Endorsement Process and Rationale
December 2017
SJWPC believes in primary elections as a healthy and necessary part of the democratic process. Our members are concerned that many establishment candidates appear to be "selected" in backrooms. In contrast, we believe our process should be thorough and thoughtful, and include input from our members. Thus, our process for this Congressional race will be as follows:
With that comprehensive input by members in hand, the endorsement will ultimately be made by a straight majority-vote of the SJWPC Governance Committee, acting on a recommendation of the Political Process co-chairs, using clear criteria, as defined below:
Note: Members who support other candidates who are not endorsed by the SJWPC are welcome to engage in activities supporting other candidates. It is our belief that the panoply of voices in our citizenry will ultimately make us stronger. Members who organize for non-endorsed candidates may do so as individuals through the Private Group, but only endorsed candidates will benefit from SJWPC's other organizing infrastructure.
December 2017
SJWPC believes in primary elections as a healthy and necessary part of the democratic process. Our members are concerned that many establishment candidates appear to be "selected" in backrooms. In contrast, we believe our process should be thorough and thoughtful, and include input from our members. Thus, our process for this Congressional race will be as follows:
- Hold a meeting where each declared candidate (Democrat and Green; Independents on a case-by-case basis) will speak, sequentially and separately, and answer Q&A from our members. This is not a debate, but rather a chance for each candidate to interact with our members in their own space.
- After all candidates have been heard, we will then solicit written feedback from the members in attendance, which will help form the basis for the decision. SJWPC will ask members their thoughts on how well they thought the candidates represent Progressive women, how strong they are as candidates, and other qualitative feedback.
With that comprehensive input by members in hand, the endorsement will ultimately be made by a straight majority-vote of the SJWPC Governance Committee, acting on a recommendation of the Political Process co-chairs, using clear criteria, as defined below:
- Member input (1/3)
- The degree to which his/her platform and record reflects Progressive values as we have defined them in our platform (1/3) and
- Viability as a candidate (1/3).
Note: Members who support other candidates who are not endorsed by the SJWPC are welcome to engage in activities supporting other candidates. It is our belief that the panoply of voices in our citizenry will ultimately make us stronger. Members who organize for non-endorsed candidates may do so as individuals through the Private Group, but only endorsed candidates will benefit from SJWPC's other organizing infrastructure.