DEMOCRATIC BLACK CAUCUS OF VIRGINIA
CALL TO REORGANIZATION

ISSUED OCTOBER 2, 2026

Pursuant to the authority provided by the Party Plan of the Democratic Party of Virginia and the resolution of the Steering Committee adopted October 2, 2026, the Democratic Black Caucus of Virginia will reorganize through a Virtual Process with a Zoom Call at 10:00 AM on Saturday, October 24, 2026, at which candidates will address the membership, followed by electronic voting. The purpose of the caucus will be to establish the caucus's membership and elect its Officers.

Section 10.2 of the Party Plan provides that the bylaws of a Democratic body are valid and binding when not in conflict with law or the Party Plan. Section 4.19(3)(b) requires every recognized caucus to have membership qualifications that include an affirmative act by the Democrat to join the caucus. The membership provisions of the Caucus bylaws contain no such affirmative act and, to that extent, are not binding. For the purposes of the 2026 Reorganization only, this Call supplies the membership and good standing provisions of the Caucus in the form Section 4.19(3)(b) prescribes. As approved by the Steering Committee, this Call also provides for voting by electronic ballot under Section V. In all other respects, the bylaws of the Caucus remain in force.

Article II, Section 1 of the Caucus bylaws provides that the membership "shall include" the categories it lists. That language is inclusive. No person who is a member under any category in Article II, Section 1 loses membership by reason of this Call. Every such person is asked to file the Membership Form so that the Caucus has a record of the membership.

I. Membership Filing:

Each person seeking to become a member of the DBCV shall file on the Membership Form linked in this Call. Filings shall be accepted upon the issuance of this Call and until 5:00 PM on Monday, October 19, 2026. Individuals who file the Membership Form in a proper and timely manner shall be considered “Members in Good Standing” and will have voting privileges in the reorganization caucus.

Because the Caucus does not maintain a current membership list, every person wishing to participate in this reorganization must file the Membership Form, including any person who considers themselves a current member.

A copy of the Membership list shall be provided to candidates who file in a proper and timely manner for Officer positions. Should anyone wish to opt out of communications from those candidates, they may either designate that option on the Filing Form or email [email protected] with that request.

The Membership Form shall request the filer’s name, contact information, congressional district of residence, and the declaration required by Section IV. It shall also ask the filer to indicate any Democratic office or organization with which the filer is affiliated, including membership on the State Central Committee. Those affiliation questions are informational, are used only for the confirmation required by Section VI, and do not affect whether a filer is a Member in Good Standing. The Form shall include an option indicating no such affiliation.

No filing fee and no payment of dues shall be required in order to serve as a “Member in Good Standing” for the purposes of this election.

Click here for the Membership Filing Form  [MEMBERSHIP FORM LINK]

II. Officer Filing:

Each person seeking to serve as an Officer of the DBCV shall file on the Officer Filing Form linked in this Call. Filings shall be accepted upon the issuance of this Call and until 5:00 PM on Monday, October 19, 2026. Only those candidates who have timely and properly filed on the Officer Filing Form shall have their names considered for election. An individual who files only the Officer Form in a proper and timely manner shall be treated as having filed both forms properly, and shall be considered a “Member in Good Standing” and a candidate for the relevant Officer position.

Slates will not be permitted.

The following positions shall be elected by the Membership:

Chair

Vice-Chair

Recording Secretary

Treasurer

Parliamentarian

A description of the roles and responsibilities of each Officer position may be found in Appendix 1.

Congressional District Representatives shall not be elected in this reorganization. Article II, Section 2 of the Caucus bylaws provides for their election by the local chapters within each congressional district. The Officers elected under this Call shall administer that process, and shall first determine which chapters are in good standing.

Click here for the Officer Filing Form  [OFFICER FILING FORM LINK]

III. Notice:

The Democratic Party of Virginia shall provide notice of this caucus by placement of a general notice of the caucus, including noticing the date, time, and manner of joining the Zoom Call, along with the Call to Caucus, on the Democratic Party of Virginia website and, if available, the DBCV website; by email notification to the members of the State Central Committee, the State Steering Committee, and the DBCV; and through other reasonable means that will disseminate information about the caucus to registered voters in the Commonwealth. A copy of the notice shall be filed with the Secretary of the Central Committee as provided in Section 9.4 of the Party Plan. In addition, reasonable actions shall be taken to promote participation in the caucus in accordance with the DPVA’s Affirmative Action provisions.

IV. Participation:

Every Democrat who is a registered voter is urged to file, attend, and participate. Each participant must sign a written declaration that he or she:

i.  Is a Democrat and not a member of any other political party;

ii.  Does not intend to support any candidate who is opposed to a Democratic nominee in the upcoming Election;

iii.  Has not participated in and will not participate in the nominating process of any other party for this election; and

iv.  Is registered to vote in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Affirmative Action:

It shall be the duty and goal of all members of the DBCV to seek out and encourage the broadest possible participation within the Caucus, and in its membership, of all duly qualified citizens without regard to race, sex, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnic identity, disability, or economic status.

