Our Constitution

 

CONSTITUTION OF THE FLORIDA COLLEGE DEMOCRATS

 

Preamble

In order to promote a better America, with equality, opportunity, and freedom within a just and strong society, we dedicate ourselves to organizing the participation of Democratic college students in Florida.  In this mission, we call for full participation of all Florida students regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, disability, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, or gender identity. Understanding the importance of participation in the Democratic Party to the preservation of our values and principles, we, Democratic college students, do hereby associate ourselves and adopt this Constitution as the Florida College Democrats.

 

Article I: Name, Purpose, and Affiliation

Section A: Name:  The name of this organization shall be the Florida College Democrats, hereafter referred to in this document as the “College Democrats” or “FCD.”

Section B: Purpose: As a chartered State Federation of the College Democrats of America, FCD is dedicated to organizing and connecting chartered Chapters at post-secondary educational institutions across Florida to further the Democratic Party by:

  1. Supporting Democratic issues and candidates for local, state, and federal office;
  2. Acting as a liaison between chartered Chapters and the College Democrats of America;
  3. Engaging in voter registration, education, and mobilization for the Democratic Party;  and
  4. Furthering civic engagement and participation among college students in the Democratic Party by providing the tools needed to grow and develop effective Chapter effectiveness.

Section C: Membership:

  1. Eligibility. Any currently enrolled student at a post-secondary educational institution in the State of Florida, who is either (1) a registered Democrat, or (2) supports the platform and candidates of the Democratic Party and wishes to be known as a College Democrat, shall be considered a member of the FCD.
  2. Non-Discrimination. Neither the FCD nor any of its Chapters or affiliates shall discriminate on the basis of gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, disability, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

Section D: Structure and Affiliation:

  1. Relationship with College Democrats of America. The FCD is a chartered State Federation of the College Democrats of America.
  2. Relationship with Chapters. Chapters are the fundamental unit of the FCD. The FCD shall serve as an umbrella organization and federation for Chapters in Florida. The FCD shall coordinate with the Chapters and act as a liaison between the Chapters and the College Democrats of America.
  3. Relationship with Florida Democratic Party. Florida College Democrats is the official Democratic Youth Caucus of Florida and college outreach arm of the Florida Democratic Party.
  4. Executive Board. The Executive Board is the official governing board and steering committee of the Florida College Democrats.

 

Article II: Executive Board – Powers and Duties

Section A: Composition. The Executive Board shall be composed of a President, Vice President, Chief Financial Officer, Secretary, Director for Political Affairs, Director of Communications, and Director of Membership.

Section B: Duties Generally. All Executive Board members shall maintain active involvement in all of the FCD’s activities and endeavors, assist in determining the goals and direction of the organization, attend Executive Board functions, and actively promote the policies and agenda of Florida College Democrats to all students and the public.

Section C: Duties of the President. The President shall:

  1. Be the chief executive officer of the FCD;
  2. Call to order all meetings, conventions and elections;
  3. Attend and preside over meetings of the Executive Board;
  4. Determine the goals and direction of the FCD;
  5. Appoint, with the approval of a majority of officers, any member of the Florida College Democrats as a non-voting member of the Executive Board;
  6. Organize conferences or conference calls at least once every month;
  7. Have signing authority over the Florida College Democrats’ bank account concurrently with the Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; and
  8. Provide all documents and records pertaining to his/her responsibilities to the newly-elected President.

Section D: Duties of the Vice President. The Vice President shall:

  1. Be the chief administrative officer of the FCD;
  2. Aid and direct Executive Board members as directed by the President;
  3. Assist in the implementation of the goals of the FCD as set by the Executive Board and the President;
  4. Assist the President in the conduct of his/her duties, and temporarily assume the duties of the President when the President is absent;
  5. Have signing authority over the Florida College Democrats’ bank account concurrently with the President and Chief Financial Officer; and
  6. Provide all documents and records pertaining to his/her responsibilities to the newly-elected Vice President.

