Our Party’s greatest asset is the unparalleled diversity seen and heard in the lived experiences and collective power of 10 million California Democrats. With our committee appointments for the 2021-2023 term, we are proud to uplift those stories and empower those voices at the tables where our Party’s most important decisions are discussed and decided. We are confident these appointees are best prepared to bring their passion and experience to help build a Party dedicated to improving the lives of all Californians.
This will be accomplished with their focused support of our collective programmatic priorities — investing in our organizing infrastructure, expanding our communications programming, training our next generation of grassroots leaders, engaging in candidate political action and vital issue advocacy, and ensuring adequate financial support to carry out these priorities — as well as the sustained work required to transform our Party to an actively anti-racist organization centered on the values of equity and inclusion.
Our Collaborative Process
Together, we have engaged in a collaborative process to review applications and appoint 305 delegates to committees for the 2021-2023 term. Over the course of six weeks, each Statewide Officer has engaged with an equal voice in both our deliberations and final appointments.
With an unprecedented 770 applications – a 25% increase over the previous term – this process has not been an easy one. We are not able to appoint every applicant. However, we are grateful to every Delegate who expressed a willingness to serve. We look forward to continuing to work with each and every one of you to build an even stronger Party.
Diverse Committee Membership
Overall, our committee appointments are the most diverse in our Party’s history. In addition, we have sought to empower the next generation of grassroots leaders by appointing an unprecedented number of young leaders and those who have never served on a Party committee with the intent of elevating these appointees into committee leadership roles in the future. Here are some important highlights for committee members:
– 71% are new to their committee
– 52% self-identified female
– 67% are Delegates of Color
– 15% identify as Asian American Pacific Islander
– 14% identify as Black
– 31% identify as Latino
– 15% identify as Mixed Race
– 19% were born outside of the United States
– 30% are under the age of 35
– 34% are members of the LGBTQ community
– 16% are Delegates with a disability
– 5% are military Veterans
– 24% are Delegates residing in rural communities
Diverse Committee Leadership
Our diverse appointments extend beyond overall committee membership to committee leadership as well. We have sought to create more leadership opportunities with a number of first-time committee lead co-chairs and even more first-time committee co-chairs.
Further, in the interest of creating additional leadership opportunities for others, we have limited the appointment of Party leaders – current and former party officers, regional directors, DNC members, caucus chairs, county chairs, and current CADEM executive board members – to committee or committee leadership positions. However, while we begin this important transition in committee leadership and members, we fully expect to actively engage Party leaders in other important ways in the coming weeks and months.
Here are some important highlights for committee leaders:
– 53% are new to their committee leadership post
– 51% self-identified female
– 61% are Delegates of Color
– 14% identify as Asian American Pacific Islander
– 11% identify as Black
– 36% identify as Latino
– 12% identify as Mixed Race
– 18% were born outside of the United States
– 30% are under the age of 35
– 25% are members of the LGBTQ community
– 12% are Delegates with a disability
– 5% are military Veterans
– 12% are Delegates residing in rural communities
Standing Committee on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Our Party must foster an environment that is welcoming, inviting, and inclusive of every Democrat committed to our collective work. This work is not easy and requires a long-term commitment. Yet, it is vital to our success.
To that end, we will merge two current committees – the Standing Committee on Organizational Development and the Standing Committee on Affirmative Action – into one new committee – the Standing Committee on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.
In addition to integrating the historic responsibilities of the two former committees, the new committee will focus on long-term culture change in our Party including, but not limited to: (1) improving our Code of Conduct process and procedures, (2) expanding our Justice, Equity, Diversity, & Inclusion (JEDI) Program to inform and educate Party leaders and Delegates, and (3) implementing our steps on anti-racism and racial justice to ensure full, fair, and equitable access to our Party for every Democrat.
Standing Committee on Organizing
Our work of engaging 10 million California Democrats is dependent upon our investment in long-term, year-round organizing. Building on CADEM’s 2020 Statewide Coordinated Campaign, we now have the Party’s first-ever Organizing Director, are expanding our human infrastructure with Regional Organizing Managers, and are investing in new organizing tools for grassroots leaders.
