Young Democrats of America

For the Dutch political party Young Democrats, see Jonge Democraten.

For the Belarusian youth organisation YCSU Young Democrats, see YCSU Young Democrats.

Young Democrats of America
President	David Hardt
Founded	1932
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.
International affiliation	International Federation of Liberal Youth (IFLRY)
Website	www.yda.org

The Young Democrats of America (YDA), founded in 1932, is the official youth arm of the Democratic Party of the United States, although it severed official ties with the Democratic National Committee following passage of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002 and became an independent 527 group. The group's membership consists of those Democrats under the age of 36 (although two chapters allow members under the age of 40), and its political activities tend to concentrate on increasing the voter turnout of young Democrats and affecting the issues impacting that demographic group. It tends to be somewhat more focused on political activism than the party at large.

2007-2009 YDA Leadership

YDA membership elects nine national officers biannually at the organization's National Conventions. These officers, as well as six "stakeholders" who are leaders in other related organizations form the national board, which deals with day-to-day management of the organization. The officers were elected at the 2007 YDA National Convention in Dallas, Texas.

Along with the national officers, YDA's national executive committee includes chairs of the nine constituency caucuses, eight regional directors, and a variety of appointed officers.

The President, Democratic National Committeeman, and Democratic National Committeewoman are automatic members of the Democratic National Committee, and superdelegates to any Democratic National Convention occurring during their terms.

National Elected Officers

• President: David Hardt of Texas
• Executive Vice President: Chris Anderson of Tennessee
• Democratic National Committeeman: Francisco Domenech of Puerto Rico
• Democratic National Committeewoman: Crystal Strait of California
• Vice President: Josh Blevins of Arkansas
• Vice President: Ashanti Fayshel Gholar of Nevada
• Vice President: Omar Khan of Florida
• Secretary: Stephanie Hausner of New York
• Treasurer: Amy Lewis of Virginia

Caucus Chairs

• LGBT Caucus Chair: Rachel Kau-Taylor of California
• Women's Caucus Chair: Atima Omara-Alwala of Virginia
• Minority Caucus Chair: Erica Contreras of Texas
• Disability Issues Caucus Chair: Ben Spangenberg of Virginia
• Labor Caucus Chair: Isaac Robinson of Michigan
• Jewish Caucus Chair: Josh Pasek of Pennsylvania
• High School Caucus Chair: Alicia Froio of Pennsylvania
• College Caucus Chair: Thione Niang of Ohio
• Rural Caucus Chair: Amanda Nelson of Washington
• Veterans and Military Affairs Caucus Chair: MegHan Smith of Texas

Regional Directors

• Northeast (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont): Mark Bracken of Massachusetts
• Mid-Atlantic (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, Young Democrats Abroad): Atima Omara-Alwala of Virginia
• Southeast (Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virgin Islands): Jason Cecil of Georgia
• Great Lakes (Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio): Kristopher J. Anderson of Illinois (needs confirmation or update)
• Midwest (Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin): Jamie Epstein of Kansas
• Southcentral (Arkansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas): Rebecca Burgin of Oklahoma
• Southwest (Ning, Facebook group) (Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, Wyoming): Tony Cani of Arizona
• Pacific (web, Facebook page) (Alaska, America Samoa, California, Guam, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington): Kelly Drake of Washington

Other Elected Leaders

• State Presidents Association: Omarr Williams of Illinois

Committee Appointments

• Resolutions Committee: Jessica Utovich of Ohio
• Chapter-Building Committee: Jamie Oliver of Arkansas
• Campaign Committee: Rocky Fernandez of California
• Budget Committee: Mark Bracken of Massachusetts
• Credentials Committee: Lindsay Barrett of Tennessee
• Finance Committee: Mark Newman of North Carolina
• Communications & Outreach Committee: Tara Martin of New York
• Site Selection Committee: Shaunica Pridgen of Indiana
• Rules & Charter Committee: Kirk Miller of Georgia
• Affirmative Action & Outreach Committee: Tashea Brodgins of Maryland
• Judicial Council: Adam Weiss of Washington, D.C.
• Community Service Committee: Jonathan Padilla of California
• International Affairs Committee: Juan Ayala of Texas

Other Appointments

• Chief of Staff: Rachel Morse of Oklahoma
• Administrative Director: Billy Joyner of Georgia
• Organizing Director: Joe Henriquez McNearney of New York
• Parliamentarian: Daniel Davis of Virginia

Staff

National

• Executive Director: Gary Moody
• Director of Operations: Stephen Zigmund
• Chapter Manager: Hailey Snow

State

• California Young Democrats Executive Director: Claire Conlon
• Young Democrats of Georgia Executive Director: Tim Cairl
• Young Democrats of Utah Executive Director: Justin Daniels
• Virginia Young Democrats Executive Director: Christie Bieber

See also

• College Democrats
• Young Democrats of America High School Caucus
• Young Republican National Federation

External links

• Young Democrats of America - national website
• YDA Facebook Page
• YDA Twitter account
• YDA YouTube channel
• YDA MySpace page
• whYDA.org - Why I'm Voting Democrat - A YDA Project