To make hotel reservations at the Charleston Marriott Town Center, click here or call 304-345-6500 and ask for the Young Democrats room rate of $119 per night.

West Virginia is the home state of our national president Rod Snyder, and we will be hosting a special farewell dinner on Saturday to thank him for his years of service to YDA.

Remember, to receive the regular online rate of $65, you must register by 5:00 p.m. (ET) on Friday, May 24.  After that, only on-site registration will be available for $85.

Register online today for YDA’s spring conference!

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the meetings team here.

Best wishes,

Walker Mattox
Meetings Director
Young Democrats of America

Click here to RSVP for the YDA rafting trip 

If you have any questions, please contact YDA Meetings Director Walker Mattox at meetings@yda.org.

In Ohio’s other 87 counties, President Obama lost by a combined total of slightly over 90,000 votes. It was his 256,000 vote margin of victory in Cuyahoga County that carried President Obama to his victory in Ohio and re-election to the presidency.

That’s why I’m proud to announce that the 2013 YDA Great Lakes Regional Conference will take place Saturday June 8th in Cleveland, Ohio.

The host venue for the conference will be the newly opened Cleveland Hostel located at 2090 West 25th Street in Cleveland’s dynamic Ohio City neighborhood. The Hostel is within walking distance of Ohio City’s restaurants and nightlife, Cleveland’s famed West Side Market, and the W 25th St./Ohio City stop on the RTA Red Line, providing service to downtown and Cleveland’s airport.

Rooms at the Hostel range from $25 a night for traditional hostel (shared) rooms to $75 a night for private rooms. For those looking for a more traditional hotel experience, there are numerous hotels located across the river in Cleveland’s Downtown.

There is no registration fee for the conference itself, but the Friday evening cocktail party and dinner Saturday evening, which are still being planned, may have fees associated with them.

Young Democrats from around the country descended on SC-01 in order to give the Colbert-Busch campaign one final push to a win. Knocking doors and talking to people wins elections and YDs gave Elizabeth that in spades. I personally knocked over 70 doors in the Charleston area.

And there were some YDs door knocking in Beaufort, SC. Adding all of our efforts together means YDs made a huge impact on the race.

When these opportunities open up, Democrats need to be prepared to maximize them. The DCCC and DNC went all in for Elizabeth and so did YDA. Putting boots on the ground will help her tremendously as she looks for a victory at the polls on Tuesday.

As YD, we are the ones our Party seeks out when they want to win elections. We have the experience, know-how and energy to make the phone calls, knock the doors, run the campaigns and plan the rallies. We’ve been doing it for 81 years and we did it on Saturday to help Elizabeth beat Mark Sanford.

However, Elizabeth still needs our help today and tomorrow. Sign up to phone bank for her from the comfort of your couch.  Help her tell voters about her vision for SC-01 that upholds Democratic values and grows the economic prosperity for all people. I had the opportunity to do it for her on Saturday and it was a great experience. If you sign up, you won’t be disappoint in her as a candidate or once she’s in Congress.

Let’s Get Out the Vote!

Atima Omara-Alwala
National Vice President
Young Democrats of America

On May 7, there will be a special election to fill a vacancy in the U.S. House of Representatives.  Elizabeth Colbert Busch (D) is taking on former Governor Mark Sanford (R) to represent South Carolina’s 1st Congressional District, and Elizabeth needs our help!

Volunteer here to help make calls to South Carolina voters

Young people throughout our nation need more champions like Elizabeth in Washington. She is fighting for increased access to affordable higher education, sound immigration policy, and a better environment. She’s been tested and she is tough, but to cross the finish line, she is going to need all hands on deck.

Let’s join the South Carolina Young Democrats to demonstrate that our generation stands united behind Elizabeth. We can help by doing what we do best, peer-to-peer contact. Using virtual contact tools and virtual phone banking, we can connect our message to young voters in South Carolina who will be the margin of victory on Election Day.

Sign up here to help Elizabeth Cobert Busch

For more information, you can contact South Carolina Young Democrats President Michael Glymph and his team at goydsc@gmail.com.

Together, we can ensure our generation has a much needed voice in Washington. Let’s stand up for sanity and help elect Elizabeth Colbert Busch.

Onward to Victory,

Colmon Elridge
Executive Vice President
Young Democrats of America

There’s still time left to send in your application and be apart of this year’s academy, but the deadline is just one week away. Please be sure to submit your application by May 1st. If you are not in high school, feel free to pass this information along to any students who may be interested in attending.

It’s not too late. Apply online today!  

A total of 48 students will be accepted from high school graduating classes 2013 – 2016.  All applicants will be notified of our decisions by May 15, and a $575 non-refundable registration fee will be due by June 7.

The historic Phoenix Park Hotel on Capitol Hill, will serve as the home base for the four-day training.  However, most sessions will occur “on location” throughout the city for the most authentic Washington experience possible.