To engage even more Democrats in this important work, we will change the name of the Standing Committee on Voter Services to the Standing Committee on Organizing. The new committee will become more integrated with the work of CADEM’s Organizing Department. We will seek to expand the membership of this important committee to coincide with the growth of the electoral and advocacy work in the coming months.
Orientation and Training
Given the number of new committee members and leaders, CADEM’s Training Department will take the lead in developing and providing thorough orientation and a robust training regime for all appointees. This will include an introduction to other members, the charge of each committee, the committee’s relevant timelines and processes, and a series of Code of Conduct-related trainings.
Lastly, we are committed to reviewing these committee and leadership appointments within 1 year. In the meantime, we are excited to work with all the new committee leaders and members – along with every California Democrat – to move our Party forward.
Credentials Committee
Lead Co-Chairs
Shawn Kumagai
Lara Larramendi
Co-Chairs
Ruby Duenas
Anastasia Foster
Ronald Gonzales-Lawrence
Demetrio Gonzalez
Jose Goris Jr.
Khoa Le
Susan McEntire
Nora Vargas
Jane Wishon
Members
Tim Allison
Frances Anderson
Paul Bailey
Alexandra Beltran
Steve Bott
Patrice Brown
Nicholas Campins
Temika M. Cook
Jodie Cooper
Arnel Dino
Denise El Amin
Dinah Frieden
Ryan McGilley
Davis Han
Marcus Ismael
Crystal Jackson
Andy Kelley
Stanley King
Elmer Martinez
Arianna Medel Cortes
Yvonne Molles
Suzann Reina
Megan Russell
Kevin Sabellico
Sousan Safakish
Mary Jane Sanchez
Paul Seo
Carol Taylor
Rafael Trujillo
Michael Vargas
Vanndearlyn Vong
Shelisa Williams
Tiffany Woods
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee
Lead Co-Chairs
Steven Auclair
Carolyn Fowler
Co-Chairs
Christopher Bowen
Kareem Gongora
Rob Howard
Shannon Ross
Marisol Rubio
Members
Wendy Bloom
Marilyn Cachola
Franky Carrillo
Eugene Fields
Mariam Ghazvini
Leah Herzberg
Fariba Hezar
Cherelle Jackson
LaNiece Jones
Li Lovett
Fabiola Orozco
Denise Penn
Luis Andres Perez
Vanessa Pimentel
Lalbabu Prasad
Angela Scott
Robert Service
Tracie Stafford
Caroline Torosis
Alfred Twu
Lisa Van Zevern
Mark Williams
Finance Committee
Lead Co-Chair
April Verrett
Co-Chairs
Glenda Barillas
Peter Kreysa
Harini Krishnan
Veronica Casarez
Evan McLaughlin
George Perezvelez
Keristofer Seryani
Members
Yousuf Bhaghani
Paul Cohen
Jeri Fromme
Susan Gutowsky
Kevin Hayakawa
Richard Hurt
Frank Lima
Lesia Louro
Cassandra Mancini
Kelli Maruccia
Maliha Noamani
Amit Pandya
Amy Pearl
David Pruitt
Andrew Rodriguez
Arturo Rodriguez
Marcial Rene Romero
Joseph Salas
Chris Snyder
Diana Sparagna
Paula Treat
Debra Vinson
Legislation Committee
Lead Co-Chairs
Margaret Granado
Amar Thomas
Co-Chairs
Cory Allen
Sascha Bittner
Georgette Bradford
Heidi Martinez
Guy Strahl
Amy Wiwuga
Members
Gloria Alvarado
Debru Carthan
Michael Colbruno
Michael Contreras
