She's been a hit with our April afterwork for two years running! By popular demand, Jennifer Cederwall is back to help lower the stress levels on filing your US income-tax returns before the 15 June deadline. As last year, she will be joining us by video link. You can, too, or you can show up at John Scott's Linné and grab yourself some food or drink before joining us in the meeting room up one flight of stairs, in the back!

URL: https://democratsabroad.webex.com/democratsabroad/e.php?MTID=me40aef6bc4883423cf609e5fb2ec6340
The meeting number, if you need it, is 23086007078.

Any problems finding the venue or joining online, please contact Joel Parthemore using the contact information below.

Thursday April 27th 7pm 

Kansai speakeasy at Sound Garden in Namba from 7.  

* 1,000 yen happy hour until 9.  

Join us every 3rd Thursday of the month 

Come by with friends to make new friends, to have a drink, to hang out and/or talk politics with like-minded people.

Sound Garden: Ripple Soemoncho, 2F, 2 Chome-3-13 Shinsaibashisuji, Chuo Ward, Osaka, 542-0085

https://the-sound-garden-cafe-bar.business.site/?fbclid=IwAR1aZaU5rTSLbyav53alTuL9yiHLB_RiO11s308lkOZnck2qyWjjSUKBAiA

*In the Kansai region and want to get more involved? Email us [email protected] or just RSVP and we will contact you soon

Looking for volunteers to help spread the word - please share widely!

Democrats Abroad Global Seniors and Disability Caucuses invite you to join us for our monthly Social -- a time for Seniors and members of the Disability Caucus to connect with one another and discuss topics of concern and information. We will reflect, discuss, plan, and strategize together from the comfort of our own homes and with no duties or assignments! This will be fun as we can discuss freely any topic we would like.

RSVP BELOW TO JOIN US ON ZOOM!

Join us for drinks before President Obama's event at the Hallenstadion! You don't need to be attending the main event to come and meet up with us! From the meetup, many of us will go with signs to welcome the former President and hand out voter information near the Hallenstadion. 

Add to your Google Calendar.

Join Democrats Abroad as we welcome President Barack Obama to Zürich! We will be holding signs, handing out flyers, and registering voters as they arrive to see the former President speak at the Hallenstadion. We will provide more details on the exact location as we get closer to the event date. Help us give President Obama a warm welcome and reach out to new members!

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Hope you will join for a lovely brunch.

We ask that you RSVP so that we can give the restaurant an accurate estimate. If you have RSVP'd and can't make it, please email us at: [email protected]

Price per person: $350 MXN pesos.

Drinks included: Fresh orange or green juice + bottomless American coffee. Tea or speciality coffee (one serving only).

Buffet table: Fresh baked pastries, fresh seasonal fruit, cottage cheese, yogurt, and granola.

Main dish, your choice of:
Ham & cheese or Huazontle or pumpkin flower omelette.
Eggs any style with bacon on the side.
Huevos Ahogados (baked beans served in a bowl, with scrambled eggs of your choice of tomato, or green tomato sauce).
Chilaquiles Verde, Rojos, or Morita with 2 eggs, or shredded chicken breast.
Hot cakes or waffles served with fresh slices strawberries and banana.

Prices include tax and service.

Join Democrats Abroad Paris once a month as we meet up in central Paris to WALK & TALK, and explore our glorious city by foot. Our destination varies each time we meet, and often ends with lunch (optional, as folks have time and interest). Come meet your fellow Democrat Abroad in Paris — and get your 10,000 steps in! All are welcome. This event is FREE.

We meet every first Tuesday of the month at 10:30A across from the Pont Sully on the right bank, in front of the LCL Bank (2 Blvd. Henri IV, the corner of Blvd Henri IV and Quai Henri IV), in the 4th arrondissement. By metro: Sully Morland exit on Line 7, or Bastille exit Line 1, 5, 8.

Our May 2023 book is Why We're Polarized by Ezra Klein. From Amazon:

This New York Times and Wall Street Journal best seller shows us that America’s political system isn’t broken. The truth is scarier: It’s working exactly as designed. In this “superbly researched” (The Washington Post) and timely book, journalist Ezra Klein reveals how that system is polarizing us - and how we are polarizing it - with disastrous results.

Please join us even if you haven't read the book!

Additional information about this (and future) event(s) can be found here.

May's meeting will take place on Zoom and in-person in Geneva; RSVP or send an email to Sam to receive the meeting details. If you aren't already on the Geneva Book Club mailing list, you can send an email to Sam letting him know you'd like to be added.

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Celebrate the Grand Opening of our New Jersey General Election 2023 Campaign Office on Wednesday, May 3rd at 6:00 PM, in Amsterdam! 

• Light supper, wine, and soft drinks will be served.

We will kick off the night with some needed volunteering. 

You can choose to either:

• Call our friendly Democrats Abroad members via our online call hub system to inform them of upcoming state elections and/or
• Answer questions via email about overseas voting (templates will be provided).

All you need is a laptop or tablet and headphones!

Never volunteered before? No problem, training will be available at the event.

***Grand Prize Awarded to the volunteer who logs in the most hours on our call hub phone banking system for NJ's state competitive elections in 2023. This will be announced at the event!***

Why are we phone banking?

Recent changes in NJ law (A3929/S2899) allow voters living abroad who mark their Federal Post Card Application (FPCA-overseas ballot request) “return is uncertain” to vote in STATE and Federal elections! NJ voters who mark their FPCA “intend to return” may vote in local, state, and Federal elections.

These laws are new, so we need to let our New Jersey members know they can vote and should request their ballots immediately to ensure they receive the correct ballot for both the Primary and General elections! 

What's at stake in this election?

Voting rights: After fighting a nearly 5-year struggle to restore our voting rights, which were unjustly taken away in 2017 by Republican Chris Christie, we must now fight to keep them! 

In the last election, Democrats lost seats by just a little over 500 votes. Many Democrats who did win had margins of victory that were razor-thin. This has emboldened Republicans who came out in full force against our voting rights bill. If we lose this election, we could lose our right to vote in state elections again. Overseas votes will be the margin of victory in 2023.  

Why do state elections matter?

Balance of Power:  

• Governor Murphy abided by the environmental regulations set forth by the Paris Accords when our Republican President refused.
• Imagine returning home and not having reproductive choice? This can be a reality if we do not win state elections. 
• Medical insurance regulations: In some countries, Americans do not qualify for medical insurance because they are not permanent residents or citizens of that country. They need to get their medical insurance back home in NJ. 
• As a result of conservative Justice Thomas’ suggestion that the court should “reconsider” cases that had affirmed LGBTQ rights, NJ state Democratic legislators passed a bill, which was signed by Governor Murphy, which guarantees marriage equality in New Jersey law by providing that all laws concerning marriage and civil union are to be read with gender neutral intent. For overseas voters, getting married in the United States may be the only option for LGBTQ+, if their host country does not support it.
• State Decisions regarding Net Neutrality and the Climate Crisis impact our communications and environment all over the world.

NJ Programs and more: Overseas voters count on programs and state-funded institutions back home, such as the 24-hour hotline for veterans, higher education funding through the Higher Education Assistance Authority (HESSA), state student loan interest rates, and more. Overseas voters have a stake in state elections, and we need to vote to keep our voting rights!