Today I am officially announcing my candidacy for second vice chair of the Salt Lake County Democratic Party. I would appreciate any support you can give, and I would appreciate your vote on April 18th.
Second Vice Chair is the most hotly contested race, with no less than five candidates running. I know quite a few personally, and, needless to say, it is a lot of great talent out there.
Why vote for me?
- As a five year board member of the Young Democrats of Utah, I have literally committed my entire adult life to advancing the goals of the Democratic Party.
- I have worked on numerous campaigns – My first official position outside of volunteer was as Campaign Manager for the Beth Holbrook for District 20 race; Beth would be the best performing Democrat in Davis County. Next I worked on the Ralph Becker for Salt Lake City Mayor campaign as Volunteer Coordinator, I personally worked with at least 50 dedicated volunteers and 100 individuals over the course of the campaign. As many of you know, we knocked on every house in Salt Lake City at least once and, in many cases, two or three times, before election day. This past election I was the Deputy Campaign Manager for the Jean Welch Hill for Attorney General Campaign. With a campaign focused on holding Mark Shurtleff’s feet to the fire in regards to pay-day lenders, we made sure that people became aware of this terrible problem.
- I have worked for both the Democratic National Committee and the Utah State Senate Democrats – Thanks to the Hinckley Institute of Politics, I have had the opportunity to work in both our state and nations capitol. During my time in D.C. I worked in the research department during the Roberts and Alito confirmation hearings, Hurricane Katrina, and, at the devastating effects of the war in Iraq. Locally, I was on Utah’s Capitol Hill during the voucher debate and eventual passage, and assisted my legislators, Senator Ed Mayne and Mike Demitrich, in their attempts to block legislation. I am also proud to say that I assisted in reducing house fires and in the creation of the Pete Suazo Utah Athletic Commission.
- Passion – Any reader of this blog knows that I do what I do because I love it. I know that I will bring that same passion to the office of second vice chair.
As Second Vice Chair, I intend to do the following:
- Work on party building – we must find new volunteers, candidates, and donors by working from the ground up. For far to long we have assumed that people will either choose to become a party member or they won’t. We must throw this assumption away and actually reach out to like minded individuals.
- Start playing offense when it comes to elections – for far to long it has been assumed that the Salt Lake County Party focuses only on Salt Lake City, and in politics perception is reality. We must have a greater presence in areas where it seems we don’t show up. The victories of Laura Black and Jay Seegmiller show that we can win in southern Salt Lake County.
- Update the feel of the Platform and Steering Committees meetings to be more adaptable to the realities on the ground – in our political world, things are constantly changing, but often the decision makers don’t. Please do not mistake this as an insult towards current members, rather, with my chairmanship to the Platform Committee, I will be providing fresh new ideas for taking on (and taking down) Republicans.
- Digital domination is key- We are lucky that the Republicans have not caught up with the Salt Lake County Democrats in regards to the use of technology in elections. This, however, will not last. Though we may have had the digital advantage last election, much work still needs to be done to improve the system. I will work to ensure that every volunteer on every campaign will have the best tools available to them to ensure victory.
Please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have. I can be found at curtis.haring@gmail.com. Also, and financial contributions would be much appreciated, and can be mailed to 1171 Oakley St. Salt Lake City, Utah 84116.
The convention will be held at Cottonwood High School, 5715 S. 1300 E. (map) and starts at 10:00 AM – Hope to see you there!
You are my first endorsement this year, and I’m proud to be able to do so! Vote Curtis, everyone!