The 2023 EMEA Nominations and Elections Committee (NEC) is pleased to announce candidates for the EMEA RVC election to be held at 9:00 AM US Eastern time on June 11, 2023, at the EMEA Regional Meeting during the Democrats Abroad Annual Global Meeting (June 9-11). Please be reminded that two votes are allocated to each DA country committee in EMEA and will each be cast by country committee chairs and vice chairs.

In random order, the candidates are:

• Montassar Adouni (Tunisia)
• Kiersten Byrd (Spain)
• Wende S. Elliott-Rose (United Kingdom)
• Jennifer Rakow-Stepper (Austria)
• Marshall Dix (Switzerland)
• Rhea Leman (Denmark) - Rhea has withdrawn her candidacy effective May 31, 2023.
• Duncan E. Lawrence (United Kingdom)
• Robert E. Jones (Netherlands)
• Benjamin Hunter (Spain)

If you would like to endorse one of these candidates, you may do so by completing this Google Form.

Note: Candidate profiles are available to read here. 

Important links:

• Call for Nominations Page (link repository)
• Candidate Forum Event (May 31, 2023 at 11 AM EDT)
• Election Event (June 11, 2023 at 9 AM EDT)

We are pleased to call for nominations of candidates for the position of 2023-2025 Regional Vice Chair (RVC) for Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA) region. The election for this position will take place online as part of the Democrats Abroad (DA) Annual Global Meeting - currently scheduled for June 11, 2023 at 9 AM EDT (Washington, D.C. time). Two votes are allocated to each DA country committee in EMEA and will be cast by country committee chairs and vice chairs.

Link repository:

• The list of 2023-2025 EMEA RVC candidates can be found on this page.
• 2023-2025 EMEA RVC Candidate Statements can be found on this page.
• If you would like to endorse one of the candidates, you may do so by completing this Google Form.
• You may RSVP for the Candidate Forum event here; it will take place on May 31, 2023 at 11 AM EDT.
• You may RSVP for the Election event here; it will take place on June 11, 2023 at 9 AM EDT.
   
• Responsibilities of RVCs
• Requirements to Serve as the EMEA RVC
• Submission of Nominations
• UPDATED: Important Dates to Know

Democrats Abroad has 3 RVCs, one for each of its 3 regions.

As defined in the Democrats Abroad Charter:

Section 6.3 (Duties of Regional Vice Chairs)
The Regional Vice Chairs shall, under the direction of the International Chair, promote cooperation among the Country Committees in the respective Regions and implement any Regional programs or plans adopted by the Regional Committees, provided such programs or plans have been approved by the International Chair in consultation with the Executive Committee.

Section 6.4 (Regional Meetings and Communication)
Members of Democrats Abroad residing in a Region may meet by appropriate means of communication to consider matters relating to that Region. The Regional Vice Chair shall preside over such Regional meetings. [...]

Each RVC has the following responsibilities:

• • Serve as one of eight members of the International Executive Committee of the Democrats Abroad (ExCom), with meetings held by conference call nearly every week (up to 2 hours). The schedule for these calls is rotated so that all 3 global regions can participate.
  • Serve a two-year term, but not more than two consecutive terms.
  • Organize and lead monthly regional calls (avg 1.5 hours) to encourage, inform, and create community amongst regional Country Committee leaders. These calls are generally held in the evening of the first Wednesday of each month.
  • Organize and lead in-person 2-3 day regional meeting, every year or two. RVC responsibilities for this event include, but are not limited to: creating an agenda; organizing leaders to fulfill it; working with the local country leaders who host the gathering to organize accommodation, conference space, entertainment, etc.; and leading the event. Please note that travel costs are the responsibility of the RVC.
  • Assist in organizing the yearly DA International Meeting.
  • Work with existing Country Committees (CCs) to mediate and resolve issues within their committees, including election issues, membership queries, etc.
  • Track compliance status of CCs with Charter requirements and work with emerging and out-of-compliance committees to help bring them into compliance.
  • Communicate ExCom decisions, policies, and DA best practices to regional CC leaders.
  • Bring regional issues to the International ExCom for discussion and resolution.
  • Help groups of DA members in countries without a CC to contribute to DA's mission, ranging from short-term GOTV efforts to long-term precincts for areas without a population or resources sufficient to sustain a CC.
  • Represent the views of DA members without CCs in the EMEA region at various levels of decision-making.
  • Recruit and manage volunteers -- typically called Deputy RVCs -- sufficient to fulfill all these duties and serve the needs of the region.
    
    

The requirements to serve as EMEA RVC are:

• Be a citizen of the United States.
• Be a member of Democrats Abroad for at least 6 months prior to the election, i.e., joined before December 11, 2022.
• Be a resident in the EMEA region.
• Adhere to the principles of the Democratic Party of the United States.

Additionally, experience serving on a country committee, global caucus committee, or other equivalent leadership experience within DA is encouraged but not required. We particularly encourage candidates from historically underrepresented backgrounds to stand for office.

Both self nominations and nominations of others are welcome. 

Submission of Nominations:

Please submit nominations via the nomination form at this link no later than Tuesday, April 25th at 11:59:59 PM (Central European Summer Time).  Each candidate will also be asked to complete a questionnaire and provide a candidate statement which will be posted on the DA website.

Nominations from the floor are also possible at the election meeting to be held on June 11th. All candidates will be given time to make a short speech.

Important Dates to Know:

• April 25th: Candidate Nominations Deadline
• May 8th: Posting of candidate list on the DA website
• May 15th: Posting of candidate profiles on the DA website
• May 31st: EMEA RVC Candidate Forum
• June 11th: EMEA RVC Election

Please direct any questions to [email protected].

On behalf of the 2023 EMEA RVC Nominations & Elections Committee (NEC),

Liz Voss (Switzerland) - Chair
Beverle Lax (Kenya) - Compliance
Courtney Jeanpierre (South Africa) - Candidate Liaison