Section E: Duties of the Chief Financial Officer. The Chief Financial Officer shall:

  1. Keep complete and accurate financial records of the FCD and manage the accounts of the FCD;
  2. Make financial reports of the FCD quarterly or upon the request of the Executive Board;
  3. Be responsible for the fundraising and financial development goals of the FCD as set by the Executive Board;
  4. Be responsible for the development of a budget cohesive with the Annual Strategic Plan;
  5. Have signing authority over the Florida College Democrats’ bank account concurrently with the President and Vice President; and
  6. Provide all documents and records pertaining to his/her responsibilities to the newly-elected Chief Financial Officer.
  1. Develop itemized budgets for all travel and events.
  2. Notify the Executive Board of all expenditures at the next regularly scheduled Executive Board Meeting.

Section F: Duties of the Director of Political Affairs. The Director of Political Affairs shall:

  1. Be responsible for the implementation of the political goals of the FCD;
  2. Be responsible for the FCD’s relations with all State, and national political organizations;
  3. Be responsible for relations with the campaigns of Democratic nominees for office;
  4. Be responsible for any local, state, or national advocacy initiatives undertaken by the Florida College Democrats; and
  5. Provide all documents and records pertaining to his/her responsibilities to the newly-elected Director of Political Affairs.

Section G: Duties of the Director of Communications. The Director of Communications shall:

  1. Act as the spokesperson of the Florida College Democrats;
  2. Be responsible for the implementation of the communications goals of the FCD as set by the Executive Board;
  3. Be responsible for the development of a Rapid Response Team;
  4. Be responsible for the communication of Statewide volunteer, internship, and employment opportunities in the political field to Chapters;
  5. Encourage and facilitate the promotion of the Democratic Party, the FCD, and its Chapters;
  6. Monitor and document coverage of the FCD and its Chapters in the media; and
  7. Provide all documents and records pertaining to his/her responsibilities to the newly-elected Director of Communications.

Section H: Duties of the Director of Membership. The Director of Membership shall:

  1. Be responsible for expansion and membership development of the FCD;
  2. Implement the membership goals of the FCD as set by the Executive Board;
  3. Encourage and facilitate chapters in seeking a faculty advisor and achieving registered student organization or equivalent recognition or status, if permitted by their institution;
  4. Assist new and existing Chapters with communication among other Chapters and the Executive Board;
  5. Conduct a census of the College Democrats chapters; and
  6. Provide all documents and records pertaining to his/her responsibilities to the newly-elected Director of Membership.

Section I: Duties of the Secretary. The Secretary shall:

  1. Maintain and archive minutes for all meetings of the Executive Board;
  2. Actively maintain the official database of chapter profiles and registration;
  3. Be responsible for the counting of votes, except in situation where the Secretary is running for office, in which case the Secretary shall appoint an alternate; and
  4. Provide all documents and records pertaining to his/her responsibilities to the newly-elected Secretary.

 

Article III: Executive Board – Elections, Term, Qualification, Assumption

Section A: Term of Office. The members of the Executive Board shall assume office three weeks after the adjournment of the meeting at which they were elected and shall serve until their successors take office.

Section B: Time and Place of Election. The election of officers shall occur at the Florida College Democrats’ Spring  Conference, held in accordance with Article V of this Constitution.

Section C: Eligibility for Office.   All members of the Executive Board shall be qualified electors in the state of Florida and currently enrolled student at a post-secondary educational institution in the State of Florida; except that any member of the Executive Board who at time of assuming office is a currently enrolled student at a post-secondary educational institution in the State of Florida but who during his or her term of office graduates or otherwise becomes no longer enrolled shall be eligible to remain in office. A candidate who runs unsuccessfully for one officer position may run for another officer position, of the candidate’s choosing, if he/she still meets all eligibility requirements as forth in Article 3, Section C and is properly nominated.

Section D: Assumption of Office. Before taking office all elected members of the Elective Board shall swear or affirm the following:
I, ____________, (swear or affirm) that I am a member of the Democratic Party; that during my term of office, I will not support the election of the opponent of any Democratic nominee nor will I oppose the election of any Democratic nominee; that I am qualified under the Constitution and Laws of the State of Florida and the Charter and Bylaws of the Florida Democratic Party to hold the office to which I have been elected; that I have not violated any of the laws of the State of Florida relating to elections or the Charter and Bylaws of the Florida Democratic Party.

Section E: Voting Rules. Each Chapter shall receive one vote in each election of each member of the Executive Board, cast by a designated representative of the Chapter. Each chapter shall determine itself the means by which the designated representative is chosen. Each chapter shall determine which candidates for whom it shall vote. Constitutional Amendments. During the Constitutional Amendment process each Chapter shall have one vote.”

