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DC Democrats Contact
Phoenix Ray
Arlington Democrats Contact
Rebecca Theim
September 10, 2019 | Press Release
WASHINGTON, DC and ARLINGTON, VA — The District of Columbia Democratic State Committee (DC Democratic Party) and the Arlington County Democratic Committee (Arlington Dems) today announced a strategic partnership with the twin goals of matching D.C. Democrats with volunteer opportunities in support of legislative campaigns in neighboring Virginia, and leveraging the organizing might of Arlington Democrats in support of DC statehood.
Supporting Democratic Candidates in Virginia
Virginia has a serious shot at turning its legislature blue this year. Virginia Republicans now have only a two-seat majority in both the Virginia House of Delegates and the Virginia Senate. The state’s Democratic Party has mounted formidable #FightFor51 and #Fightfor21 campaigns to flip both houses blue, but success will require significant financial and organizing support.
The DC Democratic Party has answered this call by partnering with Arlington Democrats. In particular, DCDSC will direct DC Democratic volunteers to the Arlington Democrats’ robust “Beyond Arlington” program, which is providing field support to key races in swing districts throughout Virginia this year. In addition to identifying key races, this program organizes canvassing trips to swing districts, arranges carpools, and facilitates volunteer overnight housing when needed. Interested DC Democratic volunteers will be encouraged to signup via Facebook or by contacting beyond@arlingtondemocrats.org.
“DC Democrats can make the critical difference this year in Virginia’s close legislative races, and we are grateful for their support,” Arlington Democrats Chair Jill Caiazzo said. “Arlington Democrats will serve as a primary gateway to Virginia for DC Democrats. We will ensure that DC Democratic volunteers are deployed to strategic field locations in close races.”
Arlington Democrats’ “Beyond Arlington” Chair Steve Baker also observed: “The ‘Beyond Arlington’ program will make it easy and fun for D.C. Democrats to plug into Virginia legislative races. We handle the administrative details of liaising with campaigns so that volunteers can hit the ground running where they are needed most.”
DC Democratic Party Chair Charles Wilson observed: “DC Democrats have always been good neighbors to local campaigns, but this partnership takes that effort to the next level. We are eager to support Democratic candidates in Virginia this year who support DC statehood – and to pave the way for even greater collaboration for the presidential race in 2020.”
Supporting DC Statehood
Addressing the second goal of the new partnership, Arlington Democrats unanimously approved a resolution Wednesday declaring their support for D.C. statehood. Citing the right of every United States citizen to have Congressional representation, Arlington Democrats joined the Wyoming Democrats in publicly endorsing a plan to make the District of Columbia the 51st state.
In response to the passage of this resolution, DC Democratic Party Chair Charles Wilson noted: “It is long past time that all U. S. citizens are granted the full rights and freedoms afforded to them by the Constitution. We thank Arlington Democrats for taking a stand on such an important issue for over 700,000 District residents and look forward to working with them to make statehood a reality for the District of Columbia.”
DC Democratic Party Vice Chair Linda Gray also observed: “We have been shouting about taxation without representation for years. We deeply appreciate the support from our fellow Democrats in Arlington.”
James S. Bubar and Andria Thomas, co-chairs of the DC Democratic Party’s Statehood Committee, released the following statement: “We are grateful that the Arlington Dems are joining the DC Democrats in the struggle for Statehood and full democracy for the residents of the District of Columbia.”
The formal support of Arlington Dems comes ahead of the Sep. 19 DC statehood hearing before the U.S. House of Representatives Oversight and Reform Committee chaired by U.S. Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD). The committee will consider U.S. Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton’s bill, H.R. 51, the Washington, D.C. Admission Act. The bill has the support of 218 House members. An identical bill in the U.S. Senate, S. 631, introduced by Sen. Tom R. Carper (D-DE) has the support of 33 Senators, including Democratic presidential candidates Sens. Michael F. Bennet (D-CO), Cory A. Booker (D-NJ), Kamala D. Harris (D-CA), Bernard Sanders (I-VT), and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA).
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The Arlington County Democratic Committee (Arlington Dems) is the official county organization for the Democratic Party of Virginia. Arlington Dems is open to anyone interested in advancing Democratic candidates, policy priorities and values in Arlington and beyond. Learn more at the Arlington Democrats website, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
For more information about the DC Democratic Party, visit our website or follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.