Latest news with #RulesandBylawsCommittee
Epoch Times
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Epoch Times
DNC Sets June Vote on Possible Invalidation of Election of Vice Chairs
The Democratic National Committee will vote in June to decide if it will invalidate the vice-chair elections of activist David Hogg and Pennsylvania State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta on Feb. 1. The upcoming vote is the result of a May 22 meeting of the DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee, which voted 25–0 to move forward with a procedural challenge to those elections. Hogg had drawn controversy by announcing in April that he would back primary challenges against incumbent Democrats whose leadership he felt was 'ineffective.' Hogg, during his short tenure as vice-chair, was to hold primaries against 'asleep at the wheel' members of his party through his Leaders We Deserve PAC. DNC chair Ken Martin came out against Hogg's plan, saying that a DNC officer should remain neutral in elections. 'Let me be unequivocal: No DNC officer should ever attempt to influence the outcome of a primary election, whether on behalf of an incumbent or a challenger,' Martin said during an appearance on Fox News. Related Stories 5/13/2025 4/24/2025 On May 10, Martin The Feb. 28 challenge came less than a month after Hogg's election. Members of the DNC will vote electronically on June 9–11 to invalidate or keep the election results. If they vote to invalidate, they will hold do-over elections with the same five candidates. The first election, which must appoint a man according to DNC rules, will be held June 12–15. The second, which may be any gender, will be held on June 15–17. Hogg and Kenyatta were chosen as vice chairs of the party on Feb. 1 during its turbulent , which was frequently interrupted by protests. But that election was contested because it violated the DNC's complex statutes requiring gender parity in elections. There were two empty vice-chair slots, and statutes required that the first slot be filled by a man; the second could be any gender. Instead of holding two separate elections, the DNC placed all five candidates on one ballot, put both slots on that ballot, and combined the results. Kenyatta received 289 votes, Hogg received 214. Democratic Party's Oklahoma representative and attorney Kalyn Free, who was also on the ballot, said that structure made it 'mathematically impossible' for a woman to win. 'I brought this challenge for every man, woman, nonbinary, person, and person of color that comes after me and wants to serve as an officer of our party,' Free the committee before the May 22 vote. The push to overturn the elections has led to allegations—by Hogg and others—that the DNC is taking advantage of Free's challenge to remove him as vice chair by a simple majority vote, instead of the two-thirds normally required. On May 12, Kenyatta on X that Free's challenge was brought 'well before' Hogg's announcement that he would primary members of his party. Hogg acknowledged that this was true, but said that 'the consensus' among members he spoke to was that the challenge was unlikely to go forward. That changed when he made his controversial policy decisions, he said in an interview on MSNBC. At the May 22 committee hearing, he asked the members to reconsider. 'I want to say that if we proceed with voiding and redoing this election, we risk sending a message that undermines the very confidence that we work so hard to build, not just within our own party, but within the public,' Hogg said ahead of that vote. 'To the public, the signal that we send them matters, and in this case, it would be that Democrats can't run an election.'