Section F: Conduction of Election. The election shall be conducted by the outgoing President. If the President is a candidate, the Executive Board shall appoint by majority vote another College Democrat to conduct the election. There shall be a period of time set aside for speeches, questions for the candidates, and deliberation amongst voting chapters. During deliberation, the candidates running for the race in question shall leave the room. Voting shall be conducted by a roll call vote in alphabetical order. In the event no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a run-off election shall take place between the two candidates receiving the most votes in the previous ballot. In the event of a tie between three or more candidates, all of those candidates will participate in the run-off election.

Section G: Removal.  Removal of an officer shall only occur due to misfeasance, malfeasance, or nonfeasance in office, or due to ineligibility. To begin the process for removal, another member of the Executive Board must submit in writing to the Executive Board charges against the officer whose removal is sought. The officer in question must be offered an opportunity to respond in writing. Both parties shall be offered the chance to speak at the next meeting of the Executive Board. After a period of one week, if removal proceedings are not dropped, the issue shall be put to a vote. If two-thirds of the Executive Board vote to remove the officer, then a vote shall be submitted to Chapter presidents. If within two weeks of submission of the vote, two-thirds of Chapter presidents vote to remove the officer, the officer shall be removed.

Section H: Vacancy and Extended Leave. 

  1. Vacancy. If a vacancy occurs in the office of President, the  Vice President shall become the President. If a vacancy occurs in an office other than that of President, the President with the consent of two-thirds of the remaining members of the Executive Board shall appoint a successor.
  2. Extended Leave and Interim Officers. An officer who will be absent for more than one but less than four months may appoint an otherwise eligible College Democrat who, with a two-thirds vote of the Executive Board, shall execute the powers and duties of the office as an interim officer. The interim appointment shall automatically terminate and the absent officer shall resume his or her duties upon return of the absent officer. Absences extended for four months or longer shall be considered vacancies.

Section I: Exchanging Positions.

  1. Exchanging Position. Members of the Executive Board may not directly exchange their elected or appointed positions.
  2. Application Process. If a current member of the Executive Board wishes to become a candidate for a position other than his/her own, he/she must abide by a formally agreed upon process.

 

Article IV: Chapters

Section A: Recognition. College Democrats Chapters in the State of Florida shall be recognized by the FCD by such criteria as may be established by the Executive Board, and reviewed periodically. Recognition shall be required for chapters to participate in FCD programming, events, elections, and conferences. Provisional recognition of Chapters may be extended at the discretion of the Executive Board. The Director of Membership and Secretary shall maintain the official list of recognized Chapters on behalf of the Executive Board. There shall be no more than one official Chapter of College Democrats at any institution, excluding independent Chapters at satellite campuses.

Section B: Satellite Campuses. For the purposes of this Constitution, an “independent Chapter at a satellite campus” shall be a Chapter that maintains its own executive board and programming at a site of a post-secondary educational institution other than the main campus, which shall be defined as the campus that the greatest number of students are associated with.

Section C: Chapter Creation. To be recognized as a chartered chapter with the FCD, chapters shall complete an application provided by the Director of Membership. The application shall ask candidates pertinent questions concerning their eligibility for affiliation with the FCD. After receipt of a completed application, the executive board shall move to accept or deny the application by majority vote in a timely manner.

Section D: Cause for decertification. Cause for decertification shall be defined as misfeasance, malfeasance, or nonfeasance of the responsibilities of chapters set forth in this Constitution, or failure to abide by the platforms of the Democratic National Committee and Florida Democratic Party, found by two-thirds of the Executive Board.
Decertification procedure: To begin the process of decertification, a member of the Executive Board must charge a chapter with the reasons for its removal publicly at a meeting of the Executive Board. The President of the chapter or his or her designee must be offered an opportunity to speak at that meeting. The issue shall be put to a vote. Three-fourths of the Executive Board must vote for decertification for a chapter to be decertified.

 

Article V: Annual State Conferences

Section A: Time and Place. There shall be a Fall and a Spring Florida College Democrats State Conference held annually. The Fall Conference shall be held between September 1 and December 10. In odd-numbered years, the State Convention shall be held at the Florida Democratic Party State Conference; in even-numbered years, the State Convention shall be held on a campus with a Chapter. The Spring Conference shall be held between March 15 and May 1. The State Convention host may be either selected by the Executive Board or chosen from among bids solicited from Chapters by the FCD.

