Questions about the Global Presidential Primary

Your Questions Below!

Please add your comments in the comment box below. If you do not have a personal wiki account, please add your name in the text of the message.

Question on eligibility to vote in the GPP

Who can vote in the Global Presidential Primary? Is there same-day registration?

Answer

All American citizens who will be 18 by the date of the general election (Nov 8, 2016), and who wish to participate as Democrats. In order to participate as a Democrat, one must be a member of Democrats Abroad. Qualified individuals may join DA on the day of the primary.

Question on checking eligibility to vote at a Voting Center

Does the Voting Center Manager need to check the passports of all new members of DA casting ballots at a Voting Center?

Answer

Each person voting must sign a statement on the ballot itself that certifies his or her eligibility to vote, which includes US citizenship and other qualifications including residence abroad and not voting for a Presidential candidate in any other primary. There is no duty of the Voting Center Manager to check passports or otherwise guarantee the eligibility of those who wish to become members of Democrats Abroad and vote on the same date.

According to our DSP, members of Democrats Abroad as of January 31, 2016, are presumed to be qualified to vote in the primary, in the absence of positive proof of disqualification. An observer may challenge a voter's status by processes outlined in the DSP, including "positive proof" as defined below:

Positive proof of this kind could include, but would not be limited to, documents that indicate that a person attempting to vote is not a U.S. citizen, is not a member of Democrats Abroad, is a member of a Country Committee of Democrats Abroad other than the one in which the voter is seeking to participate, or records indicating that the person attempting to vote, voted in another Country Committee, in another delegation’s delegate-selection process, or in the corresponding elections of another political party.

The GPP Team recognizes that non-citizens will attempt to participate -- almost always out of a combination of enthusiasm for American politics and misunderstanding our very real primary as a mere straw poll. Voting Center Managers will benefit from a set of clear and comprehensive guidelines that set out when asking for evidence of eligibility would be appropriate and what kind of evidence would be acceptable. Those guidelines will be distributed as part of the overall guide to running a Voting Center.

Question on the use of a private home as a Voting Center

How does the exemption for using a private home as a Voting Center work?

Answer from Will Bakker

The exemption (mentioned in Section III.B.3.d, on page 13 of the DSP) is due by December 31. There is no formal process at this time, so you can send an email message to the International Chair at chair@democratsabroad.org (and carbon-copy counsel@democratsabroad.org). Your request should be clear in all its details, including your name, your position (chapter chair or country committee chair), and the area served by the Voting Center. You should provide at the beginning of the request the specific address, building type, proprietor, and residents of the proposed site.

The explicit standard in the DSP is "good cause for the exemption." This is like saying, "I know it when I see it." Ultimately, each case is down to the judgment of the International Chair with the assistance of the International Counsel. If you're looking for certainty so that you can plan well in advance, submit your request early. The deadline is December 31, but there is no reason to wait until the last day or week if you are concerned whether you have "good cause." There's also no reason why you can't start a conversation before submitting the formal request.

The idea is that the private home must be as accessible as a good public site for a polling place and as neutral as a typical public site. So, it should be easily accessible to persons with physical disabilities, centrally located, and easy to enter without undue security barriers. You must be able to post large signs that make it easy for people to find, with adequate access to parking and/or public transportation.

The residence itself should not send any kind of political message. What we are doing at the Voting Centers is not an ordinary chapter event or even a special event. It involves the same concerns as running a real polling place in a primary in a US state.

Here in Luxembourg, I would never consider using an apartment that requires a buzz-in security door. I would not accept the offer to use the home of an ExCom member who is known to be a vocal supporter of one candidate or another, no matter how neutral or convenient the site. I would hesitate to use a home that was not on a major road directly served by local and regional buses. I would ensure that we could post large signs throughout the neighborhood without the neighbors or local authorities getting upset. I would prefer a location that encouraged people to mill around at the exterior entrance, sending the message that something big is going on. (All these things also make it easier for local media to cover the event.)

Your guiding principle in this situation -- whether you agree with it or not -- should be that the very fact that it is a private residence will be a hurdle for the participation of some Democrats. Make your choices with the idea that you're already behind. Write your request for an exemption by showing how you made up for that basic disadvantage and avoided the pitfalls.

Question on Country Committee Compliance

Is there a relationship between a Country Committee's compliance with the DA Charter and its participation in the Global Presidential Primary?

Answer

The Country Committees that can participate in the Global Presidential Primary with Voting Centers are the CCs that are "in good standing" (which mostly means "in compliance with DA's Charter") as of December 31, 2015. Not coincidentally, that's the same deadline for most of the information that CC chairs need to provide about how they'll run the Global Presidential Primary. Country Committees need to stay in good standing to participate in the subsequent steps, such as the Regional Caucus and the Global Convention. There are several Charter-mandated deadlines between Dec 31, 2015 and the Global Convention, such as the membership verification process.