Message from the Chair
It’s a new year and one thing you can resolve to do—and tick off right away—is to request your ballot now for the 2022 primaries and midterm elections at www.votefromabroad.org. Informing overseas voters about their right to vote and the legal requirement to request a ballot each calendar year is one of the most important things we do as volunteers at Democrats Abroad. Please don’t delay. That way, when our phone bank volunteers call you later this year, you can proudly say, “Yes. I requested my ballot back in January!”
On January 15, we mark International Voter Registration Day! Mark your calendar and be sure to go to www.votefromabroad.org and (re-)register. Spread the word to other Americans you know and share our Facebook posts on that day. Our goal is that all DA Austria members request their ballots so they are ready to vote!
— Richard Miller, Chair, DA Austria
In This Issue —
Events:
- International Voter Registration Day
- Texas Voter Assistance
- DA Austria Black Caucus Book Club
- Why We Can’t Wait: Reparations Justice
- Global Black Caucus Quarterly Meeting
- ProDA: Film Screening and Panel Discussion
In Memory
- Gregory Blackley
Issues & Actions
- DA Austria in the News
- 2022 Election News
- Vote in the Texas Primary Election
- Voter Registration Outreach
- New Year! New Elections!
- International Voter Registration Day
- New Jersey State Voting Bill
- Tax Advocacy Year In Review
Save the Dates
- Solidarity Sundays
- February's DAA Black Caucus Book Club
Our Executive Committee meetings are held on the second Wednesday of the month. Our next meeting will be held online on: Wednesday, January 12, 2021, at 7 p.m. Members are welcome to join us at the meetings. Please contact Richard at [email protected] to join.
DAA is making a strong effort to include in our monthly newsletter all the information you need to stay up to date. By sending you fewer emails, we hope you will read those you receive. Thanks for reading!
Events:
International Voter Registration Day
When: January 15, 2022
Time: 24 hour voter mobilisation action
Where: global
Texans Abroad Voter Assistance
When: January 16, 2022
Time: 12:00pm CET
Where: Online voter assistance (hosted by DA Germany, Berlin)
RSVP: Texas Voter Assistance Online Helpdesk
DA Austria Black Caucus Book Club
When: January 16, 2022
Time: 16:00pm CET
Where: Austria Online. RSVP for Zoom link
RSVP: DAA Black Caucus Book Club
Why We Can’t Wait: Reparations Justice
When: January 16, 2022
Time: 17:30pm CET
Where: Online. RSVP for Zoom link
RSVP: Why We Can't Wait
Global Black Caucus Quarterly Meeting
When: January 30, 2022
Time: 9:00am CET
Where: Online. RSVP for Zoom link
RSVP: Global Black Caucus Quarterly Meeting
ProDA: Film Screening and Panel Discussion
When: January 31, 2022
Time: Panel discussion: Jan 31, 19:30pm CET; Screening: Jan 27-31
Where: Online. RSVP for Zoom link
RSVP: Scared to Debt
In Memory:
In Memory of Gregory Blackley
It is with great sadness that we announce the recent passing of a beloved community member, Mr. Gregory Blackley. A dear friend to many, Gregg, also known as Mr. B to his students at the American International School, was an enthusiastic communicator who treasured a good laugh. As a gay Black male elder, his influence extended well beyond his professional and community roles. Gregg was an active contributor to the efforts of Democrats Abroad over several years. He will be dearly missed by his family in the United States and friends here in Vienna. Rest in Peace and Power, Gregory Blackley.
– Faith, Mara, Sharon Ann, Sherri
Issues and Actions:
Democrats Abroad Austria in the News
On January 6, Democrats Abroad Austria’s communication director, Sophie Spiegelberger, appeared on Puls 24. She was part of a panel discussion on the one-year anniversary of the attack on the US Capitol. Our thanks to Sophie for representing Democrats Abroad Austria so prominently in the Austria media. You can watch some highlights from her appearance on YouTube here.
— 2022 Election News —
Vote in the Texas Primary Election – March 1, 2022
On March 1, 2022, Texas is holding its primary to choose the Democratic candidate to represent you in the US House of Representatives. Help choose the Democratic candidates who will be on the ballot for the general election on November 8, 2022!
And you may also be able to vote to choose the Democratic candidates for Governor, Lt Governor, other state offices, and your representatives to the Texas state legislature. It depends on the category you choose when you register to vote and request your ballot:
-
If you "intend to return": You are eligible to vote in Texas state elections.
You don't have to have a set date of return and it doesn't have to be within a set time frame, but you do need to have an intention to return at some time in the future.
- If your “return is uncertain”: You won’t be eligible to vote in Texas state elections, but you can still vote in the federal election for the US House.