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DNC members to vote next month on potential vice chair election redo
Democratic National Committee (DNC) members will determine in June whether a contested election over two DNC vice chair positions should be held again. Members of the DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee met Thursday night, determining that the party will hold an electronic vote June 9-11 over whether the election for DNC vice chair positions won by Pennsylvania state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta and activist David Hogg should be held again after one of the candidates who lost the election challenged the way the race was conducted. If a majority of the members vote to hold a new election, the DNC has said an electronic vote will take place June 12-14 for the first vice chair, which must be filled by a man. A second electronic vote for the second vice chair, which can be filled by any gender, would take place June 15-17. Oklahoma DNC member Kalyn Free, who unsuccessfully ran for DNC vice chair, issued a challenge over the DNC vice chair election results in February, alleging in a letter that the committee's 'decision to ignore the Charter, Bylaws and upend the stated Election Rules in conducting the election for the second and third Vice Chair positions gave the two male candidates an unfair and insurmountable advantage over the women candidates.' 'By placing all five candidates — Mr. Kenyatta, Mr. Hogg, Ms. [Shasti] Conrad, Ms. Free, and Ms. [Jeanna] Repass — on the same ballot and aggregating votes across two rounds, the process unfairly disadvantaged the women candidate,' she added in her letter to several DNC officials. Both Hogg and Kenyatta expressed during the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting on Thursday that they both disagreed with the idea of trying to hold another election for their posts. 'If we proceed with voiding and redoing this election, we risk sending a message that undermines … the confidence' that the party worked hard to build, Hogg told members, adding later that the 'signal that we send them matters, and in this case, it would be that Democrats can't run an election.' Kenyatta during the meeting said, 'It is no big secret that I fundamentally believe we held a fair election at National Harbor, an election that produced an officer corps that looks like America and that, in a historic fashion, elevated for the first time ever, two people to our committee under the age of 35.' The Pennsylvania state lawmaker added that if members did proceed to move forward with a new election for their roles, he said he hoped that there would be at least a virtual forum to assess the candidates. The move to potentially order a redo of the elections comes as Hogg has separately drawn the ire of some Democrats for investing resources in primarying ineffective members of the party. DNC Chair Ken Martin has said DNC officeholders should not be involved in primarying efforts within the party. 'While certainly I understand what he's trying to do, as I've said to him — if you want to challenge incumbents, you're free to do that, just not as an officer of the DNC,' Martin said. The vote to potentially redo the vice chair election is not related to Hogg's primary efforts, though the developments coupled together have underscored a rocky start to his term as DNC vice chair. The moves are also putting intraparty tensions on display at a time when the party is looking to reset from a disappointing November election. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
DNC members to vote next month on potential vice chair election redo
Democratic National Committee (DNC) members will determine in June whether a contested election over two DNC vice chair positions should be held again. Members of the DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee met on Thursday night, determining that the party will hold an electronic vote from June 9-11 over whether the election for DNC vice chair positions won by Pennsylvania state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta and David Hogg should be held again after one of the candidates who lost the election challenged the way the race was conducted. If a majority of the members vote to hold a new election, the DNC has said an electronic vote will take place for the first vice chair, which must be filled by a male, from June 12-14. A second electronic vote for the second vice chair, which can be filled by any gender, would take place between June 15-17. Oklahoma DNC member Kalyn Free, who unsuccessfully ran for DNC vice chair, issued a challenge over the DNC vice chair election results in February, alleging in a letter that the committee's 'decision to ignore the Charter, Bylaws and upend the stated Election Rules in conducting the election for the second and third Vice Chair positions gave the two male candidates an unfair and insurmountable advantage over the women candidates.' 'By placing all five candidates — Mr. Kenyatta, Mr. Hogg, Ms. Conrad, Ms. Free, and Ms. Repass —on the same ballot and aggregating votes across two rounds, the process unfairly disadvantaged the women candidate,' she added in her letter to several DNC officials. Both Hogg and Kenyatta expressed during the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting on Thursday that they both disagreed with the idea of trying to hold another election for their posts. 'If we proceed with voiding and redoing this election, we risk sending a message that undermines … the confidence' that the party worked hard to build, Hogg told members, adding later that the 'signal that we send them matters, and in this case, it would be that Democrats can't run an election.' Kenyatta, during the meeting, said 'it is no big secret that I fundamentally believe we held a fair election at National Harbor, an election that produced an officer corps that looks like America and that, in a historic fashion, elevated for the first time ever, two people to our committee under the age of 35.' The Pennsylvania state lawmaker added that if members did proceed to move forward with a new election for their roles, he said he hoped that there would be at least on virtual forum to assess the candidates. The move to potentially order a redo of the elections comes as Hogg has separately drawn the ire of some Democrats for investing resources in primarying ineffective members of the party. DNC Chair Ken Martin has said that DNC officeholders should not be involved in primarying efforts within the party. 'While certainly I understand what he's trying to do, as I've said to him — if you want to challenge incumbents, you're free to do that, just not as an officer of the DNC,' Martin said. The vote to potentially redo the vice chair election is not related to Hogg's primary efforts, though the developments coupled together have underscored a rocky start to his term as DNC vice chair. The moves are also putting intraparty tensions on display at a time when the party is looking to reset from a disappointing November election.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
