Name: Jeffrey Cheng
Gender: Male
Office: Secretary
Member since: 2016
Residence: Sweden
Biography
I was born and raised in New York City, and attended the Bronx High School of Science before moving to Philadelphia to attend Drexel and the University of Pennsylvania. My background in business and engineering has helped me succeed in many roles including teaching physics, managing real estate, working in marketing, web design, finance, and as an IT contractor.
In 2014, my husband and I jumped at the offer of a lifetime and moved to Stockholm, Sweden. When the Stockholm chapter of Democrats Abroad Sweden was re-started in 2015, I saw a great opportunity to get involved and help grow the chapter and country committee with my database knowledge, IT background, and interpersonal skills.
I vote in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and am a proud member of DA’s LGBT, Women’s, and Youth Caucuses. I volunteer so that all Americans abroad can have a voice in our government.
Links to MYC video.
Describe your volunteer work with DA and cite your greatest DA accomplishment.
Over the last year and a half I have been very active in the Global IT team, Communications team, and Youth Caucus. I continue to dedicate 10+ hours a week towards website maintenance, IT help desk for CC leaders, global emails, fundraisers, phone banking, voter help desk, and backend development.
On the front facing side, I have helped host and moderate five Global Town Halls with representatives, party leaders, and friends of DA. Last year during the election cycle, I answered over 2,500 of the 30,000+ requests from voters all around the world.
My greatest achievement may sound small, but speaks to my relentless advocacy for our members: When one of our voters was unable to register to vote, I was able to call and email the local election office and sort the situation out with the election officials, correcting the mistake, and ensuring that this voter had a say.
Why are you running for this office?
I believe that I am the right person for this position because I have the background needed to succeed.
Our state party is unique in that we have members all over the world, and our connection to those members is mainly web, email, and social media based. We have the opportunity to reach more Americans abroad than ever before with tools that are readily available, and I know that I can continue in the footsteps of Julia Bryan and Will Bakker in growing this position and developing the future of DA’s connection to Americans all over the world.
The secretary’s role is a simple yet complicated one. The time requirements and need for attention to detail make this a very demanding task. I am ready and willing to put in the hours needed and hard work to propel DA forward.
In discussions with country committee leaders and other candidates for international office, it is clear that there is a lot of work ahead, but with the right team, I know that we can really make a mark in the 2018 and 2020 elections.
How will your skill sets and experience contribute to DA’s success?
I think you'll be hard pressed to find more than a handful of people that can code for the website, help with drafting global communications and fundraisers pages, host events online and in person, edit videos, create graphics and content, do outreach to voters, and garner the respect of their peers.
Almost one year ago, in one of my many speeches during our global meeting, I said that you may not know about me yet, but with a little time, I know that I can prove my dedication and drive, and I hope that I have come through on that promise.
I have had the support of some amazing leaders and members in Democrats Abroad and would not be where I am today without them. Democrats Abroad is truly a grassroots organization and I could not choose a better place to put my many skills to good use.
If elected what are the three top issues within DA you will work to affect and how?
Transparency, Membership Growth, and Advocacy.
I plan to continue to develop sound protocols to make more information accessible, increase transparency about decision making and how members can get involved, and make sure that members and leaders everywhere have the tools and support they need to succeed in growing membership, fostering volunteers, and developing leaders.
Democrats Abroad is the biggest advocate for voters living abroad, and by communicating in a clear, concise and targeted manner to Americans everywhere, we can truly increase our impact. We need to make tools available for our country and chapter leaders to reach out to press outlets all over the world about our organization and what we do. By utilizing social media in new and creative ways, we can increase our membership and voter base with even more accuracy.
We have a new opportunity to work closely with the DNC and the state parties to make sure our issues are heard, and to bring home more votes than ever before. We can accomplish this by having clear lines of communication between the organizations and making sure we have good working relationships; I know that a coordinated effort will turn the electoral map blue again.
What three planks/issues are you most passionate about to include in the DA 2020 Platform and and why?
Voting Rights, Campaign Finance Reform, and Americans Abroad Caucus/Special Senate Committee.
There is no doubt in my mind that we will need to fight for voting rights and election integrity in the upcoming elections, especially with the current administration and GOP’s history of limiting voting rights and making it harder for Americans to vote inside and outside the US. Strict voter ID laws have no place in our democratic republic, and the expired and overturned parts of the Voter Rights Act need to be restored. Every American deserves to have a voice in their representation.
True Campaign Finance Reform goes hand in hand with Voting Rights; we need to make this one of the Democratic Party’s core issues. We can learn so much from some of our host countries when it comes to how elections can be run in a more transparent and fair manner.
The Americans Abroad Caucus and Special Committee on Overseas Americans are imperative to making sure that we as Americans living outside of our country have representation in our government. This is one of the key things needed to further our efforts on fixing the problems with citizenship transmission, Medicare, healthcare, social security, and taxes.
What can Democrats Abroad do to increase its profile among voters globally and better work to elect Democrats?
By helping our local leaders develop relationships with press and utilize more online tools and social media outlets, we have an opportunity to increase our profile globally. Our website and grassroots organization are our strongest assets, and the right team of people can make sure that more Americans abroad know about who we are, what work that we do, and how they can get involved.
Now more than ever, we need to concentrate on helping new CCs form and support existing groups. Voter turnout abroad can be so much higher and we have the potential to swing elections all over the US.
