| Presidents Annual Report |
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President’s Annual Report on the Northville Democratic Club, January 2009 We are about to inaugurate a new president, Barack Obama. For many of us in the Northville Democratic Club, this represents the culmination of a dream. This organization was created only four short years ago when a handful of Northville Democrats, disappointed by the re-election of George Bush, decided to pull together the Northville Democratic Club. It was a humble beginning, with Kelly Green driving around Northville writing down the addresses of those with Kerry signs, inviting them to a party; and with Carol Poenisch pulling together her many community contacts to initiate the first Club meeting.
Presidential Election This year was our first presidential campaign year. So, the obvious question is, “How did we do?” Obama did not win in Northville City or township, but he and other Democrats made significant gains over Kerry in 2004. Obama polled a combined total of 46% in Northville, while Kerry had only 39%, with an increase in 24% more Democratic voters. The Club decided in June to put us at the forefront of the presidential campaign effort. We initiated the first direct voter contact in Northville, with a presence at summer concerts and the July 4th parade. We began ordering our own Obama campaign materials to distribute, and we had poll workers at the August 5 primary getting out the word. We cosponsored an Obama Acceptance Speech Party in August and organized our own Obama Debate Watching Party, both at the Havana Lounge. Before the campaign was finished, the NDC had distributed 900 Obama yard signs, 1,500 bumper stickers, and 500 Obama buttons. We also delivered to 12,000 Northville homes our own Obama/pro Democratic piece of literature, entitled, “After 8 years of Bush/Republican rule, how’s your family doing?” We helped recruit over 80 volunteers to the Obama campaign effort. A special thanks has to go to Liz Johnston and her Stempien office phone bankers. Liz and her crew began making voter ID phone calls in December of 2007, and continued nearly every week through to the November election. As a result of their efforts, plus the door-to-door canvassing by the Obama campaign, we identified 1,500 more known Democratic supporters, an 80% increase over January 2008. This voter ID work bore fruit when on Election Day; we had Northville Democratic volunteer poll challengers at every precinct. They checked off known Democratic supporters as they voted, and a second contingent of 30+ phoners called those Dems who had not yet voted. These efforts strongly contributed to the 24% increase in Democratic voters in Northville. Through the course of the campaign many people too numerous to mention here, participated from the Club in the Obama campaign. A couple highlights were the two work parties organized by Chuck Nichols, a big mailing party in August and a sign making party in September, both with over 20 volunteers.
Club Membership Our Obama campaign efforts helped draw new members and build our club. We added over 50 new members from June through November. We ended the year with a little over 150 paid members. In addition, Chuck Nichols, who functions both as our membership chair and master of the calendar and email roster, reports that our roster of known supporters grew from 170 to over 400 by the end of the campaign.
Political Action Committee Donations and Fund Raising We sponsored two major fund raising events in 2008, an elegant evening event in January at the home of Marcello and Riki Veneziano, featuring Robert Ficano, Wayne County Executive, and our annual summer Bar B Q at the home of Annette Masson and Scott Craig. The summer event had over 90 attendees, as excitement for the campaign mounted. Through these efforts, and the PAC contribution of membership dues, we were able to contribute over $7,000 to local and state candidates.
Marc Corriveau Re-Elected Our State Representative, Marc Corriveau, won re-election by a good margin in a district that was designed to be a safe Republican district. Our Club continued to support Marc with significant donations, and many Club members volunteered in Marc’s campaign. Corriveau appears to have a bright future in politics, and the NDC is so proud of how he represents our district in the State Legislature.
Other Races of Note Our very own Carol Poenisch put up a strong fight for a position on the Northville Board of Trustees. She was the first candidate to file and run as a Democrat in many years. On the heels of her successful leadership against the Livonia annexation of the former state psychiatric hospital property, she challenged the Republican incumbents and came within a thousand votes of winning. Our feisty, but under funded Democratic candidate for the 11th Congressional District, Joseph Larkin, showed surprisingly strong against Thaddeus McCotter. He polled 46% to McCotter’s 52% despite McCotter spending over $1 million to Larkin’s $29,000. We are now looking forward to a possible future challenger as it becomes clear that the 11th district is no longer the Republican safe district that it was designed to be. Among judicial candidates, our NDC endorsed candidates did extremely well. Diane Hathaway surprised many by knocking out the Republican Supreme Court Chief Justice, Cliff Taylor. Locally, the two NDC endorsed candidates for open positions on the Circuit Court, Lynn Pierce and Connie Marie Kelley, were both victors. Jim Plakas won his hotly contested race for the 36th District Court.
Town Hall Speakers Series In the spring we continued our Speakers series with sessions on Immigration, Stem Cell Research, and National Health Care. Of particular note was the stem cell research presentation. This issue ended up on the Michigan ballot after a successful petition drive, and then passed with over 60% of the vote statewide. We look forward to starting a new round of Town Hall meetings in February.
Looking forward All and all, this was a very good year for Democrats and the Northville Democratic Club. We grew as a Club, and our message on the issues won a significant national victory, and made ground locally here in Northville. We look forward to building on this momentum. Our nation faces tremendous challenges, with the economy, two wars, and the continual erosion of the American middle class. I encourage all of you to step forward and renew your commitment to change. Get involved and stay involved in the Northville Democratic Club this year. Our first meeting of the new year will be Tuesday, January 27th, 7PM, at the Cady Inn on Griswold. Yours Truly, Scott Craig President of the Northville Democratic Club
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