Coconino County Democratic Party Newsletter

Newsletter

Letter from the Chair

Golden Aspens, crossing tarantulas, and Fall events mark the end of a fabulous summer season for the Coconino County Democratic Party. We registered hundreds of voters, helped candidates gain thousands of nominating petition signatures, and shared the message that Democrats get things done across our County and State.
Our booth was among the most popular sites at every event we attended. Children engaged in a meaningful art project while our enthusiastic volunteers helped their parents actively participate in democracy. Thank you to all the volunteers who faithfully staff our booth for special events and the weekly Farmer’s Market. Your efforts make all the difference in our ongoing voter outreach. As the Vice President recently said about student activists, “you are the reason I have hope.”

On October 17, Vice President Kamala Harris visited Flagstaff as part of her college campus tour, encouraging students to “Fight for our Freedoms.” As a Hispanic population serving institution, NAU was a fitting location for the VP to share the Biden administration focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion. I was deeply moved by her warmth, compassion, and ability to connect with students. The capacity crowd cheered for the VP’s message that their vote and their voice can change the world for the better. They resonated with her powerful message around commonsense gun laws, reproductive healthcare freedom, economic justice, and human rights. Together with the Arizona Students Association, we are going to register them to vote in 2024!

In the news, the Coco Dems are proud to provide a secure location and notary services as the Flagstaff Hub for the Arizona for Abortion Access ballot initiative. Our office is the main location for petitions for all Northern Arizona. Please note the hours for pick-up and notarization and give us a call if you need to make other arrangements. We are fortunate to have a strong coalition here with Indivisible-Northern Arizona and the Flagstaff Abortion Alliance, and we expect to make an outsized contribution to the effort to get a constitutional amendment for abortion healthcare on the ballot in 2024. If you missed the kick-off event on October 16, there’s still time to get the training to be a petition circulator. We are also looking for additional notaries who can volunteer for a few hours a week, let us know!
To paraphrase VP Harris, Democracy is strong when we actively participate and fragile if we don’t. Thanks for being a defender of democracy.
#kamalove
BlueAZ2024,
Laura

ICYMI: Jonathon Nez announced his bid to run for Congress (CD-2)

Thank you President Nez for stepping up to take on the extremist Congressman currently representing Congressional District 2. We’re excited to have an experienced Democrat running for this seat.

Changes in the Office

As many of you know, we will be saying farewell at the end of this week to our current Operations Manager, Monique and hello to our new manager, Jasmine Viehe. With this change comes a shift in office hours. The office will now be open, Monday – Wednesday 8am-3pm & Thursday – Friday 10am – 5pm starting Monday October 22, 2023.

Registering Future Voters in High Schools

Individuals who will turn 18 by the general election in November 2024 can register to vote in Arizona.
In collaboration with The Civics Center, Coconino Democrats have worked for the past several months organizing voter registration drives throughout Flagstaff high schools. We connected with teachers and students, spoke with high school seniors in their civic classes about the importance of voting, and hosted voter registration drives at high schools throughout Flagstaff, registering around 100 first time voters. We have made lasting connections within the schools and plan to host at least two more registration events this school year.

The Coconino County Board of Supervisors Chair, Jeronimo Vasquez (District 1) volunteered at three of our drives. Having worked in FUSD for over 14 years, Jeronimo was really able to connect with the kids and help us foster new relationships with future voters.

Arizona for Abortion Access Ballot Initiative

We have the Arizona for Abortion Access (AAA) ballot initiative petition in hand and ready for circulation. If you want to circulate the petition, you must first complete a training. There are Zoom trainings every Tuesday (7PM) & Thursday (9:30AM) throughout October. Check out our calendar & our Mobilize page for all dates.

The Coconino County Dems’ office is your local petition hub.

You can stop by on Mondays between 11AM-1PM and Fridays from 1PM-3PM to pick up petitions.
Get your petitions notarized at the office same days, Mondays between 11AM-1PM and Fridays from 1pm-3pm.
We are looking to add locations and hours to notarize petitions. If you are a notary and able to assist, please email us.

Getting this initiative onto the 2024 ballot will be key to turning out the vote and wining all races from re-electing Biden to flipping our legislature.

The Western Navajo Fair, Flagstaff Community Market & More!

The Western Navajo Fair is THIS WEEKEND in Tuba City on October 21. Contact the Chair if you’d like to join us.

The Flagstaff Community Farmer’s Market is in its final 2 weeks of the season. We’ll continue to be there on Sunday, from 8:00 am until noon. We are looking for a few more volunteers to help us gather AAA signatures at the Aspen & Sitgreaves entrance. If you’re interested in helping these last few weeks, sign up for a shift here.

We’re excited to be hosting a Día de los Muertos celebration on November 1, 2023 with Mayan Winds Coffee Emporium (2144 N Fourth St, Flagstaff, AZ 86004)!

Join us honoring & remembering our loved ones who have departed. Join us in Tuba City for the weekly Outdoor Market. Email Laura Carter, for more information.

Save the date for our holiday party on December 12, 2023 from 3-5PM at the Coco Dems office (201 E. Birch Ave, Suite 6). Stay tunned for more details.

The City of Flagstaff – Special Election – 11/7

This is a Ballot-by-Mail Election
A voter information pamphlet has been mailed (Spanish & English versions available)
Ballots were mailed October 11th and must be returned and received by November 7th
Additional Information HERE
Town Hall on October 25 (see below)

Upcoming Events

To include an upcoming event in our bi-monthly newsletter, please email us the details by Friday prior to each newsletter (the 1st & 3rd Wednesday every month).