Bylaws

We, the duly qualified Democratic Central Committee of Santa Cruz County, State of Arizona, in order to establish and promote the development of an active, permanent organization and to ensure continuity in the policies and procedures of the Democratic Party do hereby adopt the following bylaws.

SECTION I. PRECINCT COMMITEEPERSON(S)

Unless otherwise proved by law, membership in the Santa Cruz County Democratic Central Committee shall consist of ​precinct ​committeepersons that have been elected in the bi-annual elections together with precinct committeepersons who have subsequently been appointed to fill vacancies.

SECTION II. EXECUTIVE BOARD

A. Membership.​ Unless otherwise specified by law, the membership of the Executive Board shall consist of the elected officers and appointed members as provided hereafter.

​1. Elected officers.​ The following officers shall be elected as provided by law at the biennial organizing meeting of the Santa Cruz Democratic Central Committee: Chairperson, First Vice-Chairperson, Second Vice-​chairperson, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, Treasurer, and Sergeant-at-Arms.

2. Ex-officio members. The immediate past County Chairperson, the State Chairperson and the State Vice-Chairpersons of the Arizona Democratic Party shall be ex-officio members of the Executive Committee.

3. Appointees. Three members-at-large of the Executive Committee may be appointed by the County Chairperson. These members must be Santa Cruz County precinct committeepersons.

4. Elected officials. The following Democratic elected officials are eligible for membership on the County Executive Board and may be chosen by the Democrats in the group they represent:

a) One Democratic member of the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors

b) One Democratic representative of other elected county officials

c) One Democratic elected official of the City of Nogales

d) One Democratic member of the State legislature from Santa Cruz County, if any

5. Organizational representative(s). The Santa Cruz County Democratic Central Committee may certify a Democratic club or organization. Any ​organization or club so certified may select a representative and an alternate, who are Santa Cruz County precinct committeepersons, to serve on the Executive Board. Either the representative or the alternate may cast the organization’s one vote. Certification shall require that the club or organization have a minimum of 25 voting members, and in any contested election, shall not endorse or support one Democrat over another or any candidate who is not running as a Democrat.

B. Vacancy in elected office

If a vacancy should occur in the office of Chairperson, the First Vice-Chairperson shall become acting Chairperson until the next regular or special meeting of the committee, at which time a new Chairperson shall be elected. If a vacancy occurs in any office other than Chairperson, the office shall be filled by election at the next regular or special meeting of the committee. The Chairperson may at his or her discretion appoint an acting officer to serve until such time as an election can be held.

C. Removal for cause from the Executive Board

Any elected officer of the Santa Cruz County Democratic Committee may be subject to removal from office for any of the following reasons: (a) public support of an opposition party candidate in a partisan election; (b) malfeasance in office; (c) failure to carry out the duties of the office; or (d) conviction of a felony. Any officer deemed to have committed any of the above actions may be removed for cause by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the current and active membership of the Executive Board. For purpose of determining current and active membership, ex officio members and elected officials shall not be counted unless they have attended at least three of the immediately preceding five meetings of the Executive Board.

SECTION III. NON-VOTING MEMBERS

When a precinct committee is filled to the limit allowed by law, additional committeepersons may be appointed by the Chairperson and will be called non-voting members. The names will not be submitted to the Elections Department of the Board of Supervisors but will be kept in-house. A non-voting member may not become a member of the State Party.

SECTION IV. REMOVAL OF PRECINCT COMMITTEEPERSON

If any precinct committeeperson has supported the opposition candidate in the partisan election, or publicly maligned or caused sanction against the Democratic nominee, then the committeeperson shall be deemed to have resigned. If a precinct committeeperson fails without a reasonable explanation to attend in person or by proxy three (3) consecutive meetings of the Democratic Party, then the committeeperson shall be deemed to have resigned and will be subject to removal as provided in the next paragraph of these bylaws. If in the opinion of a two-thirds (2/3) majority of the members present at a regular or special meeting of the Democratic Party, a committeeperson has neglected his or her duties, that person will be removed from the Democratic Central Committee.

SECTION V. VACANCY OF PRECINCT COMMITEEPERSON(S)

Whenever there is a vacancy whether because no one was elected or because of

resignation, disqualification, removal, death or other valid reason, in any office of

precinct committeeperson, said vacancy, as required by law, shall be filled as follows:

Any committeeperson may submit the nomination to the County Chairperson for that office. If accepted by the majority of the membership present at a regular meeting, the name will be submitted by the Chairperson to the County Board of Supervisors for approval.

CHAIRPERSON

The Chairperson shall be the principal administrative executive officer of the Democratic Party and shall direct the affairs of the committee. He or she shall preside over all meetings, and exercise general supervision, see that all applicable laws of the State of Arizona and these bylaws are satisfactorily executed and shall perform other duties as may be necessary to carry out the programs and policies of the committee. The Chairperson is a member of the Executive Committee ​of ​the Arizona Democratic Party.

FIRST VICE-CHAIRPERSON

The first Vice-Chairperson, in the absence of the Chairperson, shall perform the duties of the Chairperson. He or she shall perform other duties as may be required by the committee or the Executive Board which may be necessary to secure the objectives and best interest of the Democratic Party not herein otherwise provided for. The First Vice-Chairperson shall be the administrative assistant to the Chairperson. In this capacity he or she shall work with the chairpersons of the standing committees. The First Vice-Chairperson is a member of the Executive Committee of ​the Arizona Democratic Party.