DNC sets June vote over redoing election on David Hogg's vice chair role
The Democratic National Committee took another step Thursday toward removing a pair of vice chairs — including David Hogg, who ignited controversy in the party with his pledge to challenge 'asleep at the wheel' Democrats. DNC members will now vote via electronic ballot from June 9 to June 11 on whether to hold a redo of the election for the two vice chair positions, after a DNC panel granted a procedural complaint about the original contest that was unrelated to the broader firestorm surrounding Hogg. If a majority of DNC members approve it, both Hogg and Pennsylvania state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta would lose their vice chair positions and kick off a new election for the roles. DNC members would vote for the new male vice chair from June 12 to June 14 and then vote for a second vice chair of any gender from June 15 to June 17. During the DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting on Thursday, which set the election timeline, Hogg objected to re-doing the election, telling members it 'sends a horrible message to the public about our inability to run elections.' 'If we're to redo this election, it truly just sends a horrible message that we really do not want out there at this moment,' Hogg continued. 'That's why I believe that it should not go forward.' An election that could ultimately oust Hogg comes as the party feuds with the gun-safety activist. Last month, Hogg announced Leaders We Deserve, the group he co-founded, planned to target 'ineffective' Democratic incumbents with $20 million in spending. In response, DNC Chair Ken Martin proposed a change to the party's bylaws to mandate that DNC officers remain neutral in all primaries. The DNC is expected to vote on the measure at its August meeting. But the squabble over the initial election could force Hogg out sooner. A complaint filed in February alleged that the DNC bungled its own rules over gender equity of its officers when Hogg and Kenyatta were elected. Hogg has argued it's 'impossible to ignore the broader context of my work to reform the party which loomed large over this vote,' adding that the DNC has 'pledged to remove me, and this vote has provided an avenue to fast-track that effort.' Kenyatta, for his part, has called for a virtual candidate forum should the election move forward. In a thread posted to X, Kenyatta has also complained about how the media has covered the dust-up by focusing on Hogg as the 'main character.' 'This story is complex and I'm frustrated — but it's not about @davidhogg111. Even though he clearly wants it to be,' Keyatta posted.
Politico
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Politico
DNC sets June vote over redoing election on David Hogg's vice chair role
The Democratic National Committee took another step Thursday toward removing a pair of vice chairs — including David Hogg, who ignited controversy in the party with his pledge to challenge 'asleep at the wheel' Democrats. DNC members will now vote via electronic ballot from June 9 to June 11 on whether to hold a redo of the election for the two vice chair positions, after a DNC panel granted a procedural complaint about the original contest that was unrelated to the broader firestorm surrounding Hogg. If a majority of DNC members approve it, both Hogg and Pennsylvania state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta would lose their vice chair positions and kick off a new election for the roles. DNC members would vote for the new male vice chair from June 12 to June 14 and then vote for a second vice chair of any gender from June 15 to June 17. During the DNC's Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting on Thursday, which set the election timeline, Hogg objected to re-doing the election, telling members it 'sends a horrible message to the public about our inability to run elections.' 'If we're to redo this election, it truly just sends a horrible message that we really do not want out there at this moment,' Hogg continued. 'That's why I believe that it should not go forward.' An election that could ultimately oust Hogg comes as the party feuds with the gun-safety activist. Last month, Hogg announced Leaders We Deserve, the group he co-founded, planned to target 'ineffective' Democratic incumbents with $20 million in spending. In response, DNC Chair Ken Martin proposed a change to the party's bylaws to mandate that DNC officers remain neutral in all primaries. The DNC is expected to vote on the measure at its August meeting. But the squabble over the initial election could force Hogg out sooner. A complaint filed in February alleged that the DNC bungled its own rules over gender equity of its officers when Hogg and Kenyatta were elected. Hogg has argued it's 'impossible to ignore the broader context of my work to reform the party which loomed large over this vote,' adding that the DNC has 'pledged to remove me, and this vote has provided an avenue to fast-track that effort.' Kenyatta, for his part, has called for a virtual candidate forum should the election move forward. In a thread posted to X, Kenyatta has also complained about how the media has covered the dust-up by focusing on Hogg as the 'main character.' 'This story is complex and I'm frustrated — but it's not about @davidhogg111. Even though he clearly wants it to be,' Keyatta posted.