State elections are hugely important! State government is responsible for voting, and state policies regarding climate change, education, health insurance, net neutrality, student loans, and more affect us no matter where we go around the world.
Let’s Get Ready to Register!!
We are hitting the ground running and want to register as many voters overseas as possible. Please help us reach OUR YOUNG PEOPLE. Dates for voter registration tables at universities and high schools are being scheduled now.
YOUR HELP: Please share organizations and groups—sports teams, clubs, etc— that may be interested in having a voter registration table at their events or get in touch if you would like to volunteer at an event.
Please email Raina Saul at [email protected] for more information or to volunteer.
New Year, New Elections! Request Your Ballot NOW for 2022!
As we enter the new year, Democrats Abroad would like to remind you to (re-)register to vote and request your ballot NOW for 2022 elections at www.votefromabroad.org.
Even if you’ve voted from abroad in the past, we urge all overseas voters to (re-)register and request a ballot at the start of each calendar year. Republicans love to purge voters like you and me from the voter rolls—don’t let this happen to you in such a critical election year!
34 U.S. Senate seats, all 435 U.S. Representative seats, 46 state legislatures, and 36 state governorships are up for grabs in November 2022. From voting rights to climate protection to access to affordable healthcare and education, too much is at stake to sit this one out!
– Candice Kerestan, DA International Chair
International Voter Registration Day
On Jan 15, 2022 Democrats Abroad will mobilize members around the globe to (re-)register to vote and to spread the word amongst their American family, friends, and colleagues to raise awareness that overseas voters are legally required to (re-)register every election year.
Democracy is on the ballot in 2022. Make sure your vote is counted! Go to votefromabroad.org and request your ballots for every 2022 election.
– Jen Rakow-Stepper, DA EMEA Regional Vice Chair and DA Austria, Member at Large
— Democrats Abroad Advocacy —
Bill to Re-enfranchise New Jersey Overseas Voters
Democrats Abroad has gotten out the vote for every state in the nation, but this year most of our major battles are for state-level voting rights, particularly in New Jersey! Depending on what they fill out on their absentee ballot request, many overseas voters in New Jersey don't have the right to vote in state elections! They used to have it before Chris Christie pushed through a change in the law in 2017.
This needs to change. Overseas voters are stakeholders in the New Jersey government. State government is responsible for voter eligibility and voting procedures. State policies regarding climate change, education, net neutrality, and more affect us everywhere. New Jerseyan overseas voters deserve a voice at all levels of government, and State Senator Vin Gopal has introduced a bill, NJ S3761, to change that law back and enfranchise voters once again.
Thanks to DA members this bill has passed the Assembly! Now please help us to get this bill passed in the Senate.
Please call your NJ State Senator and ask them to cosponsor NJ S3761!
– Heidi Burch, Vote From Abroad Coordinator
Dems Abroad 2021 Tax Advocacy Year In Review
Thanks for your support!
It’s been an enormously active year for Democrats Abroad in the fight for tax relief for Americans abroad. Our execution around a 5-point strategy for enacting tax reforms that provide consequential tax relief for the vast majority of Americans abroad yielded a bill in the House of Representatives that has a chance of being embraced by the Senate and passed into law. Dems Abroad is proud of our achievements and reaffirms our commitment to the goal of tax fairness for Americans abroad.
Read on for our annual Year in Review statement and click here for a full accounting of our work in 2021 to achieve tax reform for Americans abroad. Contact the Taxation Task Force at [email protected].
Click here to sign up for the Democrats Abroad Taxation Task Force Newsletter to keep up-to-date on our tax advocacy efforts.
– Carmelan Polce, Taxation Task Force Chair
Save the Dates:
Solidarity Sundays’ Next Leap
Want to help move our country past the tyranny of a radical, anti-democratic minority? We got you.
Solidarity Sundays Vienna is preparing an exciting project for the next leap forward in our fight to fix our country. Details on the meet-up to follow as soon as it’s safe to meet in person — hopefully by the end of February or early March. Watch this spot for our roll-out announcement — and follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SolSunEurope/
– Tanya Lolonis
Coordinator, Solidarity Sundays Vienna
Email: [email protected]
February DAA Black Caucus Book Club
To celebrate Black History month, we are going back to the classics and will be discussing Women, Race & Class, written by Angela Davis in 1981. Davis is a renowned author, political activist, academic scholar, and philosopher, who currently holds a professorship at UC Santa Cruz. Women, Race & Class is a collection of 13 essays that take a historical look at the Women’s Liberation movement in the United States from slavery to the 1960s.
Please join us virtually on February 13 at 16:00 CET to discuss (and perhaps debate) this great piece of literature!
-Faith Herbold and Jason Means
Co-Coordinators, DAA Black Caucus
Thank you for reading the January Newsletter!
We'll see you in February.