SECOND VICE-CHAIRPERSON

The Second Vice-Chairperson shall assist the Chairperson in the performance of his or her duties and in the absence of the Chairperson and the First Vice-Chairperson, shall perform the duties of the Chairperson. The Second Vice-Chairperson shall be responsible for the coordination of the finance and budget activities of the Democratic Party.

RECORDING SECRETARY

The Recording Secretary shall keep a record, including attendance, of all meetings of the County Executive Committee and of the County Committee, and shall transmit a copy to each officer within ten (10) days. The Recording Secretary shall have custody of all records that traditionally pertain to the office. The Recording Secretary shall, in addition, direct the issuance of notice of all meetings, and shall cause a current roll of County Committee members to be kept. The Recording Secretary shall preside at meetings of the County Committee and the County Executive Committee in the absence or disability of the County Chairperson and Vice-Chairpersons. The Recording Secretary shall maintain an archive of the minutes of the Democratic Party and the Executive Board, and shall transfer the archive to the succeeding Recording Secretary. The minutes shall be preserved for four (4) years.

CORRESPONDING SECRETARY

The Corresponding Secretary shall issue notices of all meetings, shall be responsible for communications between the County Committee and Executive Board and their correspondents; shall supervise the compilation and reproduction of special mailings to the membership and other designated parties; shall maintain a complete and current record of the membership of the County Committee and the Executive Board; and shall have other such duties as shall from time to time be assigned to him or her.

TREASURER

The Treasurer shall receive all monies of the Democratic party, giving receipts where necessary, and shall deposit them in the bank as shall be designated by the committee. He or she shall disburse the funds in the amount and manner approved by the Party and shall keep a record of all receipts and disbursements for the purpose of filing a written monthly report to the committee and to the Chairperson. The treasurer shall prepare and submit the required financial reports to the Arizona Secretary of State and register the Santa Cruz County Democratic Central Committee as a political organization with the Arizona Secretary of State. No Treasurer shall permit an illegal contribution.

SERGEANT-AT-ARMS

The Sergeant-at-Arms shall maintain order at all meetings of the Democratic Party and of the Executive Board. He or she shall keep a history of proceedings and functions.

AFFIRMATIVE ACTION MODERATOR

The Affirmative Action Moderator shall have the duty of implementing the Party Affirmative Action Program as outlined in Article VIII of the bylaws of the Arizona State Democratic Party, and shall have other duties as assigned by the Chairperson.

EDUCATIONAL COORDINATOR

The Educational Coordinator shall have the duties of implementing the Arizona State Party platform and programs for bilingual education and shall have other duties as assigned by the Chairperson.

PUBLIC RELATIONS AND PUBLICITY

The Public Relations and Publicity person shall be responsible for news releases of activities and meetings of the committee. He or she shall also continually attempt to boost the image of the Democratic Party.

STANDING COMMITTEES

Standing committees shall be appointed as needed by the Chairperson. The determination of the personnel size will be the duty of the Chairperson.

COMMITTEE STAFF

The Chairperson may appoint such staff, including counsel, as may be helpful to carry out the duties of the organization.

1. Active involvement in the County Democratic Party. Regularly attend

meetings and become involved in the affairs of the Democratic Party.

2. Support nominees of the Democratic Party only.

3. Be active in the registering of voters.

4. Active assistance in ​turning out the maximum number of Democratic voters.

5. Assist physically disabled voters to obtain absentee ballots, and to assist the

absentee process.

6. Encourage financial assistance and support of the Democratic Party; commit

to fundraising activities.

7. Support the State Democratic Party.

8. Canvass and campaign only on behalf of the Democratic Party.

ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING

The Democratic Party shall hold an organizational meeting biannually, no earlier than fifteen (15) days after the biennial general election in November, and no later than the second Saturday in January. The Chairperson of the Party holding office on the date of said general election shall request that the Recording Secretary then holding office give written notice to each member of the Democratic Party eligible to vote at said meeting, specifying the date, time, and place thereof. The notice shall be mailed not less than ten (10) days prior to said meeting.

REGULAR MEETINGS

The Democratic Party and the Executive Board ​of the party will meet at the call of the Chairperson, or in accordance with any resolution adopted by it. Proper notification will be given either by mail, telephone call, or email.

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETINGS

The elective officers of the Democratic Party shall be the officers of the Executive Board, whose membership is defined in Article I, §2 of these bylaws. The purpose for the creation of such board is to be able to facilitate the action of the County Democratic Party when it is not feasible nor practical to call the entire membership of the committee to the meeting. It is not the purpose of the Executive board to withdraw from the committee or any member thereof any powers otherwise vested.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Minutes of general and executive board meetings may be approved electronically within seven days of delivery of minutes to the chair and after a reasonable time for corrections {three (3) days] and final review [three (3) days]. Approval of minutes requires a majority of votes cast by a quorum of members.

EXECUTIVE ACTIONS.

Actions by the executive board requiring a vote may be approved electronically or by phone. The recording secretary will maintain a record of electronic votes and results.

QUORUMS

A quorum of the Executive Board shall consist of a majority of the current and active membership of the Board. For purposes of determining a quorum, Ex Officio members and Elected Officials who have not attended at least two of the immediately preceding three Board meetings and whose absences have not been excused shall not be considered active and shall not be counted. A quorum of the Santa Cruz County Democratic Party shall consist of ten (10) ​percent of the membership of elected and appointed precinct committeepersons.

PROXY

Proxy votes may be received at regular meetings of the committee. No proxy vote shall be permitted for the removal of a precinct committeeperson(s), or for the election of officers. Proxy votes shall not be permitted for Executive Board meetings.