Todd David
John Erickson
Elizabeth Escalante
Ansermio Jake Estrada
Elizabeth Linnerman
Bobbi Lopez
Harpal Mann
Alexander Melendrez
Iman Novin
Freddie Quintana
Martin Rawlings-Fein
Marilyn Riley
Mariana Corona Sabeniano
Joy Sterling
Ann Turtle
Paula Villescaz
Rosalind Wyman
Carolyn Wysinger
Organizing Committee
Lead Co-Chairs
Martha Garcia
Steve Pierson
Sangeeth Peruri
Judy Pipkin
Luke Tesluk
Julie Waters
Co-Chairs
Susan Bolle
Edmundo Cuevas Lopez
Jess Durfee
Blake Hooper
Franz Kieviet
Tamara Levenson
Jason Lindsey
Karima Lynch
Abigail Mejia
Justin Meyers
Susan Pfeifer
Domenic Piturro
Michele Reed
Elissa Underwood
James Wisley
Members
Iyad Afalqa
Diana Aguirre
Paul Akinjo
Lisa Andres
Elina Antoniou
Ganesh Balamitran
Rene Bloch
Kristy Boer
David Brame
Manuel Buenrostro
Michael Chen
Victor Costa
Tiffany Countryman
Krista De La Torre
Poppy De Marco Dennis
Julie Diep
Jehoan Espinoza
Lee Fink
Yvette Flores
Bob Forshay
Eliseo Gamino
Olga Garcia
Monette Gavino
Valentin Godina
Susan Goodlerner
Brandon Harami
Dona Hare-Price
Lara Horgan
Kelly King
Annie Koya
Martha Kreeger
Luis Martinez
Angelita Medina
Daren Miller
Val Muchowski
Evelyn Nuno
Stephanie Ocampo
Richard Raya
Monike Reynozo
Matthew Rhoa
Fauzia RiZvi
Renay Grace Rodriguez
Sylvia Russell
Patricia Sabo
Jatinderpal Sahi
Marty Salgado
Patricia Sanders
Robert Schelen
Bonnie Shatun
Constance Sullivan
Elizabeth Talbott
Becca Taylor
Ali Tweini
Tomas Vera
Eric Warmoth
Ken Wyant
Joy Zhan
Zhihan Zou
Platform Committee
Lead Co-Chairs
Julie Soo
Michael Soto
Chair Emeritus
Howard Welinsky
Co-Chairs
Elizabeth Betancourt
Shanna Ingalsbee
Jonathan Lyens
Ajay Mohan
Gracie Torres
Ruben Zarate
Members
Kev Abazajian
Martha O. Acevedo
Daniel Bral
Douglas Case
Veronica Chavez
Arwen Chenery
Hannah Cho
Wendy Eccles
Kevin Hendrick
Corey Jackson
Kiyomi Kowalski
Brian Mineghino
Bijan Mohseni Calderón
Luz Portillo
Jaclyn Prager
Joely Proudfit
Tisa Rodriguez
William Rodriguez-Kennedy
Sal Rosselli
Michael Sweet
Sunny Zia
Resolutions Committee
Lead Co-Chairs
Agi Kessler
Brandon Zavala
Co-Chairs
Michael Burckhard
Rudy Espinoza
Naomi Goldman
Mary Rose Ortega
Stacey Reardon
Cruz Baca Sembello
Members
Franbert Calderon
Avinder Chawla
Andrea Beth Damsky
Katrina Dunn
Catherine Familathe
Christian Green
Gabriel Haaland
Tony Hale
Brigette Hunley
Hanieh Jodat
Chelsea Kelly-Reif
Bryan King San Juan
Andrew Lachman
Elise Moore
Lisa Murphy
Jane Natoli
Rodney Nickens
Nima Rahimi
Ehab Shehata
Analisa Swan
John Vassiliades
Alton Wang
Rules Committee
Lead Co-Chairs
Valeria Hernandez
Coby King
Chair Emeritus
Garry Shay
Co-Chairs
Jose Alcala
Kathy Bowler
Nicole Fernandez
Izeah Garcia
Drexel Heard
Olivia Lee
Members
Suzanna Aguilera-Marrero
Steven Alari
Kenneth Armstrong
Andrea Cardenas
Martha Escutia
Peter Gallotta
Glenn Glazer
Katie Jaycox
Abigail Kingsley
Harris Mojadedi
Anita Narayana
G. Anthony Phillips
Nick Schultz
Sepi Shyne
Sarah Souza
Robin Torello
James Williams
William Wong
Mcclina Woods
Jimmie Woods-Gray
Laurence Zakson
