MCDCC Bylaws

MADERA COUNTY DEMOCRATIC CENTRAL COMMITTEE BY-LAWS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ARTICLE I        NAME, PURPOSE

ARTICLE II      MEMBERSHIP, ELECTION, EX-OFFICIO MEMBERS, ALTERNATE MEMBERS,                                                                                    ELIGIBILITY FOR MEMBERSHIP, VACANCIES

ARTICLE III     OFFICERS AND DUTIES

ARTICLE IV     EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

ARTICLE V       MEETINGS

ARTICLE VI     STANDING COMMITTEES

ARTICLE VII    GENERAL BUSINESS, RULES, AND DUES

ARTICLE VIII  CHARTERING OF CLUBS

ARTICLE I

NAME

The name of this committee is the Madera County Democratic Central Committee (MCDCC).

PURPOSE

The purposes of the Madera County Democratic Central Committee are as follows:

  1. To increase awareness of ideals, goals, platform and purposes of the Democratic Party in Madera County.
  2. To increase voter registration in Madera County.
  3. To raise funds to further the purposes of the Democratic Party in Madera County.
  4. To endorse and support Democratic candidates in elections.
  5. To conduct campaigns for the Democratic Party and its candidates within Madera County.
  6. To recommend to the State Democratic Central Committee endorsements of statewide and national candidates and issues.

The committee shall perform such other duties and services for this political party as seem to be for the benefit of the party. They shall continue to function and exist until the election at the next succeeding direct primary and qualifications of the members of the new committees.

ARTICLE II

MEMBERSHIP

Pursuant to the current California Elections Code this Committee is composed of no more than 23 elected or appointed Members.

ELECTION

The Madera County Democratic Central Committee shall be elected in accordance to the Rules of this Committee and the current California Election Code. This Committee may provide for the election of all or a portion of the Central Committee Members to represent individual County Supervisorial districts, by appointment. The Member shall reside in the district he or she represents. This Committee shall reorganize itself every four years.

EX OFFICIO MEMBERS

The endorsed incumbent or the nominee of the Democratic Party for the State Senate, the State Assembly and the U.S. House of Representatives or any endorsed nominee or person elected at a special election to fill a vacancy shall be an Ex-Officio Member of this Committee. Ex Officio members shall be entitled to the right to vote or may respectfully abstain. Ex Officio Member shall not be entitled to hold any elected office of this Committee or to use a ballot designation of incumbent on seeking election to this Committee.

The Democratic incumbent or nominee of each of the following offices shall be an Ex-Officio Member of this Committee if they reside and are a registered Democratic Party voter in Madera County:

a. Governor
b. Lieutenant Governor
c. Secretary of State
d. Controller
e. Treasurer
f.  Attorney General
g. Insurance Commissioner
h. Superintendent of Public Instruction
i.  Member of the State Board of Equalization
j.  United States Senator from California
k. CDP Member elected to the Democratic National Committee
l.  Officer of the California Democratic Party

His or her rights and privileges shall be the same and those prescribed for other Ex Officio members in the current California Elections Code.

ALTERNATE MEMBERS

This committee authorizes any member, whether elected, appointed or Ex Officio, to appoint an alternate if a member desires to appoint an alternate. Such alternate shall have the right to vote only with the written authorization of the member who appointed him or her. An alternate member of a county central committee shall be subject to the rules and regulations of this Committee.

An Alternate Member must meet the same qualifications as the regular Member and may vote only in the absence of the Member who appointed him or her.

ELIGIBILITY FOR MEMBERSHIP

A person shall not be eligible for appointment to this Committee who was not a registered voter affiliated with the Democratic Party at the time of this committee’s regular election and in accordance with the qualifications in the current California Election Code. A person shall be eligible for election or appointment to this Committee if he or she is 18 years old and is a registered voter affiliated with the Democratic Party.

This Committee may remove any member, who during his or her term of membership affiliates with, or registers as a member of another political party or registers as a decline to state voter, who publicly advocates that the voters not vote for the party’s endorsed candidate for any partisan or non-partisan office, or who gives support or advocates a preference for a candidate of another party or candidate who is opposed to the endorsed candidate of this party.

The removal of residence by an elected or appointed member of this committee from the County or supervisorial district from which they were elected or appointed shall constitute his or her automatic resignation from the committee.

Each member of this Committee, whether elected or appointed to fill a vacancy, before he or she enters upon the duties of his or her membership, shall take and subscribe the oath or affirmation set forth in the Constitution of the State of California. The oath or affirmation requirement may be taken before any person or the committee officer authorized to administer oaths.

VACANCIES

In the event that the candidates elected to this committee from a district do not equal the number of committee persons to which the district is entitled to be represented, a vacancy or vacancies occur. When said vacancies occur they shall be filled by appointment by the committee.

Any member of this Committee, other than an Ex Officio member, who misses more than three consecutive regularly scheduled meetings may be removed by a vote of the committee, unless his or her absence is caused by illness or temporary absence from the county on the date of the meeting.

Whenever any person is appointed to fill a vacancy on this Committee, the Chair of this Committee shall file notices of the appointment with the Madera County Clerk/Recorder Elections Division and the Chair of the State Democratic Central Committee within 30 days after it is made. The notices shall contain the name and address of the person appointed and the name of the person replaced, and shall indicate the date of the appointment.

ARTICLE III

OFFICERS AND OFFICER DUTIES

This Committee shall elect its own officers from among its elected Membership. To be an officer, a member must be in good standing. There shall be four officers: the Chair, the Vice-Chair, the Treasurer, and the Secretary.

