Official Call to the
2008 Congressional District Caucuses and the
May 1, 2008

Dear Delegate or Alternate,

Congratulations on your election as a delegate or alternate to the 2008 Congressional District Caucus and the Washington State Democratic Convention.

Congressional District Caucuses

The Congressional District Caucus will be held on May 17, 2008. Registration will open at 9:00 am, and the meeting will convene at 10:00 am at the locations included later in this letter.

Several actions will take place at the Congressional District Caucuses that are key to nominating our next president. At each Congressional District Caucus, delegates and alternates will be elected to attend the National Democratic Convention in Denver, CO on August 25th – 28th. In order to run for one of these positions you must have turned in a district-level declaration of candidacy to the state party by Friday, May 2nd, 2008 at 5:00 pm.

In addition, one presidential elector and one alternate will be elected at each Congressional District Caucus. The electors will meet in Olympia, WA in mid December to cast Washington’s votes in the Electoral College. For more on this process please visit the web site http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.S._Electoral_College. You do not need to turn in a declaration of candidacy to run for one of these positions. You can be nominated in person at the caucus.

There will also be an election for two members (one male and one female) of the State Party Judicial Review Board. More information about this position is available on Page 5 of the State Party Charter located at http://www.wa-democrats.org/index.php?page=display&id=137.

State Convention

This letter also serves as your official call to the 2008 Washington State Democratic Convention, being held in Spokane on June 13th – 15th. If you have not yet received your registration packet for this meeting please visit the web site http://wa-democrats.org/index.php?page=display&id=309 (Which will soon change to www.wa-democrats.org/info-convention. Register as soon as possible to insure your space at the convention. You will be receiving additional information about the State Convention and a copy of the proposed rules at a later date.

If you are a delegate and are unable to attend the Congressional District Caucus or the State Convention please contact you local Legislative District and County Chair and inform them of your absence so that they can make sure that an alternate attends in your place. A list of Chairs and their contact information is located under the “Get Local” tab on the web site www.wa-democrats.org.

I look forward to seeing you at your Congressional District Caucus and the State Democratic Convention. Thank you again for your hard work and commitment to our Party and its goals.

Sincerely,

Dwight Pelz
Chairman
Washington State Democrats

Location of 2008 Congressional District Caucuses

CD	Location	Delegates Attending	Alternates Attending
1st	Edmonds Community College Triton Union Building - Conference Room 20000 - 68th Ave. W, Lynnwood	240	120
2nd	Skagit Valley College McIntyre Hall 2501 E College Way, Mount Vernon	226	114
3rd	Napavine High School Gymnasium 404 - 4th Ave. NE, Napavine	225	112
4th	Eisenhower High School 702 S 40th Ave Yakima, WA 98901	152	75
5th	Trent Elementary School Auditorium 3303 N Pines Rd., Spokane	198	101
6th	Shelton High School Student Union Building 3737 N Shelton Springs Rd., Shelton	216	107
7th	North Seattle Community College 9600 College Way N, Seattle	307	154
8th	Tahoma High School 18200 SE 240th St., Covington	238	118
9th	North Thurston High School 600 Sleater-Kinney Rd. NE, Lacey	198	99
Total		2000	1000

2008 Washington State Democratic Party Congressional District Caucuses
Agenda and Rules
Agenda

1. Call to Order

2. Appointment of the Sergeant-at-Arms, Parliamentarian, and Presidential Preference Sub-caucus Chairs

3. Pledge of Allegiance

4. Preliminary Credentials Report by Congressional District Caucus Secretary

A. Number of Delegates Present

B. Number of Delegates Supporting each Presidential Preference

C. Seating of Alternates for Absent Delegates

5. Speakers for Presidential Preferences

A. Opportunity to Change Preference

6. Nomination and Election of one Presidential Elector and one Alternate

7. Nomination and Election of two Members (one male, one female) of the Washington State Democratic Judicial Review Board

8. Final Credentials Report by the Congressional District Caucus Secretary

A. Announcement of the Allocation of Congressional District Level National Delegates and Alternates by Presidential Preference

9. Sub-caucus by Presidential Preference for the Election of Congressional District Level National Delegates and Alternates

10. Adjournment





Rules

The agenda and operating rules are not subject to rejection or modification by the Congressional District Caucus.

