Monday, June 2, 2008
Press Contact: Claire Conlon, (916) 595-3090
National Young Democrats of America Conference in Nashville
Young Voter Revolution Takes Hold in Nashville and Nationally
Young Democrats went to the streets of Music City USA
NASHVILLE, TN – This weekend, at the Young Democrats of America Spring National Conference in Nashville, hundreds of Young Democrats learned the skills needed to organize their communities for victory in November. Over one hundred Young Dems then took to the streets and got over three hundred people to pledge to vote for Democrats.
"We are thrilled to be in Tennessee as we build momentum for the 2008 general election," said YDA President David Hardt. "The Young Voter Revolution is underway, with young people voting – and voting for Democrats – in record numbers." Tennessee Young Democrats President Seannalyn Brandmeir added, "The Tennessee Young Democrats are excited to host Young Democrats from across the country in Nashville. This is an exciting year for young people as we have seen in the last primary with young people quadrupling in voter turnout in Tennessee. So it's the perfect place to come together to engage even more young people."
The afternoon pledge-to-vote scavenger hunt followed a luncheon with Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen who discussed his rise from an unknown candidate to one of the most popular Governors in either party. Then YDA kicked-off the 2008 YDA campaign by creating vote pledge goals for paid campaign programs in targeted states, local Young Democrats chapters, and constituency caucuses. Young Democrats were broken out into teams and given an hour to get people on the streets to pledge to vote in Downtown Music City USA.
Members of the Young Democrats are anxious to return to their home states to translate skills into action, as they engage thousands of young people to vote in upcoming elections. Young workers, young families, college and high school students will be the margin of victory for Democrats up and down the ballot, in red and blue states, in November.
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The Young Democrats of America (YDA) is the largest youth-led, national, partisan political organization. YDA mobilizes young people under the age of 36 to participate in the electoral process, influences the ideals of the Democratic Party, and develops the skills of the youth generation to serve as leaders at the local and national level. With 2,000 chapters in all 50 states, the Young Democrats of America works to engage young people in Democratic politics and mobilize the youth vote.
The Tennessee Young Democrats (TNYD) strive to stimulate in young people an active interest in governmental affairs, to provide opportunities for its members to acquire practical political experience in the operation of the Democratic Party, to represent the point of view of Democratic young people in the counsels of our party, to recruit new members and provide a ready means of entry into the party for all young people, to actively nourish a climate protective of minority rights and conducive to the practice of democratic liberties and to foster, encourage and support the candidacy of qualified young people for public office and positions of responsibility within the Democratic Party.