  1. Quarterly Meetings. The Florida College Democrats Executive Board shall meet with representatives from chapters after each scholastic semester for the purpose of planning the activities of the coming months.

Section B: Purpose. The purpose of the Florida College Democrats State Conferences shall be to provide an opportunity for College Democrats to meet other College Democrats from across the state; to unify members of the various Campus Chapters to better work together to promote Democratic candidates and value; to share ideas and to educate and train College Democrats in activism, leadership, and political training; and to allow College Democrats to interact with prominent Democrats.

Section C: Host Chapter. Any Chapter may host a State Conference, but no Chapter shall host two successive State Conferences. The host Chapter and the Executive Board shall work together to determine the scheduling and programming of the State Conference.

 

Article VI: Caucuses

The Executive Board may establish Caucuses to connect College Democrats with a common heritage, background, or interest, and may designate Caucus Chairs to lead such Caucuses. Such Caucuses may include but are not limited to a Black Caucus, Environmental Caucus, Hispanic Caucus, LGBT Caucus, and Women’s Caucus

 

Article VII: Committees

Section A: Committees: Any committees may be convened or disbanded at the discretion of the Executive Board.

Section B: Legislative Action Committee. There may be a Legislative Action Committee, which shall be responsible for developing and implementing FCD initiatives on pending legislation in the United States Congress, Florida Legislature, city and county governments, and other lawmaking authorities in the State of Florida. The Legislative Action Committee shall be made up of any FCD member of who wishes to serve on the committee. The Director of Communications shall be the chair of the Committee.

Section C: Campaign Action Committee. There shall be a Campaign Action Committee, which shall be charged with organizing and implementing campaign activities for the FCD. The Campaign Action Committee shall be made up of any member of the FCD who wishes to serve on the committee. The Chair shall communicate with the Florida Democratic Party, Florida House Victory, Florida Senate Victory, and other Democratic organizations and campaigns. The Director of Political Affairs shall be the chair of the Committee.

Section D: Chapter Treasurers’ Council: There shall be a Treasurers’ Council, which shall be charged with coordinating financial affairs among the Chapters and fundraising for the FCD. The Treasurers’ Council shall be made up of the treasurers or equivalent financial officers of all the Chapters. The Chief Financial Officer shall be the chair of the Committee.

Section E. Ad Hoc Committees: The Executive Board may establish ad hoc committees as necessary.

 

Article VIII: Ratification and Amendment

Section A: Amendment: Amendments to this Constitution may be proposed by any member of the Executive Board or from one or more members from two or more Chapters. A vote on any proposed amendments shall take place at the next FCD State Conference, and a two-thirds vote of Florida College Democrat Chapters present and voting shall be necessary for ratification.

Section B: Updating the Constitution: The constitution must be updated with new amendments immediately following close of the constitutional reform session.

 

Article IX: Expenditures

Section A: Expenditure Approval. All expenditures of the FCD over $100 shall first be approved by majority vote of the Executive Board. Any expenditure less than $100 that is not part of a budgeted item shall also be approved by the Executive Board by majority vote. The Chief Financial Officer has the authority to authorize emergency expenditures less than $100 without approval of the Executive Board. In the absence of the Chief Financial Officer the President has the authority to authorize emergency expenditures less than $100.

Section B: Budget. The Chief Financial Officer shall prepare a budget for each season, defined as follows:
Summer: June-August,  Fall: September-December, Winter: January-May. This budget shall be presented to the Executive Board electronically before approval. Budgets shall be approved by a majority of the Executive Board before the start of each season. No expenditures, including emergency expenditures, shall be permitted in a season without a passed budget, without approval by the Chief Financial Officer.

Section C: Auditing. Audits of a particular item may be requested of the Chief Financial Officer by any member of the Executive Board. These audits shall be prepared and presented for review in a timely manner not exceeding two weeks from the date of the receipt of the request.

Constitutional Committee

The Constitutional Committee is appointed to review and amend the constitution as deemed necessary. The interim Constitutional Committee Chair is Shane Furman, shane@flcollegedems.com.