IDCCA President’s Message – July 2020

Dear Fellow County Chairs and Friends,

I hope this message finds you and yours well.

Like you, I am proud of our efforts to elect Governor JB Pritzker and other Democrats in 2018. By providing strong leadership and basing decisions on science with the advice of qualified health experts, we have weathered this pandemic better than most other states. We must resist the push from the GOP to politicize the health crisis. We must continue to be vigilant, follow the science-based guidelines, wear face masks, wash hands, and keep up our social distancing. Up-to-date information about the virus in Illinois can be found by clicking here.

The virus has radically changed how we campaign and the IDCCA is helping candidates across the state pivot to this new reality. We remain committed to helping Democrats win in November. Illinois families are relying on us for their health, their safety and bringing back our economy.

In May, I talked about Active Democrats. With less than four months until Election Day, Active Democrats have an important job. We must continue to elect Democrats up and down the ballot. We also must pass the Fair Tax. We can do this by turning out Democratic voters, both those who identify as Democrats as well as others who share our values and priorities.

The Illinois Democratic County Chairs’ Association (IDCCA) is actively engaged in this effort through programs like the REV Project and our Virtual Training Series. Join us in Phase 2 of the REV Project and participate in a session of the Virtual Training Series.

I took on the role as President of the IDCCA because I believe November 2020 is the most important election in my lifetime. The only way we can end this national nightmare is if we show up and vote – it is our patriotic duty.

Here in Illinois, because of Democratic leadership, we have four easy ways to vote in the November General Election: Early Vote (September 24), Early Satellite Vote (October 19), Election Day Vote (November 3) and Vote By Mail (Now!).

Many voters will want to Vote By Mail (VBM) because it’s easy and because there is no safer way to vote during Covid-19. You can apply for a VBM application right now by clicking here. In addition, in early August Secretary of State Jesse White will mail out VBM applications to those who voted in the last three elections.

Every day brings another outrageous and un-American action coming from Trump, his Administration, and his supporters. Selling Puerto Rico, attacking the patriotism of disabled veteran Senator Tammy Duckworth, pandering to Putin even after Russia put bounties on the lives of our soldiers, and upending the American legal system by pardoning his convicted friends and cronies.

Reasonable voters may think these daily atrocities mean he and his pals could not possibly get re-elected. But isn’t that how you felt in 2016? We were confident that we would see Hillary Clinton become President. The GOP and Trump are not letting up. They are leaning into their base.

We cannot let up in our efforts to Get Out The Democratic Vote. We have a few short months to get it done. I hope you can help. Commit your time and your money to getting it done.

Finally, I want to give a shout out to everyone who participated in our wildly successful IDCCA Trivia Nite. IDCCA Leadership Circle Members Senate President Don Harmon, Representative Mike Zalewski, and Commissioner Michael Cabonargi brought huge value to the success of the program, and Ron Holmes did a fantastic job hosting. Thank you to our sponsors and to those who started the annual Young Democrats events in Springfield (Craig Colbrook & Dan Lewis) and Chicago (Greg Bales & Zach Koutsky) who made this such a success. Congratulations to the winning team, Four Better Years.

Finally, we’re announcing the details for this year’s IDCCA Brunch. Mark your calendar for Monday, August 31st at 6pm. We’ve got a great plan – a zoom event you won’t want to miss. Stay tuned for more information.

Stay safe. Thank you for all you do.