Democratic Party of Milton Townhip

Monthly Meeting

Thursday June 24, 2021

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Meeting Called to Order at 7:30 pm by Jessica Hierbaum, Chair. 

 

We convened as a Zoom meeting due to the Covid-19 restrictions.

 

Other Officers on the call:  James Rospond, Treasurer; Dennis Terdy, Operations Officer, Garry Tomlinson and Marian Tomlinson, Larry Pitts,  Wyatt Merrit, Outreach Officer; and Nancy Hopkins, Secretary.

                                            

Quote: Jessica opened with this quote on the right to vote:.” By U.S. Attorney General, Merrick Garland.  “There are many things open to debate in America, but the right of all eligible citizens to vote is not one of them. The right to vote is the cornerstone of our democracy, the right from which all other rights ultimately flow”

 

Welcome: Jessica welcomed all on the call. No one was joining for the first time 

 

Approval of May Minutes:  Dennis Terdy moved and Steve Siemer seconded the motion to approve the May 2021 Minutes without reading as they are available on the DPMT Website. The minutes were approved. 

 

Brief Update from County Board 4 Member, Lynn LaPlante

She is Chair of the new County Board Fine Arts Committee. The Board has now approved funds for the first Fine Arts Festival at the DuPage County Fair Grounds to be held September 23—25.  Once launched, it is expected to drive economic development an annual event in DuPage County.

 

Treasurer’s Report: James Rospond, Treasurer

At the beginning of June there was a balance of $5,002. With minimal expenses the month ended with $5,172. There are 86 paid members and emails are sent regularly to keep memberships current.

 

Memberships are $25 per year ($20 for members of the DuPage Democratic Party) or $45 for two years:  

 

NEW BUSINESS:

 

Operations- Dennis Terdy

 

*New Initiatives: Dennis said he expects the membership efforts to expand to have more P.C.s paying membership dues.

*Summer Flyer:  Distribution will be delayed until early Fall because of the change in 2022 Primary voting dates. Great ideas for the flyer were brainstormed by the team. Contact Dennis if you would like to join the group. 

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*Nominations Committee: Since current secretary, Nancy Hopkins, is moving out of Milton Township, the Nominations Committee of Judy Pitts, Dennis Terdy and Gary Tomlinson, announced they recommended Steve Siemer for the position. He has agreed. The election will be at the regular July meeting.

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Outreach team- Wyatt Merrit:  July 4th Parades: Separate groups will march in each parade because parades are scheduled simultaneously this year. Wheaton allows our float and up to 25 people. Handouts are allowed. In Glen Ellyn, Dennis will drive his classic car to promote visual interest. Contact  wyatt.merritt@gmail.com to indicate your interest to march in either parade.   

 

Program: Zack Koutsky, Berto Consulting; Introduction to the Redistricting Process

Berto Consulting has been contracted to assist with redistricting of nine Illinois counties.

 

Zack gave a detailed explanation of the redistricting process. Redistricting is important because it determines what policy issues are possible to resolve.

Some points:

-- Currently, Illinois is using census numbers from the 2015-2019 because the 10 year numbers won’t be available until, perhaps, August. These numbers are more accurate than many would expect.

--With reapportionment, Illinois lost only one US House seat because we lost only 18,000 residents (many less than many people thought we had lost).

--While people often think unusually shaped districts are politically gerrymandered, often the shape is because of Federal and State laws. The four parameters are:

• Equal population per district

• Should be compact and contiguous

• Follow the Federal Voting Rights Act

• Follows the 2011 Illinois Voting Rights Act (which is even stricter than the Federal act).

He gave several examples of these in Illinois.

Re-drawing of districts has been completed at the state level. Counties are now working on internal district lines with the consultants. They must finish by the end of December 2021.

 

County Board Update-Greg Schwarze

 

1. The county has received $89 Million in Federal funds. Half for his year and half for next year while the money may be spent over six years. The amount of $15Million is approved for small business. More information is available on the DuPage County website.

2. The Board is working on adding an emergency 211 number for social service issues.

3. New radios will replace the outdated and malfunctioning radios in Police and Fire departments. 

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Forrest Preserve Update: Jeff Gahris

 

1. Survey is available on use of the forest preserve that the Planning Board put together. They would like people to respond.

 

Adjournment: Terra Costa Howard moved and Jeff Gaharis seconded the motion to adjourn.  The meeting adjourned at 9:05 PM.

 

Next meeting: The next meeting of the Democratic Party of Milton Township will be: Thursday, July 22 at 7:30pm. The format and Zoom link will be provided in the DPMT Newsletter.  Note: The September meeting will be in person at the Glen Ellyn Historical Museum.

 

Submitted by Nancy Hopkins, Secretary