Bylaws of The Ann Arbor City
Democratic Party
Adopted April 2006;
Amended February 2009
Article
I Name
The name
of this organization shall be the Ann Arbor City Democratic Party,
hereinafter called the Party.
Article
II - Purpose
It shall
be the purpose of the Party to develop issues and programs related to city
government, to supply financial support for the Party and its candidates,
to recruit and promote candidates and campaign for their election, and to
promote the widest possible participation in all activities of the Party.
It shall further be the purpose of the Party to promote the growth, welfare
and success of the Democratic Party, and to assist in the development of
the party platforms of Washtenaw County, the state of Michigan, and the
United States.
Article
III �
Membership
1.
Residents of the Ann Arbor area who are in sympathy with the general aims
and policies of the Party are considered members of the Party and are
eligible to participate in Party activities and to vote at Party meetings.
A person becomes a member of the Party for purposes of notification by
indicating his or her wish to become a member by being placed on the
membership list.
2. The
Secretary shall have responsibility for maintaining the list of Party
members to be notified of Party meetings.
3. There
shall be no dues for Ann Arbor City Democratic Party membership.
Article
IV Officers
1. The
officers of the Party are elected at the annual meeting of the membership
and shall consist of a Chair, a Secretary, a Treasurer, two or more
Vice-Chairs (one of whom shall serve as Vice-Chair for Organization) and
the Immediate Past Chair of the Party.
2.
Vacancies in these offices shall be filled by action of the Executive
Board. At the next general meeting of the Party, a new officer to fill the
unexpired term shall be elected by a majority vote of the voting members
present.
3.
Duties of officers:
A. The Chair is the chief executive officer of the Party and shall appoint
chairs of all committees except the Nominating Committee.
B. The Chair shall designate a Vice-Chair who shall act as Chair in the
absence of the Chair.
C. The Executive Board may from time to time define specific duties for the
Vice-Chairs.
D. The Secretary shall keep minutes of all business meetings of the
Executive Board and meetings of the Party, and shall arrange for
correspondence as requested by the Chair.
E. The Treasurer shall receive and disburse funds of the Party and shall
keep records of the same.
F. The above officers shall also have the duties defined by these bylaws,
the Executive Board, and general party meetings.
Article
V - Executive Board
1. The
officers set forth in Article IV, the Ward Chairs or their designated
alternates, and all members holding an elective city office shall
constitute the Executive Board.
2. The
Executive Board shall carry on the business of the Party between general
meetings.
A. All meetings of the Executive Board shall be open, with the privilege of
debate but not vote, to any Party member. There shall be a good faith
effort to notify members of the Executive Board of meetings of the Board.
B. A quorum of the Executive Board shall consist of 5 members of the Board.
Article
VI - Ward and Precinct Organization
1. Each
of the wards of Ann Arbor shall have a Ward Chair. The ward organization may,
at its discretion, decide to have two or more Ward Co-Chairs or a Ward
Committee instead of a Ward Chair. In such case, one Ward Co-Chair or one
member of the Ward Committee shall be designated to serve on the Executive
Board and Nominating Committee. In these bylaws the term "Ward
Chair" shall include "Ward Co-Chairs" and "Ward
Committee."
2.
Democrats in each ward shall determine the method of selection of their
Ward Chair. If Democrats in the ward fail to select a Ward Chair, the Ward
Chair vacancy shall be filled by recommendation of the Vice-Chair for
Organization to the Executive Board for approval.
3. One
or more Precinct Chairs shall be appointed for each precinct by the Ward
Chair, unless he or she receives a written request of five members of the
Party resident in the precinct for a meeting, in which case a general
precinct meeting shall be held for discussion of potential Precinct Chairs
and election of same. Precinct Chairs shall serve at the pleasure of the
Ward Chair. The Ward Chair shall see that all Precinct Chair vacancies are
filled as soon as is practicable.
4. Each
Ward Chair shall hold at least one ward meeting annually for discussion of
potential Council candidates. In addition, a Ward Chair shall hold a ward
meeting within three weeks after receipt of a written request by ten
members of the Party resident in the ward.
Article
VII - General Party Meetings
1. The
annual meeting will be held in late November or December.
2. The
Party will meet at least once each quarter, the time and place of these
meetings to be determined by the Party Chair.
3. A
general Party meeting shall be held on written request of ten members of
the Party. Cost of notice shall be borne by the ten members.
4. The
annual meeting and all general Party meetings shall be preceded by at least
one week's notice to all Party members. Notification may be by mail,
e-mail, telephone, direct contact, or through local news media. Notice of
the annual meeting must include a list of all nominees submitted by the
Nominating Committee.
5. For
all ward meetings, a good faith effort shall be made to notify all Party
members in the ward by mail, e-mail, telephone, or direct contact.
6. A
quorum at the annual meeting and all general Party meetings is fifteen
members.
Article
VIII - Notice of Resolutions
1.
Notice of resolutions stating a Party position or changing the structure of
the Party organization which will be presented at a general Party meeting
must be given to members at least one week prior to the date of the meeting
by mail, e-mail, telephone, or direct contact; or it must be given at the
immediately preceding general Party meeting. Resolutions will not be voted
on at meetings held in June, July, or August.
2. If
the notice required by Article VIII, Section 1, has not been given to the
membership, the resolution may be introduced, but requires a 4/5 majority
of those present and voting to pass.
Article
IX - Nomination and Election of City Officers
1. The
Nominating Committee shall consist of all Ward Chairs or whomever they may
designate as their alternates, one person from each ward elected by the
Party membership at a general Party meeting, and the Vice-Chair for
Organization, who shall serve as Chair of the Committee.
2. The
Nominating Committee shall report at the annual meeting to be held in late
November or December at least one nominee for each of the elective offices
listed in Article IV, Section 1. These officers shall be elected for a
one-year term, or until their successors have been elected.
3. In
addition to the responsibility of providing at least one nominee for each
office, the Nominating Committee shall include as a nominee any candidate
receiving support of at least two members of the Nominating Committee. Any
candidate receiving the support of at least ten party members may by
petition, directed to and received by the Secretary at least two weeks
before the annual meeting, asserting that the consent of the nominee has
been obtained.
4.
Nominations may also be made from the floor, provided prior consent of the
nominee has been obtained.
5. When
there is more than one candidate for an office, voting for that office
shall be by secret ballot on demand of one member.
ARTICLE
X - Primary Elections
1. The
Party will endorse no candidates in any primary elections. Individual Party
members, officers, Ward Chairs, Precinct Chairs, and other officials are
free to support any candidate of their choice, but must not so act in the
name of the Party, or in their official capacities.
2. Upon
request to the Chair, every candidate in a Democratic Party primary will be
given a complete list of registered voters in the precinct by full name and
address, with party or independent affiliations supplied by the Precinct
Chair, if such affiliations are known. Precinct Chairs shall not make such
lists available to any candidate without prior consultation with the Ward
Chair and Party Chair. If there is a cost for supplying such materials, the
candidate will bear the cost.
ARTICLE
XI - Parliamentary Authority
Party
meetings shall be conducted according to the latest edition of Robert's
Rules of Order, Newly Revised, unless these bylaws provide to the contrary.
ARTICLE
XII �
Amendments
Amendment
may be made to these bylaws at any regular general or annual meeting,
providing the amendment has been previously submitted in writing at a
general meeting, and there is a favorable vote of 2/3 of those members
present and voting at the second meeting. The text of the proposed
amendment shall be included in the notice of the second meeting.
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