We have the tools and an amazing amount of talented volunteers; it just takes unity, continued leadership, and organization to keep the momentum going. Our amazing DNC members, leaders, and volunteers have brought DA to a new level, and I know we can take it further.
How can DA work best with the Democratic and the Democratic National Committee to represent the issues of Americans living abroad? What can can be enhanced or improved in this relationship?
The other day I was lucky enough to take part in one of our many Global Town Halls and pose member questions. DNC Deputy Chair Keith Ellison was gracious enough to join us for a great conversation about the future of our party. This is just the beginning of our new and improved relationship with the Democratic Party and the DNC.
Democrats and Democrats Abroad are at a turning point, and the unification of our party is paramount to our success in upcoming elections. As the #resistance to the current administration and GOP, we have the responsibility to represent Americans across the political spectrum.
Our party is the inclusive party, there is a place for everyone’s voices to be heard and I am so glad to see so many new people running for leadership, getting active and fighting for democratic values.
What will you do to grow DA and ensure greater overall participation by Chapter Members?
Just about a year ago, I walked into my first global meeting and felt something that is hard to describe. It’s a mixture of respect, tolerance, and genuine interest in what each person has to say.
Members need to know that DA has a place for them, and that volunteers and future leaders will continue to be fostered and supported. I want to continue to show that DA is the most open, transparent, and progressive of the state parties.
I am a perfect example of how open and accessible our state party can be. The fact that I can get involved and two years later can run for this kind of office to represent over 9 million people is indicative of our democratic values. You don’t have to be rich, or know the right people, you just need to work hard, and do as much good as possible.
Endorsement from Julia Bryan
Dear Democrats Abroad Colleagues
I endorse Jeffrey Cheng for the role of International Secretary for Democrats Abroad. I have known Jeffrey since last May’s DPCA Global meeting in Berlin. I was impressed with his energy and enthusiasm at the time. I then worked with him closely during the DNC meeting in Philadelphia, which he attended as a page, and appreciated his organizational skills and ability to overcome the many administration hurdles we faced.
I have worked with him ever since, both on the Comms and IT team and on several projects across DA, most notably the Voter Help Desk. Answering the quantity of voter questions that we handled last year requires patience, an excellent grasp of the details and the ability to flip through the internet for the information you’re looking for faster than you can type google. Of the 30,000 questions that our team answered, Jeffrey responded to almost a tenth of them.
We’ve worked on other projects together too and throughout them all, Jeffrey’s attention to detail, ability to learn new things quickly, people skills and dedication to DA have made clear to me that he would make an ideal International Secretary.
I urge you to vote for Jeffrey Cheng for International Secretary.
Julia Bryan
International Secretary
DA Czech Republic
Endorsement from DeeDee Gierow
The first time I met Jeffrey Cheng was when he attended our AGM in Stockholm in April of 2016. I immediately recognized something special about him when he told me that he was interested in running for Delegate to the Democratic National Convention! One month later we traveled together to the DPCA Global meeting and convention in Berlin.
Thinking he didn’t have a chance because of his lack of time and experience within DA I watched in amazement as he survived round after round of voting until finally losing against one of DA’s most active and experienced members. In the end, as we all know, he was invited to attend the convention as a Page.
When our DA secretary resigned shortly after the convention Jeffrey stepped quickly into her shoes Since that time, Jeffrey has been my right hand man proving to be one of the most efficient, and reliable persons I have ever worked with and shown me that, in contradiction to what I have always believed, things can indeed be done “yesterday”.
I highly recommend Jeffrey Cheng for the position of DPCA secretary. He not only brings a multitude of skills to the table but an energy that is unparalleled. He is an invaluable asset to this organization.
Best Regards,
Deedee Gierow,
Previous chair of Democrats Abroad Sweden
Endorsement for Ada Shen
It's my pleasure to recommend Jeffrey Cheng, member of DA Sweden, for the position of International Secretary.
I met Jeffrey a year ago at the Global Meeting in Berlin, during which time in his running for DNC delegate he impressed me with his character, and he expressed a heart-felt commitment to help represent but also build DA beyond the convention.
In the time since, Jeffrey has followed through on that promise, not only joining and supporting the DA delegation to the DNC convention, but also in contributing countless volunteer hours to helping to work the levers of many of the more technical aspects of the Voter Help Desk, and running the Global Town Halls, and working with Communications and IT. He is also a visible and active LGBT member of the DA Youth Caucus — key constituencies this Excom has made strides in improving our outreach to, but more must be done. am sure he has done more as well, sight unseen -- as these are simply my own observations from where I sit in Beijing.
It requires devotion, diligence, and patience, and familiarity with the supporting dynamics of a successful Leadership team, all of which are qualities Jeffrey Cheng has. A role on the Excom also requires great heart, and both the passion and a modicum of dispassion (sober objectivity) to contribute to our still-growing party organization, one full of possibilities. Key to that will be continuing to follow through and build on the work of the previous International Secretaries and Leadership teams that we have had in recent years, and I believe Jeffrey Cheng will do this.
I'm proud to count him as a fellow Democrat Abroad, and I believe Jeffrey Cheng will make a fine International Secretary, and DPCA Executive Committee member.
Best regards, Ada Shen DA Member in Beijing, China