. Then we need to GOTV with a new direction. Paula Hawks sends her directions clearly. As a former military man, we function when there is a leader with a clear vision on how to take the objective.
It’s definitely about GOTV, but the state Party hasn’t been doing it, and the Hawk’s Plan or suggestions make no mention of it. And everyones’ obsession with fundraising should not really be a problem as long as former Senators Daschle and Johnson and former Representative Sandlin are willing to lead on that regardless of who the party chairperson might be. And they are really the only ones who can effectively get that done. And they need to step forward and do it! It is on them!
Media and message are, however, peripheral to the core concerns of GOTV and targeted voter registration, if any minority party is going to be relevant in a potentially purple state. I know I sound like a broken record when it comes to GOTV and targeted voter registration, but it is truly the art of the game and too many people have too much faith or limited understanding, who think that mere promises and clever ads win races. They don’t win races, rather they add to the victory or complement it at best…. The grown-ups need to take this over, or we are done…. We need to stop living in la-la-la land, when it comes to what, who, and how, to organize the SDDP and win races….. Perhaps, we need to become moonlighters with substance and less image, because they know how to pull out the win…..
Mr. Claussen, I copied this from Paula Hawks declaration. “Within 30 days of my election, I will have called together the Executive Board of the South Dakota Democratic Party to create this document, which will provide a roadmap for communicating a progressive message, engaging voters and citizens at the grassroots level.” To me, this does not declare specifically a GOTV, but it certainly has the earmarks of that call to action. I personally saw this when Herseth raced and won her election. She had many out of state college helpers that went out and got the necessary voter involvement and she won. After that, natta. The GOTV must be a fundamental part of the way forward.
Sometimes, snap decisions are what is needed to bring changes. This one is sure to be a classic http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-39731085
Jeff, thank you for the reply! (And remember, I critique not you but our word choice in this instance.)
I agree with Jeff’s assessment: announcing a push for a change six weeks ago would have been even bolder, and a squabble focused on who holds what title does not advance the party. If the Central Committee discusses people more than plans on Saturday, then we’re in trouble. (Similarly, notice that I have not critiqued Ann or Paula; I just want to see the best plan developed and executed.)
JKC, do we have any of those successful grown-ups left?
Darin, I am very interested in such a unity ticket. Tornberg wants to work for the party. Hawks wants to work for the party. That’s enough for me to say, “Great! Both of you, work for the party!”
I’m not sure the churn at the top has much effect on the branding that O says we’re losing on—seriously, is any one outside of this blog, DWC, and the folks headed to McGovern Day paying attention to this mini-drama? A unity Tornberg-Hawks team would put an end to the drama and factionalism and get us focused on fixing the branding, pointing out the issues where we’re right for SD and the Trump GOP is wrong, and winning seats next year.
JKC, I base no plan, fundraising or otherwise, on work that past Congressional members will do for us. If they help, great, and we should work on them to help, but we should have a plan independent of them if they are too busy.
I’d suggest stationing Tornberg at one field office and Hawks at another, but darn it, they’re both SF-area gals. Why couldn’t this contest be between Tornberg and some Rapid City mover and shaker? ;-)
Jerry, I hear you. The problem with a GOTV and or a targeted voter registration plan, however, is that its hard work. It’s easy for someone like me to just suggest it and suggest others to run it, and I understand that, but its the only way to win races in a potentially purple environment. But I am afraid that too many involved in South Dakota Democratic politics today have never truly experienced it, and thus are unable to truly value it. I attribute pass comfortable victories at times by Democrats like Daschle, Johnson, and Sandlin and the advent of technologies, which have allowed campaigns to be dependent at times upon fewer volunteers, to be the true cancer or perfect storm, which have led overtime to the loss of the art of an effective GOTV and TVR capability and appreciation. We need to acknowledge as a party, that loss, and I think only the “Grown-ups,” who, in my opinion, are our past Democratic political leaders and strategists in this state, are the ones who know how to jump start an effective GOTV and TVR strategy for any plan that we may have or want to have as a party going forward….
Cory, to answer your question, Yes! Their first names are Tom, Tim, Stephanie, Steve(s), Drey, and Pete. They are others too, but these six-plus are my number one draft picks or hopes for now…
I don’t belong to any organized political party……
You know the rest.
Cory,
I think that you, Paula, and Ann all have much to offer to the party, but to not reach out to “past Congressional members” and their strategists to lead us as a party on issues like GOTV and TVR is to risk to much the possible reinventing of the wheel, which needs not to be reinvented..
I know that in order to make GOTV happen, it begins with an out of state team. This takes time and effort before the election season begins. Stephanie Herseth knows how to make that work as she was successful with that when she won, I know that personally. The young students who came to South Dakota were notary trained and certified so they could register voters and knew where they were. When the election time came, it was not difficult work to get these folks to the polling places. 2018 is really here for all practical purposes regarding logistics for voters. The decision to have this change is important regarding how you can put together an effective team with an effective request for outside resources. Wait sank the boat. Or is it weight sank the boat, either way, the time is now.
We can talk about voter registration until hell freezes over, but is incumbent on the Democratic Party to get their boots on the ground.
Additionally we need to give the good citizens of South Dakota a reason to want to vote. Donald Trump is that reason.
In 2018 Democrats can seriously weaken the power of 45 and use his chaotic presidency against him.
Jerry and company,
I can assure you, we have plenty of college students here in SD who could do that. The problem lies in getting them out to work. This year, I had no resources, donations, or anything to get students to help, not to mention the students who refused to help because we wouldn’t do things their way (they’ve since moved out of state thankfully). The only times we were able to rally people to do stuff as a state group was when we did stuff for Paula and I bought pizza out of pocket. Even then, poor showing.
I’d suggest that if people want youth involved, you actually talk with youth. I’d prefer resources too, but I’d settle with someone actually sitting down with me to see what we can do to make this better. And there’s been plenty of talk about party elders, have any of you actually talked with them?
Cully, that would be great. As I noted, Stephanie had a whole lot of out of state helpers in her successful bid. Of course it takes resources and places to stay for the workers, gas money, logistic money and the works. That is why this needs to be set up and started as you just attested to. You cannot be expected to front the bill for the work and effort you do. No way, but the logistic teams must be in place with marching orders soon. 2018 is here for the planing and execution of the teams to work on. Of note as well, the out of state workers knew what was expected of them and what time frame they had to work within because of leadership. Logistics man, logistics and work ethic, those are here for sure, but there is also talent that will come as well.
Have any of you actually done GOTV or registered people to vote? Besides Cully that is. And Cory. I have and my volunteers have and it is hard work. All grassroots work is hard. I am lucky as county chair to have such a loyal, energetic group of volunteers for each election. Sadly, that is not the case in other parts of the state. And Cory is right when he says our past Congressional leaders cannot help. They are not in office no do the plan to be. However, the people they trained can help immensely. And many of them are, myself included. I want all the time and energy you put into replying to this blog to be put into working to elect Democratic candidates. We need your help.
Revolutions are neither pretty nor bloodless. Changing demographics and a lack of leadership have brought us to this point. We as Democrats can either adapt and make the changes we need to or die out as a political force in this state. The choice is ours.