  1. The Chair shall act as the Chief Executive Officer of the Committee. The Chair shall generally supervise and control this Committee and its affairs. The Chair shall be responsible for seeing that this Committee carries out its purposes and accomplishes its goals. The Chair may be responsible for sending or receiving all committee correspondence. The Chair shall preside over meetings of this Committee. The Chair shall appoint Chairs for any Standing or Ad Hoc Committees.
  2. The Vice-Chair shall serve as Chair in the absence of the Chair.
  3. The Treasurer shall be responsible for collecting Membership dues. The Treasurer shall work with the Chair on establishing a budget for this Committee’s approval. The Treasurer shall pay out monies at the direction of this Committee. The Treasurer shall prepare and deliver financial reports at each Committee meeting. Any two Committee Members appointed by the Chair shall informally inspect records annually.
  4. The Secretary shall keep minutes of all Committee and Executive Committee meetings and report those minutes at the next regular meeting of each Committee, respectively. The Secretary shall maintain a file of this Committee’s minutes that shall remain open to all Committee Members.

ARTICLE IV

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

  1. The Executive Committee shall consist of four Committee Officers and any Standing Committee Chairs.
  2. The Executive Committee shall prepare recommendations for final approval and action by this Committee.

ARTICLE V

MEETINGS

  1. This Committee shall hold its regular meeting on the third Thursday of each month. The Executive Committee shall meet as necessary on the call of the Chair.
  2. A quorum shall exist when a simple majority of this Committee’s Members are present.
  3. Special meetings may be called by the Chair upon the concurrence of a majority of the four officers and of at least forty-eight hours notice. Business shall be confined to the business announced in the call for the special meeting. If the Chair of this Committee refuses to call a meeting, a meeting may be called upon five days’ notice by a majority of the Membership of this Committee.

ARTICLE VI

STANDING COMMITTEES

The Chair shall establish Standing Committees as the need arises.

ARTICLE VII

GENERAL BUSINESS

This Committee shall have charge of the party campaign under general direction of the California Democratic State Central Committee or of the California DSCC Executive Committee.

RULES

  1. This Committee may make rules and regulations providing: a. How officers of the committee may be removed. b. How meetings may be called, and any provision so made shall supersede anything in this chapter to the contrary. c. Whether or not proxies may be used and the conditions under which they may be used.
  2. Alternate members shall have all rights afforded regular members with the exception of the right to vote as described in the current California Elections Code.
  3. Vacancies in the membership of the committee shall be filled by appointment. Nominations to fill vacancies shall be made at a regular meeting. Persons nominated shall be voted on at the regular meeting.
  4. Proxies shall not be accepted in the absence of the regular member.
  5. Regular members may file a written statement with the secretary enabling a member’s alternate to vote in the absence of the regular member.
  6. Alternate members shall not automatically advance to membership on the committee when a vacancy is created. Vacancies shall be filled as described in Article II of these bylaws.
  7. Rules contained in Robert’s Rules of Order. Newly Revised,shall govern this committee in all cases in which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with the laws of the State of California and these bylaws.
  8. Amendments to these bylaws must be submitted in writing at any regular meeting and must receive two-thirds of the votes of regular members present at the next regular meeting

Any such rule adopted prior to statutory authorization by any Committee by majority vote of the members elected to this Committee is hereby validated and made of the same effect as if subsequently adopted.

DUES

This Committee may establish annual dues for elected and alternate members. This Committee may remove members for nonpayment of dues.

ARTICLE VIII

CHARTERING OF CLUBS

  1. This County Central Committee may charter clubs, associations or councils of persons to assist it in conducting party activities.
  2. A club or council’s constitution and by-laws shall conform to the requirements established therefore by the California Democratic State Central Committee.
  3. No club, association or council within Madera County shall solicit funds for any purpose whatsoever upon the representation, either express or implied, that such funds are being solicited for the use of the Democratic Party unless it first obtains a charter from the Madera County Democratic Central Committee.
  4. Clubs shall consist of registered Democrats only, excepting as to members being below the voting age, and providing that the organizations and their members subscribe to the platform and principles of the California Democratic Party.
  5. Chartering fee is $1.00.
  6. This Committee will act on a charter application at the following monthly meeting, allowing for thirty days review on the application, at which meeting a representative of the proposed club shall be present.
  7. The application for original charter shall contain:
    a. The name of the organization. b. The geographical area or political districts from which the organization intends to draw its members. c. A statement that the organization has adopted as a part of its constitution the provisions required by the Madera County Democratic Central Committee. d. A statement that each of its members is a registered Democrat or a person under 18 years of age, devoted to the principles of the California Democratic Party and ineligible as yet to register because of age.  e. The names and addresses of the organization members and officers. A minimum of twenty members is necessary for chartering.  f. A copy of the constitution and by-laws of the club, council, or other organization seeking charter.
  8. Clubs, Associations or Councils of persons shall be chartered until revoked.

Amended 7-20-2017

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California Elections Code

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NOTE: County Democratic Central Committees do not receive any public funding nor do the Members receive publicly funded salaries. All Members and Officers of this committee are grassroots volunteers, they attend meetings, events and activities of this committee, the Democratic National Committee or the Democratic State Central Committee at their own expense. This committee has no employees. Campaign and operational expenses for this committee are paid for by individual contributions from our supporters and membership dues. This committee receives no monetary contributions or monetary funding from the Democratic National Committee, any Democratic State Central Committee, any other County Central Committee or any Candidate’s committee.