Democrats Abroad Austria Executive Committee Elections 2023
The 2023-25 Executive Committee will be elected at this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) on March 19, 2023. Voting will be conducted electronically or in person at the AGM.
The the following positions will be elected:
- Chair
- Vice-Chair
- Treasurer
- Secretary
- Counsel
- Up to two DPCA Voting Representatives
- Up to three DPCA Non-Voting Representatives
- Up to six Members-at-Large
A description of these offices’ responsibilities can be found in the DAA’s Bylaws on the Executive Committee here.
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*** 2023-25 Executive Committee ***
Richard Miller -- Candidate for Chair
Austria had many great successes in the mid-term election cycle. We had one of the highest percentages of members requesting their ballot via VoteFromAbroad.org. We have one of the best phone banking teams in all of DA, making easily over 10,000 phone calls. We had many successful events and were able to raise funds to support GOTV efforts on the global and country level. I think we can be proud of our contribution to rallying the overseas vote for Democrats in 2022. We did not retain Congress as I’d hoped, but Democrats did better than anyone had expected. As chair of DA Austria for the past two years, I’ve tried to be both a hands-on and motivating leader. I am very grateful for the members of the Executive Committee, who have given so much of their time and energy to keep DA Austria vibrant, growing, and making a difference. I am running for a second term as chair because, having gone through the experience of one cycle, I am better equipped to be even more effective. I know where we need to do better, such as in reaching out earlier to our members, especially students in study abroad programs. What we do has an impact, and I want to commit myself to serving DA Austria in this capacity for another term. I have to say, balancing a full-time job, family commitments, and DA Austria is not always easy. I ask my fellow members to consider volunteering and helping where you can – organizing a fundraising event, supporting social media, staffing our voter registration tables – so we can do our utmost to get out the vote in 2024.
I am a longtime DA Austria member who became an active volunteer starting in the 2020 election cycle. I have had the privilege of serving as chair of DA Austria for the past two years, and am allowed under our bylaws to serve one more term. Professionally, I work in the Global Communications team at SOS Children's Villages International, a children’s charity, where I manage a global team of six communications experts. Before that, I was a newspaper and radio reporter (20+ years), working in both the US and internationally. I have lived in Austria since 2005, moving here from Chicago (making me an Illinois voter). I am the proud father of two grown sons, also DA members. For fun, I am a marathon runner (not always fun), do ballroom dancing, play drums in a rock cover band, and am a rapper (you may have seen the VoteFromAbroad rap). You can learn more about my professional life on my LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-miller-2350809/.
I am a longtime DA Austria member who became an active volunteer starting in the 2020 election cycle. I have had the privilege of serving as chair of DA Austria for the past two years, and am allowed under our bylaws to serve one more term. Professionally, I work in the Global Communications team at SOS Children's Villages International, a children’s charity, where I manage a global team of six communications experts. Before that, I was a newspaper and radio reporter (20+ years), working in both the US and internationally. I have lived in Austria since 2005, moving here from Chicago (making me an Illinois voter). I am the proud father of two grown sons, also DA members. For fun, I am a marathon runner (not always fun), do ballroom dancing, play drums in a rock cover band, and am a rapper (you may have seen the VoteFromAbroad rap). You can learn more about my professional life on my LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-miller-2350809/.
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Marjorie Rosenberg -- Candidate for Vice Chair
I have been a member of Democrats Abroad since I first heard of the group a number of years ago and since 2020 have been an active phonebanker, taking part in a number of different types of campaigns and making over 6000 calls. If elected Vice Chair of the Austrian DA group, I would like to continue working on phonebanking campaigns, as getting out the vote is a top priority for me.
Another area I am interested in is the burden put on overseas voters due to FATCA and the filing of FBARs. I think this needs more input from those of us affected and would be interested in drumming up interest among members to push legislators to either remove the necessity of filing an FBAR for accounts in the country we live and work in and possibly in the meantime raising the cap on the filing requirement so that it does not affect those without significant funds.