1. These rules are determined by the Washington State Delegate Selection Rules Plan for the 2008 Democratic National Committee and are not subject to amendment, suspension, substitution or any other modification.

2. The Congressional District Caucus shall be called to order by the Congressional District Caucus Chair on Saturday, May 17, 2008 at 10:00 am at the specified location.

3. Pursuant to Rule III.J.2 of the 2008 Washington State Delegate Selection and Affirmative Action Plan, delegates to the Congressional District Caucuses shall be the duly elected delegates or alternates from the Legislative District Caucuses or County Conventions within each Congressional District.

4. The State Chair shall appoint the Congressional District Caucus Chair and Secretary.

5. The State Chair shall provide the Caucus Secretary with a list of certified delegates and alternates. The list shall also be made available in a timely manner to the state coordinators of any presidential preference in the Congressional District.

6. Delegates and alternates shall sign in by their Legislative District and/or County at the time of signing in. Delegates who wish to switch their presidential preference are encouraged to do so upon signing in. Alternates who wish to switch their presidential preference cannot do so until seated as a delegate.

7. The Congressional District Caucus Secretary shall report the numbers of qualified delegates registered for each presidential preference and the names of alternates to be seated to replace absent delegates. Alternates shall be listed and seated in the order in which they were elected, and must be of the same presidential preference, and, to the extent possible, of the same gender and from the same electing jurisdiction as the delegate being replaced.

8. Presidential Electors shall be elected by all delegates to the Congressional District Caucus. Candidates for Presidential Elector need not be identified as to presidential preference. A candidate not in attendance may nominate himself or herself by prior letter to the State Chair. A second is required. Each candidate may use up to one (1) minute for nominating, seconding, and/or candidate speech, to include the time spent by the Congressional District Caucus Chair in reading the letter for a candidate not in attendance. The one (1) minute may be allocated at the candidate’s discretion. Only delegates to the Congressional District Caucus may cast ballots. Ballots must be signed. If no candidate receives a majority, the two highest vote getters shall stand for election in a subsequent ballot. Once an elector has been chosen the candidate of the opposite gender receiving the next highest number of votes will be designated as the alternate elector. Nomination and election for the State Party Judicial Review Board may take place at the same time as nomination and election for Presidential Elector.
9. Two members of the State Party Judicial Review Board, one man and one woman, shall be elected. Signed ballots shall not be required for this election. State Committee Members, County Chairs and Legislative District Chairs shall not be eligible to serve on the State Party Judicial Review Board. (Note – The role of the Judicial Review Board is uncertain and the body has apparently not met in the last 20 years.)

10. At the discretion of the Congressional District Caucus Chair speakers may be heard on behalf of each presidential candidate or uncommitted preference or for candidates for statewide or congressional office if time allows.

11. After the presidential preference speakers have been heard, the Congressional District Caucus Chair MUST allow at least 15 minutes for any delegate or seated alternate wishing to change presidential preference to do so.

12. The Congressional District Caucus Secretary shall report the final number of qualified delegates registered for each presidential preference and announce the allocation of National Delegates and Alternates by presidential preference and gender for that Congressional District Caucus. This announcement shall reflect all changes of preferences. Delegates registering after this announcement may participate fully in the caucus but their inclusion shall not be grounds for altering National Delegate allocation.

13. Presidential preference sub-caucuses shall be conducted as follows:

A. The Congressional District Caucus Chair shall appoint Chairs for each presidential preference sub-caucus. The Presidential Preference Sub-caucus Chair shall preside over the nomination and election of Congressional District Level delegates and alternates. A list of qualified candidates will be provided and only persons named on the list may be elected. To qualify, a candidate must have filed a declaration of candidacy in compliance with Rule III.A.4.b. of the 2008 Washington State Delegate Selection and Affirmative Action Plan and have not been stricken from the qualified list by the presidential campaign pursuant to Rule III.A.5.

