Category Archives: Meeting notices

Meeting notices

Our Next Meeting – Tuesday October 12, 7 PM – General meeting: After the recall: Now what do we want Newsom to do?

General Membership Meeting
Oct 12th pm as a
Zoom Meeting

Meeting Reminder!!!

Tuesday  Oct 12TH AT 7 PM

Members and Supporters,

After the recall: Now what do we want Newsom to do?

Maggie Kolk is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: PDB General Meeting
Time: Oct 12, 2021 09:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
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Meeting ID: 892 2194 5628
Passcode: 824822
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Well, we survived the recall effort on Governor Newsom. The vote will be certified by Oct. 22 but it looks like the final tally will be about 63% voting to retain Newsom. Just over 11,000,000 votes were cast on whether to recall Newsom, and only about 44% of those voting chose to vote on the second question of who should replace Newsom.

But, now what? His campaign for reelection in November 2022 is expected to begin soon. But, many environmentalists aren’t pleased with Newsom and his administration, citing his continued approval of new permits for oil and gas drilling as inconsistent with CA’s already mandated climate goals. He is also criticized for favoring fossil fuel interests over public health concerns from frontline communities impacted by the fossil fuel industry.  Newsom also continues to support a water pumping plan for the Sacramento River Delta to divert supplies southward.

On Oct. 12 we’ll discuss what we want to see from Newsom during his remaining first term and what we need to hear from him during his 2022 reelection campaign. We’ll include a panel of speakers to share their thoughts on the Newsom administration’s policies – and how we think he can do better.

Mark your calendar for Oct. 12 at 7:00 pm. We’ll share more info on the panel and program as we can. In the meantime, let me know if you have any suggestions for the program, or questions to ask, or maybe a person you’d like to see on the program.

See you Oct. 12!!!

Also, please mark your calendars for PDB’s upcoming programs in November:

  • November 9th: Biofuels—Renewable solutions or just more emissions?


See you this Tuesday Oct 12th, at 7 pm!!! Also, be sure and visit the PDB website and let us know if you have any questions, suggestions, or concerns—we’d love to hear from you!

 

Meeting notices, Progressive Democrats of Benicia

Our Next Meeting – January 12, 2021 – Moving Into the New Year


Tuesday, Jan. 12, 7pm
Election of Officers &
Thinking about PDB 2021 Goals

Moving into the New Year – What’s Next…

Mark your calendar for our next general membership meeting on January 12, 7:00 – 8:30 pm via Zoom. Members will be voting to elect officers for 2021-2023, and then we’ll set up breakout rooms to talk in small groups about our PDB club, Benicia, and suggestions for PDB actions in the New Year.  (Zoom link to be sent later, and available on request via Contact Us.)

JANUARY 12th MEETING
  • PDB Officers elections. Current officers Ralph Dennis (Chair), Maggie Kolk (Secretary), Kathy Kerridge (Treasurer) are offering to continue their roles. Craig Snider, current Vice Chair, has declined to run. Nominations for any of these offices will be accepted up to an including from the floor on Jan. 12th. Please submit your nominations through the Contact button on our web site at progressivedemocratsofbenicia.org/contact/ .
  • Discussion with members on plans for 2021. This part of the program will include breakout rooms so members can talk in small groups. Then, we’ll reconvene together for a review of the groups’ discussions.
    • We (the steering committee) really want to hear the thoughts of members – what you’re thinking about these days, what looks important to you in ’21, and maybe some thoughts on what and how the club should focus its attention. So, bring your thinking caps and gumption and share with us!!!
GEORGIA SENATE SEATS

Yes I know, you thought we were done with elections. But both Senate seats in Georgia are in runoff elections on January 5, 2021.  And there’s a lot of opportunity to help in getting Democratic candidates elected – Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock – which would give the Democrats a majority in the Senate (counting the VP’s vote in ties). Here are two links where you can provide some help:

  • CA Democratic Party (CADEM) – phone banks: https://www.mobilize.us/cadems/event/363063/ .
  • Vote Forward – The VF letter writing is complete, but you can still sign up for phoning, texting, and even volunteering to be a poll watcher!  From the VF website>> “With our 2020 letter writing campaigns now completed, here are some actions we recommend for the weeks ahead to help strengthen democracy in Georgia: Phone and/or Text Bank: Join initiatives led by organizations on the ground such as Fair Fight Action and the New Georgia Project and help reach out to Georgians ahead of the January 5th elections.  Become a Poll Worker: Power the Polls makes it easy to sign up to become a poll worker and ensure there are enough people to staff voting locations across the country. This opportunity is for those who live in Georgia.”  Source: https://votefwd.org/posts/Georgia-Runoff-campaigns GEORGIA CAMPAIGNS COMPLETE!
ASSEMBLY DISTRICT ELECTION MEETINGS (ADEM)

This is important stuff! An opportunity to elect progressives as Democratic party delegates who represent Benicia and Vallejo to the California Democratic Party (CADEM)

  • Democratic-registered voters in our Assembly District 14 will elect 14 delegates to the CA Democratic Party (seven women and seven non-female identified).  Among other activities, these delegates elect the CADEM party chair (upcoming April 2021), and vote on the party’s platform and positions on issues taken by CADEM.
  • This year, the vote for candidates is mail-in ballot only, and you must request your ballot by Jan. 11th.
  • AND, before requesting your ballot, first you must register to vote for the ADEM election. You do that here: https://ademelections.com/?isCandidate=False. If you have any questions, just let us know.  So remember: Jan. 11th is the deadline, and you’ve got to register first. We’ll send out via email to members the slate of candidates we’ll be voting for as soon as the slate is available.
Ralph Dennis, PDB Chair

I sure hope to see you on Zoom on Jan. 12th!  PDB’s membership just grew to 101 heading into 2021! During the course of this COVID-dominated year, we’ve been having 40 or so members join our zoom meetings. For Jan. 12th, let’s see if we can’t double that number – to vote for your officers and to talk about your club and our future in Benicia!  (Zoom link to be sent later, and available on request at Contact Us.)

PDB Election Eligibility

Eligible members may nominate and vote in the election of officers. (An “eligible” member is one who is either new and a member for at least 60 days, or a past member who has renewed dues to become current. Dues are due on January 1 and payable by January 31 of each calendar year.  Dues are only $20/year, payable on our website.)  Nominations can be submitted through the Contact button on the PDB website.  You can also let us know if you have questions about the status of your membership.

Meeting notices

What about our May meeting and future meetings?

Let us know what you think!

Ralph Dennis

As you know, we’ve cancelled our March and April general membership meetings over concerns about the coronavirus and in compliance with state and local stay at home orders.

We’re not sure about our May membership meeting at this point and how to proceed with the rest of our 2020 schedule for PDB public meetings and events. The Solano Co. Democratic Central Committee is conducting its April meeting via Zoom, and at least one local Democratic Club – the Stonewall Democratic Club based in Vallejo – has moved its meetings online for the for the foreseeable future, including its April meeting via videoconferencing.

Even if the lockdown is lifted in May in some manner, it’s still unclear what social distancing norms will be in place and how public gatherings can be conducted. How comfortable will we be sitting in a room with 50-60 people? Will we be allowed to have a meeting that large? If we social distance in the Dona Benicia room, does it make sense to do so with so few people in attendance? (Think of chairs six feet apart from side-by-side and front to back.) I have no idea what to expect or how I’ll feel about it. Perhaps you do?

PDB will likely be purchasing a Zoom account for upcoming steering committee meetings, and perhaps that will become the new normal for all future committee meetings. But, what about general membership meetings? We could go the route that Stonewall has chosen and set up videoconference feed for members to attend. While the steering committee sorts out the costs and logistics of doing so, and exploring other options, we need input from members – your thoughts and suggestions. Perhaps there’s someone who has such experience and could even help!

What do you think? Let us know, we need your help! Send any ideas to https://progressivedemocratsofbenicia.org/contact/.

Stay safe and stay home!


Ralph Dennis
Chair