The last area that interests me is working with state legislators to allow overseas citizens who do not intend to return to vote in state elections. As governors and legislators have a great deal of influence on how federal elections are run and how overseas ballots are handled, the decisions they make affect us and our right to vote. Therefore, I feel that all overseas voters should be eligible to vote at least for governor and the state legislature.
I have lived in Graz since 1981 and have been involved in English language teaching since the mid-1980’s. I have worked in adult education at the WIFI in Graz, as an in-company trainer, teacher trainer, and as a lecturer at the University of Graz language center and the Pädagogische Hochschule as well as writing course books and methodology books for teachers. This work led to my presenting at international conferences and eventually into leadership roles in the field of English language teaching. I served as the Chair of the Teachers of English in Austria from 2003 to 2005, after having joined the board in 1998. From 2009 – 2015 I was the Coordinator of the IATEFL (International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language) Business English Special Interest Group and stepped down from this role to take on the Vice Presidency and then Presidency of IATEFL, serving as a Trustee for the association until 2018. This position meant that I worked closely with others in a leadership team and was responsible for running board meetings, working on strategic development ideas for the association along with the other Trustees, codifying procedures, encouraging ongoing training for the board, and taking on the job of Chair of the Conference Committee, an event which attracts some 3,000 – 4,000 international attendees. As an association, we embraced technology early on and I was involved in helping to organize our first on-line conference and was tasked with setting up a webinar series for the association. Since 2013 I have been officially retired, although I have continued as a conference presenter and keynote speaker, and continue to do corporate training and write materials.
Another area I am interested in is the burden put on overseas voters due to FATCA and the filing of FBARs. I think this needs more input from those of us affected and would be interested in drumming up interest among members to push legislators to either remove the necessity of filing an FBAR for accounts in the country we live and work in and possibly in the meantime raising the cap on the filing requirement so that it does not affect those without significant funds.
The last area that interests me is working with state legislators to allow overseas citizens who do not intend to return to vote in state elections. As governors and legislators have a great deal of influence on how federal elections are run and how overseas ballots are handled, the decisions they make affect us and our right to vote. Therefore, I feel that all overseas voters should be eligible to vote at least for governor and the state legislature.
I have lived in Graz since 1981 and have been involved in English language teaching since the mid-1980’s. I have worked in adult education at the WIFI in Graz, as an in-company trainer, teacher trainer, and as a lecturer at the University of Graz language center and the Pädagogische Hochschule as well as writing course books and methodology books for teachers. This work led to my presenting at international conferences and eventually into leadership roles in the field of English language teaching. I served as the Chair of the Teachers of English in Austria from 2003 to 2005, after having joined the board in 1998. From 2009 – 2015 I was the Coordinator of the IATEFL (International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language) Business English Special Interest Group and stepped down from this role to take on the Vice Presidency and then Presidency of IATEFL, serving as a Trustee for the association until 2018. This position meant that I worked closely with others in a leadership team and was responsible for running board meetings, working on strategic development ideas for the association along with the other Trustees, codifying procedures, encouraging ongoing training for the board, and taking on the job of Chair of the Conference Committee, an event which attracts some 3,000 – 4,000 international attendees. As an association, we embraced technology early on and I was involved in helping to organize our first on-line conference and was tasked with setting up a webinar series for the association. Since 2013 I have been officially retired, although I have continued as a conference presenter and keynote speaker, and continue to do corporate training and write materials.
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Jacqueline Berman -- Candidate for Secretary
Dr. Jacqueline Berman is Head of Strategy and Impact for the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), Vienna, Austria. She developed and now leads organisational strategy and results-based management; monitoring, evaluation & learning; and knowledge management for ICMPD. Her work focuses on effective, evidence-based strategies to support democratic institution building, good governance, civil society development, health systems and health access, counter-trafficking and migrant smuggling, and international security. She holds a Ph.D. in International Relations and a longstanding commitment to democracy and democratic institutions. Both continuously worried about the multi-pronged assault on democracy in the US and around the globe and delighted and inspired by the resilience of the U.S.’s democratic institutions especially recently, she has actively participated in GOTV campaigns in California and from Austria over the past decade. During the 2020 election, she is very proud of the fact that she, her husband, and her kids wrote over 500 letters to encourage Americans to vote.
