Candidate Statements for 2009 Board Elections

Below, find the statements of candidates who have declared their intention to run for the 2009-2010 Executive Board of the Harvard College Democrats. Elections will take place on Tuesday, November 17 at 8 PM in Emerson Hall 305.

President and Vice-President
Jason Berkenfeld and Lindsay Garber
Looking to the year ahead, we see a tremendous opportunity for growth. Now is the time to come together as a community and renew our commitment to a progressive agenda.

Working Towards Victory in 2010: Our plan for 2010 includes two parts: pre-election preparation and high-energy campaigning. This spring, we will focus on laying the groundwork for our efforts next fall. This will include fundraising both on campus and beyond, as well as recruiting students from within our organization to lead campaign efforts. In the fall, we will rely on sustained, personal outreach to get interested students where they need to be to make a difference. By traveling to battleground districts, we will commit ourselves to defending the Democratic majority in Congress.

Community Building: One of our top priorities is to make the Harvard College Democrats a home for all progressive-minded students on this campus. We want current and future members to view the Dems not only as the place where they can express their political opinions, but also as a venue in which strong and lasting friendships can be developed. Yet there is much to be gained from looking outward as well. Our plan is to reach out to other student organizations that share our dedication to forward-thinking ideals. We want the Dems to become the foundation of a civically engaged student body.

“Walking the Walk” – A Commitment to Public Service: Part of the Democratic commitment to social justice is an obligation to tackle inequality wherever it may exist. Instead of just talking about being Democrats, we want our members to “walk the walk” – to put their principles into practice. Our goal is to provide students with a wide range of opportunities to engage in public service – from sustained commitments to short-term projects.

Legislative Director
Alexa Zahl
Hi. I’m Alexa Zahl, a freshman from New York City, and would love to lead next year’s Legislative Committee. I feel so lucky to have discovered such a great group and think I can make it even better:

  • I would like to welcome more Dems to our meetings. By polling members about their topics of interest and free time during the week, I think we can bolster attendance. LegCom can also get more involved in Dems general meetings.
  • We can increase the impact of our discussions beyond committee meetings through YouTube clips and editorial campaigns. Right now, I’m starting to put together videos that spring from LegCom discussions. So far, healthcare and environmental legislation are topics in the works.

I would love to hear your thoughts and answer any questions. My email address is alexazahl@gmail.com. Thanks!

Jelle Zijlstra
Hi! My name is Jelle Zijlstra and I am asking you to give me your vote for the position of Legislative Director. As a freshman, I only just arrived here on campus, but I’ve been involved a lot in Dems activities, ranging from calling people in Maine to attending Legislative Committee meetings, and I loved all of it. I am now running for the position of Legislative Director. I hope to lead LegCom in reaching out to educate people at Harvard and beyond on the issues we care about and persuade them to take action—using a variety of media that work best to get our point across, from YouTube videos to background papers. I believe LegCom should also be a venue to discuss issues about which different opinions exist within our party, to help people develop their political views. Thanks for your interest!

Secretary
Meaghan Riether
I am consistently struck by the vibrancy of the Dems as an organization and as a group of interesting and talented individuals. The things that I have seen accomplished in my short time here are diverse in their aims, but always astounding, and the opportunity to serve as your Secretary would put me in a position to make sure that these things continue to happen. I bring to the table a great deal of knowledge in organizational and administrative matters, a deep and abiding love of spreadsheets, color-coding, notes and witty emails, and the desire to see the Dems strengthen and flourish in the coming year. I would love the chance to add my energy, experience and enthusiasm to the mix. (And who knows – maybe I’ll even get to dust off my old typing certificate!)

Kristin Rose
As secretary my goal would be to make the position more visible and engaged with the Dems without losing track of important behind the scenes tasks such as attendance, the bulletin, and bookkeeping. I believe it would be beneficial for the secretary to work with mem-com in order to better the Dems capabilities of keeping track of members, their interests, and making sure new Dems return. I want to restore the talent database to further tailor events to our member’s passions, personally reach out to these less-active members by individually inviting them to events related to their interests and encourage them to take initiative by holding dinner discussions or educating other Dems on a political topic (like our brochure and lessons on the health care debate). Furthermore, I want to encourage inclusiveness between the committees by making public minutes from each meeting so members not present can still be involved.