B. A candidate for Congressional District Level National Convention delegate or alternate who is not a delegate to the Congressional District Caucus, or who is not present at the caucus, but has submitted the appropriate declaration of candidacy, must signify in advance, in writing individually, her/his presidential preference, that she/he will serve if elected and that she/he is a Democrat and is willing to be known as such. Said letter shall be delivered to the Presidential Preference Sub-caucus Chair at or prior to the sub-caucus, shall be read at the meeting by the Presidential Preference Sub-caucus Chair.




C. Each candidate may use up to one (1) minute total for nominating, seconding, and/or a candidate speech, to include the time spent by the Presidential Preference Sub-caucus Chair in reading the letter for a candidate not in attendance. The one (1) minute may be allocated at the candidate’s discretion. The Presidential Preference Sub-caucus Chair can allow up to two (2) minutes per candidate if time allows.

D. After nominations are completed, voting shall be by signed ballot with all positions filled, no duplications and distribution by gender in accordance with subsections F, G and H. that follow. Any candidate for Delegate who receives a majority of the valid ballots cast on the first ballot shall be eligible for election. If all of the available delegate positions have not been filled after the first ballot a second ballot shall be held between the next two highest voter getters for each position remaining in the field (if there is one position remaining there will be two candidates, if there are two positions four candidates, three positions, six candidates.) Ties will be decided by lot.

E. The alternate for the Congressional District Caucus will be allocated to the presidential preference receiving the most delegates and to the gender indicated in the chart below. The alternate shall be the next highest vote getter of the appropriate gender after the election of district-level delegates.

F. Pursuant to Rule III.A.3.c of the 2008 Washington State Delegate Section and Affirmative Action Plan The district-level delegates and alternates are apportioned to districts as indicated in the following chart:

CD	Male Delegates	Female Delegates	Total Delegates	Gender of Alternate
1st	3	3	6	Female
2nd	3	3	6	Male
3rd	2	3	5	Male
4th	2	1	3	Female
5th	3	2	5	Female
6th	3	3	6	Male
7th	4	5	9	Male
8th	3	3	6	Female
9th	3	2	5	Female
Total	26	25	51	9

G. To ensure that district-level delegates are equally divided between men and women, Rule III.A.7.a of the 2008 Washington State Delegate Selection Plan requires delegate positions within each district will be designated by presidential preference beginning with the highest vote-getting presidential preference. This assignment of delegate positions, alternating by gender as mathematically practicable, will continue with the next highest vote-getting preferences in descending order until the gender of each position has been assigned.

H. Pursuant to Rule III.A.7.b of the 2008 Washington State Delegate Selection and Affirmative Action Plan the delegate positions shall be pre-designated so that the gender of the first position to be filled by the winning presidential candidate is pre-determined. Once the allocation of district delegates among presidential preference(s) has been calculated, the remaining delegate positions can be assigned to the presidential preference(s), in order of vote won, alternating by gender beginning with male delegates. Therefore the first position to be filled by the winning presidential preference in Districts 2, 4, 5, and 9 shall be male and the first position to be filled by the winning presidential preference in Districts 1, 3, 6, 7 and 8 shall be female. The remaining Delegate positions shall be assigned to the presidential preference(s), in order of vote won, alternating by gender, once the allocation of district delegates among presidential preferences has been calculated.

Assignment of delegates by gender per Rule III.A.7.b of the 2008 Washington State Delegate Selection Plan

CD	1st Del	2nd Del	3rd Del	4th Del	5th Del	6th Del	7th Del	8th Del	9th Del
1st	F	M	F	M	F	M
2nd	M	F	M	F	M	F
3rd	F	M	F	M	F
4th	M	F	M
5th	M	F	M	F	M
6th	F	M	F	M	F	M
7th	F	M	F	M	F	M	F	M	F
8th	F	M	F	M	F	M
9th	M	F	M	F	M

14. A quorum shall consist of 40% of the delegates seated as reported in the final report of the Congressional District Caucus Secretary. A quorum call shall not be entertained prior to the election of the Presidential Elector and Alternate, State Party Judicial Review Board members and the National Delegates and Alternates.