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Diego Heatherman -- Candidate for Treasurer
My name is Diego (officially Christopher Heatherman), and it has been exciting to become more involved with DAA over the past few years! I grew up in Kansas City in a multicultural household and have spent roughly 10 of the past 15 years in Austria, between Vienna, Bregenz, and Innsbruck. In my time here, I have built up a large personal and professional network in Vienna and Vorarlberg and learned to speak German fluently, assets which have been useful in the ExComm and as Treasurer the past two years. My first experience with politics was during high school, volunteering for the John Kerry campaign. I have also supported several campaigns and phonebanking since then. While I had been on DA Austria's lists since the election night party in 2008, personal connections with members in Vorarlberg, phone banking, and of course the big win in 2020 motivated me to get more involved. I have worked with budgets and documentation as project manager for the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) and am familiar with bureaucratic reporting structures. Over the past year, the DA worldwide accounting restructure has been an interesting challenge, and I am committed to seeing it through to a revamped system that works well for both DA Global and DA Austria. I also believe it is important to provide continuity while we are still in the middle of this restructuring process and would be honored to continue in my current role as Treasurer of DA Austria.
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Jeffrey Velasquez -- Candidate for Counsel
Jeffrey J Velasquez is a multilingual business professional from Los Angeles. California. He has been living in Vienna, Austria since 2003, where he studied business at the Vienna University of Economics. As a former Events Manager for Democrats Abroad Austria, Jeffrey is passionate about promoting Democratic Party values. In his free time, he enjoys hobbies such as 3D printing and design, playing guitar, and athletic coaching. He is fluent in English and Spanish as well as German, allowing him to engage with a diverse range of people and issues with ease.
As a former Events Manager for Democrats Abroad Austria with a background in business, a passion for promoting Democratic Party values, experience with voter registration, and a unique perspective on life, I would make an excellent candidate for the position of Counsel. My wide range of skills and interests and my Spanish and German language proficiency make me well-rounded and able to engage with a diverse spectrum of people and issues.
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Marcy Fowler -- Candidate for Member-at-Large
Marcy served as DAA Treasurer from 2017 to 2021 and then as Secretary since 2021. She has also served as IT Coordinator since 2019, overseeing a full review and upgrade of the organization's IT infrastructure. Marcy assisted in the planning and conduct of the 2020 Global Presidential Primary, participated in voter registration drives and phone banking as part of the 2018 DAA get out the vote effort, assisted in the planning and running of several DAA events (in person and online), and contributed to the 2018, 2021, and 2022 DAA bylaws reviews. Marcy has extensive professional experience in the management of digital information and systems, report creation, and review and editing of complex legal and technical documents. Marcy is running for Member-at-Large so that she can continue to contribute to DAA's efforts to mobilize American voters in Austria.
Andrew Nash -- Candidate for Member-at-Large
I'm a transport planner living abroad for over 20 years (https://andynash.com). I've participated in DAA activities over the years and would like to take a more active role. The Member-at-Large position seems like the right fit for me. Before moving to Europe I was very active in San Francisco local politics, leading several political organisations, running for office (BART Board Director, 1992, 30,000+ votes), serving as a California Democratic Party Delegate and as the executive director of an agency governed by the Board of Supervisors. My objective for DAA is making political participation as effective as possible since no one has lots of spare time!
Jennifer Rakow-Stepper -- Candidate for Member-at-Large
Jen is a longtime DA Austria member and served as DA Austria’s Chair (and Voting Representative) from 2017-2021 and as a DAA Member-at-Large from 2021-to present. She also currently serves (2021-2023) as Regional Vice Chair (RVC) of Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) on DA’s International Executive Committee.