Treasurer
Katie Zavadski
I’d like to run for Treasurer of the Harvard College Democrats because I want to get more involved. I am really enthusiastic about making the College Dems a powerful and well-known progressive voice on campus and in the Greater Boston area. An important part of this mission is having money! There are many funding opportunities at the Undergraduate Council that I would make use of to provide as many free things as possible to the College Dems just as the lovely Eric Hysen got us free T-fares for our walking tour of Boston. As Treasurer, I’d also fundraise more through shirt and toothpick holder sales at various college dining halls and student events and faithfully preform other treasurer-ly duties.

Communications
Lange Luntao
As the voice of the Dems to the Harvard community, the Communications Committee must constantly work to improve the visibility of Democratic events and issues on campus. Over the past year, ComCom has advanced the Dems brand exponentially. To continue this growth, I plan to:

  • Pursue innovative new publicity techniques to market Dems events, relying heavily on sandwich board postering, table tents, and HUDS kiosks as alternatives to early-morning (wasteful) postering.
  • Spark campus debate on a variety of issues (on the model of the health care campaign) through collaboration with CamCom on education and advocacy campaigns.
  • Harness the creativity of ComCom members in the arts to expand Dems outreach, and work with members to share blogging, design, and media skills.
  • Foster an inclusive and fun committee environment of progressive students united in their love of snarky politician (and Drew Faust) jokes.

Events
Jonathan Newmark
As an active member of the Events Committee since the fall of 2008, I believe that I have gained the experience necessary to hold the position as Director. Although winter recess quickly follows Election Day, I am prepared to continue the Democrats’ agenda until the close of the semester, making as smooth of a transition as possible. As soon as second semester begins, I will be ready to create a new events calendar for 2010. Fundraising is crucial for the vitality of our organization. If elected, my primary focus will be a large-scale gala event, open to not only Harvard students and faculty, but to all of the members of the Cambridge and Boston communities. I hope to also continue the Harvard Democrats’ presence as a progressive organization, planning smaller scale speaker events and discussion forums targeted towards specific on-campus organizations. Most importantly, I will collaborate with my fellow Democrats to think of new ideas and to plan the calendar for the upcoming year.

Membership
Danny Selgrade
Hello! My name is Danny Selgrade and I am a sophomore in Quincy House concentrating in MCB. A native of Belmont, Massachusetts, I have grown up in a home where Chris Mathews is a regular at the dinner table and anything non-Democratic is just silly. As such, I have worked with the Dems for the past semester and I think I have what it takes to be Membership Director for the Harvard College Democrats. To ensure that everyone is comfortable with one another, I plan to have at least one social event per week and increase the frequency of bigger events. I know that members have expressed discomfort with alcohol at events, and I want to include more family-friendly events so that all Dems can feel included. I envision a Dems in which future friends, blockmates, and colleagues meet each other. And let’s just say: scientists know how to party.

Campaigns
Cort VanOstran
I love campaigning; it’s as easy as that. I’ve worked for losers (Senator Kerry, former Senator Clinton) and winners (Missouri’s favorite Senator Claire McCaskill, and of course, President Obama); either way, I’ve never regretted the effort. Campaigns represent the best of American democracy at work, and I never feel prouder to be an American than when I’m swapping stories with old ladies on the campaign trail, or even having doors slammed in my face. As Campaigns Director for the Dems, this is the enthusiasm I will bring to our 2010 midterm efforts. I will direct a campaigns effort that will be as extensive as possible, as inclusive as possible, and in as many places as possible. Together, we will once again make invaluable contributions to important races around the country. I hope to see you on a bus next fall, and I ask for your vote.

Political
Jonathan Padilla
Hey everyone, I’m Jonathan Padilla out from the Great State of California. Out in California, politicos will teach you three things early on: enjoy the weather—it makes canvassing easier, if you see something that looks like marijuana it probably is marijuana, and there are a lot of people in this state—that means lots of friends to help win elections and then party with afterwards. Right now I’m interested in that third point. The political director is responsible for building bridges with liberal groups on and off campus. I think we do a pretty good job on campus, but I think it’s time that the Harvard Democrats reenter a leadership role across the commonwealth. We have the human capital and background to do great things; we just need to leave Cambridge a little more often. I look forward to talking to all of you over the comings weeks!