The Democratic Black Caucus of Virginia has been informed that it may not endorse candidates in its own reorganization, consistent with Section 10.11 of the Party Plan. Membership in the Caucus is open to every Democrat who is a registered voter in the Commonwealth and who files the Membership Form. Neither race nor any other protected characteristic is a qualification for membership, for candidacy, or for voting in this reorganization.

V. Conduct of Caucus

The Reorganization shall take place in two parts.

i. Membership Zoom Call

Prior to the opening of the Virtual Voting Rolls, there shall be a Zoom Call administered by State Party Staff and chaired by the Vice-Chair for Rules as Reorganization Caucus Chair, who shall not be a candidate for any office of the Caucus. In this call, candidates for Chair shall have 5 minutes each to address the Caucus membership, and candidates for all other offices shall have 2 minutes each. If an election is not contested, for the sake of time, candidates may be recognized by the Chair but shall not speak.

ii. Electronic Voting

Ballots

After the Membership filing deadline, individuals who have filed to be members will be added to the ElectionBuddy voting system for electronic balloting. All individual candidates will appear in alphabetical order.

In advance of the Zoom Call, electronic ballots will be provided to all members via email with a link that allows them to enter their unique access key and password to view the ballot on their personal devices. The ballot may not be cast until the polls open.

The polls shall open at the conclusion of candidate remarks on Saturday, October 24, 2026, and shall close at 5:00 PM on Sunday, October 25, 2026. Any member may vote while the polls are open, whether or not the member attended the Zoom Call. There is no mail or proxy voting, and no ballot may be cast after the polls close.

Section 10.12 of the Party Plan prohibits secret ballots in votes by individuals serving in a representative capacity within the Democratic Party of Virginia, and applies to officially recognized constituency caucuses. The ElectionBuddy election shall therefore be configured so that each ballot cast is identified to the member who cast it. The record of ballots cast shall be retained by the Democratic Party of Virginia for one year and made available for inspection by any member of the Caucus on request.

Should voters have any difficulty accessing or navigating their ballots via their personal devices, they can reach out to [email protected].

Should a ballot be spoiled for any reason, a member may request that their ballot be canceled and they will be issued a new unique access key and password for that specific ballot. A record of the cancellation and issuing of a ballot shall be maintained in the ElectionBuddy system.

Voting

Members will be able to cast their votes while the polls are open. Once a member has completed their ballot, they will hit the submit button to cast their vote.

Vote Tabulation and Determination of Winners

Once the polls have closed, DPVA Staff shall compile a report and provide it to the DBCV with the election results. The candidate receiving the greatest number of votes for each office shall be declared elected. Results shall be distributed to the membership by email after the polls close.

In the event of a tie, the tie shall be broken by lot drawn by the Reorganization Caucus Chair, with notice to the affected candidates and an opportunity to observe.

VI. Composition of the Caucus

Section 4.19(2) of the Party Plan requires a recognized caucus to include members of the State Central Committee representing a minimum of three percent of the Central Committee general membership and representing at least four Congressional Districts. Following the close of the Membership filing period, DPVA Staff shall confirm that the membership meets this requirement and shall report the result to the Caucus and to the Steering Committee. If the requirement is not met, the filing period shall be extended by not fewer than seven (7) days, and additional notice shall be given.

VII. Challenges

Any challenge to the conduct or result of this reorganization shall be filed in writing with the State Chair within ten (10) days after the results are announced, shall include the information required by Section 11.1 of the Party Plan, including the provisions of the Party Plan or this Call alleged to have been violated, and shall be heard by the Steering Committee under Article 11 of the Party Plan. The Reorganization Caucus Chair shall not vote on any such challenge. Nothing herein limits any right under Section 5.6 of the Party Plan.

VIII. Following the Reorganization

Within thirty (30) days of taking office, the Officers shall file with the Democratic Party of Virginia the current bylaws, membership list, officers list, and action plan required by Section 4.19 of the Party Plan, and shall begin a revision of the Caucus bylaws sufficient to satisfy Section 4.19(3).

ADOPTED: OCTOBER 2, 2026

APPENDIX 1

Officer Descriptions

Drawn from Article III, Section 2 of the bylaws of the Democratic Black Caucus of Virginia.

The Chair shall preside over all regular called meetings and represent the DBCV on the Steering Committee of the Democratic Party of Virginia. In addition, the Chair shall have the authority to appoint or create new positions with the approval of the Executive Committee.

The Vice-Chair shall assume the office of the Chair upon a vacancy of that office, and shall support execution of programs as directed by the Chair and the Executive Board.

The Recording Secretary shall provide minutes from each regular meeting and provide correspondence to the membership on a regular basis. The Recording Secretary shall accept authority as appointed by the Chair and support execution of programs as directed by the Chair and the Executive Board.

The Treasurer shall be responsible for maintaining and reporting on the finances of the DBCV. A financial report shall be presented at each regular meeting. The Treasurer shall develop and present the annual budget to the membership at the last meeting of the year, and shall provide recommendations to the Executive Committee as to methods and schedules for conducting audits.

The Parliamentarian shall provide advice to the Executive Board and the membership as to procedures for conducting general and executive meetings, and shall administer and validate all elections.