As a Member-at-Large for Austria, Jen has continued to publish the monthly DAA newsletter, register and call voters, and organize fundraisers to support our work. Amongst her many contributions in past years, organizing the 2016 Rockin’ the Vote fundraiser concert, being DAA liaison for the January 2017 Women’s March, and attending in-person Democrats Abroad meetings in Madrid, Athens, and Munich were highlights.
While her position as RVC-EMEA has been challenging, she has enjoyed having a broader perspective of the organization and has been able to develop programs across the region including the establishment of the DA Africa Committee, the development and oversight for the inaugural elections of DPCA Voting Representatives for non-CC members, and was the International ExCom’s liaison for a major 2022 fundraiser — Say Gay, Vote Blue -- at the Amsterdam Canal Pride Parade.
Jen is proud of the work she’s accomplished to date serving DA Austria as both a Member-at-Large and DPCA Voting Representative and hopes to continue to contribute to DA Austria in these two roles. She lives in Vienna and votes in California.
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*** Candidate Statements for DPCA Voting Representatives ***
Please note: The DPCA Voting Representative position is not a DAA Executive Committee role and does not have a vote on the Executive Committee. That is why a candidate for an Executive Committee position may also run for one of Austria’s DPCA Voting Representative positions and represent DA Austria at global meetings.
Jennifer Rakow-Stepper -- Candidate for DPCA Voting Representative
Jen is a longtime DA Austria member and served as DA Austria’s Chair (and Voting Representative) from 2017-2021 and as a DAA Member-at-Large from 2021-to present. She also currently serves (2021-2023) as Regional Vice Chair (RVC) of Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) on DA’s International Executive Committee.
As a Member-at-Large for Austria, Jen has continued to publish the monthly DAA newsletter, register and call voters, and organize fundraisers to support our work. Amongst her many contributions in past years, organizing the 2016 Rockin’ the Vote fundraiser concert, being DAA liaison for the January 2017 Women’s March, and attending in-person Democrats Abroad meetings in Madrid, Athens, and Munich were highlights.
While her position as RVC-EMEA has been challenging, she has enjoyed having a broader perspective of the organization and has been able to develop programs across the region including the establishment of the DA Africa Committee, the development and oversight for the inaugural elections of DPCA Voting Representatives for non-CC members, and was the International ExCom’s liaison for a major 2022 fundraiser — Say Gay, Vote Blue -- at the Amsterdam Canal Pride Parade.
As a Member-at-Large for Austria, Jen has continued to publish the monthly DAA newsletter, register and call voters, and organize fundraisers to support our work. Amongst her many contributions in past years, organizing the 2016 Rockin’ the Vote fundraiser concert, being DAA liaison for the January 2017 Women’s March, and attending in-person Democrats Abroad meetings in Madrid, Athens, and Munich were highlights.
While her position as RVC-EMEA has been challenging, she has enjoyed having a broader perspective of the organization and has been able to develop programs across the region including the establishment of the DA Africa Committee, the development and oversight for the inaugural elections of DPCA Voting Representatives for non-CC members, and was the International ExCom’s liaison for a major 2022 fundraiser — Say Gay, Vote Blue -- at the Amsterdam Canal Pride Parade.
Jen is proud of the work she’s accomplished to date serving DA Austria as both a Member-at-Large and DPCA Voting Representative and hopes to continue to contribute to DA Austria in these two roles. She lives in Vienna and votes in California.
Bruce Murray -- Candidate for DPCA Voting Representative
Bruce Murray is a semi-retired university professor with almost two decades of active DA-AT membership. Bruce currently serves as DA Global Progressive Caucus Chair and DA-AT Bylaws Committee member. He has served as DA-AT Counsel and DPCA Voting Representative, and among other things co-sponsored successful DPCA resolutions on topics such as healthcare and environmental policy. He has been a regular Solidarity Sunday participant and dedicated DA-AT phonebanker. Bruce would be honored to represent DA-AT as DPCA Voting Representative, contributing to the impressive DPCA campaigns to mobilize U.S. voters abroad and engage members in support of our platform, promoting progressive political action globally. Bruce’s guiding principle is strength in diversity!