A detailed schedule of HSLA training sessions and speakers will be released over the coming weeks; however, you can view last year’s agenda for a snapshot of the types of activities that will take place.  The 2013 High School Leadership Academy is shaping up to be one of the premier programs offered by YDA, and it further demonstrates our commitment to bringing up the next generation of leaders in the Democratic Party.

If you have any questions, please contact hsla@yda.org and we will respond promptly to your inquiry.  More information can also be found on YDA’s website.  While YDA is unable to offer scholarships to this year’s Academy, we are eager to work with students by sending suggestions on how to raise the necessary funds for travel and registration costs.

Don’t forget to apply online before the May 1st deadline.

We hope to see you in our nation’s capital this summer!

Sincerely,

Rod Snyder
President
Young Democrats of America

Meanwhile, Republicans in Congress say that the only way to start balancing the budget is by cutting programs important to our generation such as student aid, jobs and infrastructure development and health insurance coverage.

Tell Congress to invest in young people instead of corporate tax dodgers

Our friends at Americans for Tax Fairness have compiled a fact sheet that provides options for closing corporate tax loopholes and raising federal revenue over the next ten years.  While some of these issues are complicated, the motivations are not.  Republicans continue to fight for tax breaks for the rich instead of investing in our future.

Email Congress today and urge them to pass legislation to cut unjustified tax loopholes (S. 268)

Let’s not allow one more Tax Day to pass by without delivering tax fairness for the American people. Because in the end, our generation is picking up the tab. Take action today.

Sincerely,

Richard Fowler
Policy & Advocacy Director
Young Democrats of America

West Virginia is the home state of our national president Rod Snyder, and we will be hosting a special farewell dinner on Saturday to thank him for his years of service to YDA.

-   Early Bird Registration ($55) will be available until 5:00 p.m. (ET) on Friday, April 19
-   Regular registration ($65) will then be in available until 5:00 p.m. (ET) on Friday, May 24
-   After May 24, only on-site registration ($85) will be accepted

Register online today for the early bird rate for YDA’s spring conference!

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the meetings team here.

Best wishes,

Walker Mattox
Meetings Director
Young Democrats of America

Recently, the Young Democrats of Missouri have begun to have our annual convention in conjunction with Democrat Days. We use the partnership as a method of building relationships with Democratic activists, learning professional development skills, and discovering political employment opportunities. YDMO also utilizes Democrat Days to make our organization’s impact prominent to elected officials and create coalitions with like-minded organizations. Additionally, Democrat Days serves as a fundraising opportunity. Through the annual YDMO live auction-consistently our largest fundraiser of the year- we are able to fund campaign invasions, YDA conference attendance scholarships, and other YDMO programs. The conference also serves as a venue to share best practices and formulate future goals. Brainstorming at the 2011 Democrat Days lead to the establishment of YDMO’s High School Youth Civic Education Initiative. Through the highly successful initiative, YDMO partnered with our Republican counterparts and talked to nearly 2200 students in over 100 Missouri high school classrooms about the importance of civic education and involvement.

Democrat Days is a long-standing tradition and the Young Democrats of Missouri are proud to be building working relationships with the events organizers and adding a youthful touch to the well-established conference.

Matt Tharp

President, Young Democrats of Missouri

When my brother Keith came out to our family, over ten years ago this Easter Sunday, it was a defining moment in his life and for our family. We had all known he was a gay man, but in his fear of judgment, even from those who loved him most, he left home and lived a life he was afraid to share with us.

And that is why this week is a big deal.

This week, the Supreme Court will hear two cases regarding marriage equality. The first challenges the legality of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and the second challenges Proposition 8 in California.  In hearing these cases the Supreme Court will have an opportunity to determine whether or not our nation has the courage to carry out to the true meaning of our creed of all being created equal.

Sign our petition in support of marriage equality for all Americans

Five years ago my brother stood by my side as my best man when I married a woman who, in our nation’s not too distant past, would have been illegal for me to wed. My marriage has given my life purpose, blessed me with two beautiful (albeit crazy) sons, and defined the man I am.

As my brother stood by me then, I look forward to the day when I can stand by his side as his best man, when he and Matt begin their married lives together. And should one of my sons be gay, as a father, I want the issue of marriage equality to be a footnote in our history when I walk him down the aisle to the man of his dreams.

As a generation and across party lines, we have come together in recognition of the incompatibility of DOMA and Prop 8 with who we aspire to be as a nation. In this moment, we must, as we have done with our support of the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, make our voices heard in unity with our LGBT brothers and sisters.

Add your name to the list of thousands of Young Democrats who support marriage equality

My marriage to Victoria has shown me that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are not contingent upon one’s sexuality. Let’s hope that in 2013 the Supreme Court upholds the rightness of our nation’s founding aspirations and rejects the wrongness of our prejudices. We hold to this hope for Keith and Matt and for the millions of couples who deserve to know that America is theirs as well.

* * *

P.S.  You can follow the Court’s hearing beginning tomorrow on SCOTUSBLOG.  And our allies at the Human Rights Campaign are asking all of us to wear red on Tuesday and Wednesday to show our support for marriage equality.