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*** Candidate Statements for DPCA Non-Voting Representatives ***
Please note: The DPCA Non-Voting Representative position is not a DAA Executive Committee role and does not have a vote on the Executive Committee. That is why a candidate for an Executive Committee position may also run for one of Austria’s DPCA Non-Voting Representative positions and represent DA Austria at global meetings in the event that an elected DPCA Voting Representative office is vacated.
Jacqueline Berman -- Candidate for DPCA Non-Voting Representative
Dr. Jacqueline Berman is Head of Strategy and Impact for the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD), Vienna, Austria. She developed and now leads organisational strategy and results-based management; monitoring, evaluation & learning; and knowledge management for ICMPD. Her work focuses on effective, evidence-based strategies to support democratic institution building, good governance, civil society development, health systems and health access, counter-trafficking and migrant smuggling, and international security. She holds a Ph.D. in International Relations and a longstanding commitment to democracy and democratic institutions. Both continuously worried about the multi-pronged assault on democracy in the US and around the globe and delighted and inspired by the resilience of the U.S.’s democratic institutions especially recently, she has actively participated in GOTV campaigns in California and from Austria over the past decade. During the 2020 election, she is very proud of the fact that she, her husband, and her kids wrote over 500 letters to encourage Americans to vote.
Josh Friedman -- Candidate for DPCA Non-Voting Representative
Josh Friedman has been the DA-AT Counsel for the past two years and has spent the last 13 years as an expat, the last 2+ years of which were in Vienna. Professionally, he has spent his time overseas in international development and humanitarian assistance work. Before that, he was a practicing attorney in the U.S. for a decade. Personally, his partner is Austrian and they have two kids (9 and 11), and their family likes hiking in the Wienerwald and trying different types of Krapfen. Politically, Josh was the policy director for a progressive candidate for District Attorney in Massachusetts in 2022 and has been active in voter protection, phonebanking, and GOTV for a variety of Democratic candidates and causes since 1992. Josh is ready and willing to backstop our elected DPCA voting reps and ensure DA-AT's representation in DA globally as a DPCA Non-Voting Representative; he asks for your support.
More on Josh can be found on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/friejose.
Tanya Lolonis -- Candidate for DPCA Non-Voting Representative
For most of my 2 decades in Vienna, my political activism was individual. I donated to candidates, canvassed for Obama—twice; maybe you attended a fundraiser I held for Hillary. But after Trump‘s election, I realised I could do more as part of an organisation.
With DA members Juan Cerda and Antje Lewis, I co-founded Solidarity Sundays as a platform for people like me to amplify our political interaction from abroad. Over the past couple years, I‘ve also been a Member-at-Large on DA Austria‘s Executive Committee. I appreciated being part of a team dedicated to deepening the impact of expat Democrats on U.S. politics.
Biden and Harris are in the White House because citizens voting from abroad made up the margin of victory. This is a historic achievement. But we don‘t have a secure, filibuster-proof majority yet. I ask for your vote so I can help DA‘s Austria chapter build on its accomplishments. I bring commitment and passion, and the conviction that, as our Republic faces historic challenges, Democrats have what it takes to meet them.
With DA members Juan Cerda and Antje Lewis, I co-founded Solidarity Sundays as a platform for people like me to amplify our political interaction from abroad. Over the past couple years, I‘ve also been a Member-at-Large on DA Austria‘s Executive Committee. I appreciated being part of a team dedicated to deepening the impact of expat Democrats on U.S. politics.
Biden and Harris are in the White House because citizens voting from abroad made up the margin of victory. This is a historic achievement. But we don‘t have a secure, filibuster-proof majority yet. I ask for your vote so I can help DA‘s Austria chapter build on its accomplishments. I bring commitment and passion, and the conviction that, as our Republic faces historic challenges, Democrats have what it takes to meet them.