Smyth County Democratic Party

Bylaws 2026

Article 1.  Name

The name shall be the Smyth County Democratic Party, referred to as "the Party".

Article 2. Mission

The Mission of theParty is to elect Democratic candidates to public office and to promote the core values of the Democratic Party. Among the core values of the party are that all people are created equal and entitled to the rights of a free society. The Party believes that the government is a vehicle for improving the lives of its citizens of Smyth County, protecting their rights, and extending employment, education and living opportunities for all. We are committed to addressing the challenges facing Smyth County,working to create a spirit of unity, progress, and social justice through proactive engagement, informed advocacy, and collaborative initiatives

        
Article 3. Organizational Authority and Purpose

Section 1.  The Party is organized under the authority of and in accordance with the Code of the State of Virginia and the Party Plan of the Democratic Party of Virginia currently in effect and the Nineth District Democratic Committee. These Bylaws provide for the organization and operations of the Party and shall remain in effect subject to amendment by the methods provided. Should any conflict occur between these bylaws and the Code of Virginia and/or the Party Plan, then the code or the Party Plan shall have precedence.

Section 2.  All activities of the Party shall be conducted in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Code of Virginia, the Party Plan, and these Bylaws.

Section 3. The Party shall have entire charge and control of all matters relating to elections within Smyth County. It shall be the duty of the Party to improve the Democratic organization within Smyth County to accomplish its Mission. 

Section 4. Whenever a caucus and/or convention is held by or within the County, it shall be the responsibility of the Officers of the Party,Steering Committee or a committee appointed by the Chairperson to see that each caucus and convention is held in accordance with the requirements of the Party Plan.

Section 5. To accomplish the Mission, the Smyth County Democratic Party shall include General Membership, Officers and a Steering Committee.

Article 4. General Party Membership

Section 1. General Membership shall include all voting eligible citizens who live in Smyth County who want to assist in accomplishing the Mission of the Smyth County Democratic Partymay meet monthly and may include Smyth County youth who are notof voting age but are interested in assisting in the activities of the Smyth County Committee.

Section 2.Party Membership shall also consist of the elected Officers, and any County Officials and elected Constitutional Officers who announced, campaigned, and were elected as members of the Democratic Party. 

Section 3. Ex Officio Members include Ninth (9th) District Committee Officers and any Democrat holding office that resides in Smyth County.

Section 4. Monthly Voluntary Contribution for membership are set and requested by theSteering Committee of the Smyth County Democratic Party but thecontributionscannot be required. Voluntary donations are accepted by the Party.

Article 5. Election of Party Officers 

Section 1. Officers of the Party shall be elected by an Assembled Caucus between the 1st of December of every odd-numbered year and the 15th of January of every even-numbered year. This meeting shall be open to any person who is registered to vote in Smyth County, Virginia. At the organizational meeting, Officers of the Smyth County Democratic Party will be elected. The permanent Chair of the Party will take nominations from the floor and all people who are members of the Party will vote for the following: Chair, Vice-Chair, Vice-Chair II,Secretary, and Treasurer. Those eligible to vote must be registered voters in Smyth County.

Section 2. Persons elected as Officers of the Party shall serve a term of two years from the organizational meeting date or until a proper subsequent election is conducted, whichever occurs later. equally divided between men and women where in accordance with the State Party Plan, the vote is by written ballot.

Section 3. Any such person, attending the Assembled Caucus may be elected, or if unable to be present at said meeting, may be considered for membership, who has completed andtimely filed an Officer Filing Formfor theExecutiveCommitteeofficefor the succeeding two-year term. Individuals will be nominated by current members of the ExecutiveCommittee except for the initial membership which will be chosen by a simple majority of those eligible to vote and present at the Committee’s first meeting. 

Section 4. The Executive Committee of the Party shall consist of the Officers.

Section 5. Vacancies of any Officer will be filled by rules of election of this Article. The open Office may be filled on a temporary basis by appointment of the Chair or the Acting Chair until a meeting of the Committee can be convened for such purpose.

Article 6. Duties Of Party Officers 

Chairperson: The Chairperson shall preside over Party meetings, ascertain that a quorum is present before calling any meeting to order for the conduct of business and be the primary point of contact for the organization. The Chair also has the authority to create working committees within the organization to handle specific tasks, organizational goals, advocacy and standing issues. Working committees may be dissolved by a majority vote of the Party. The Chairperson shall be the main contact with the Ninth District Chair and the State Party or when necessary, appoint a member of the Smyth County Democratic Party to be a representative.

Vice Chairperson:Perform such duties as may be assigned by the Chair to perform his or her duties, assume the duties of the Chair in the event of absence, and assume the duties of the Chair in the event of resignation or inability of the Chair to perform his or her duties until the election of a new Chair at the next regular meeting.

Vice-Chairperson II: Performs such duties as may be assigned by the Chair to perform his or her duties, assume the duties of the Chair in the event of the absence, of the Chair, and theVice Chairperson, assume the duties of the Chair, Vice Chairpersonin the event of resignations or inability of the Chair and Vice Chairperson to perform his or her duties until the election of a Chair or Vice Chairpersonat the next regular meeting.

Treasurer: The Treasurer shall be responsible for all monies of the Party, and act on behalf of the Committee to collect all monies and pay all proper bills which must be approved by the Committee and itemized receipts presented before such payment. No two (2) partychecks may be written to cash. The Treasurer shall submit a written financial report at each meeting andassist with fundraising efforts and initiatives.The Treasurer, Chairperson and one Steering Committee member shall audit the books and all records of the Party annually.

Secretary: The Secretary shall keep the minutes of every meeting of the Party, maintain attendance records, keep all records organized in an orderly fashion and have minutes of all previous meetings at each regular meeting. The Secretary shall also serve as the organizational media manager unless delegated to another officer or individual Committee which constitutes sending mass emails, managing official social media accounts, publishing notices in print media, and any other forms as delegated by the committee.

Vice Chairperson 2: This position may be used as necessary to share responsibility of duties with the Chairperson.

Article 7. Steering Committee 

Section 1. The purpose of the Steering Committee is to plan, organize, mobilize, fund raising activities and assist the Party in carrying out the Party Mission.

Section 2. The Party Chairperson shall appoint, the Chairperson of the Steering Committee or the Steering Committeemayelect a Chairperson for the Steering Committee. The Steering Committee shall elect among themselves aChairperson,Vice-Chair and Secretaryon the samedate as the Smyth County Party Officers, or within the week.

Section 3. The Steering Committee is composed of Members of the Smyth County Democratic Party and may have up to 20 members. The distribution of the Steering Committeemembership is preferably represented by individuals from the 12 Smyth County Precincts from the seven magisterial districts in Smyth County which are the Districts of Park, Rye Valley, Saltville, North Fork, Chilhowie, Atkins, and Royal Oak.

Section 4. The Steering Committee may permit one or more members under the age of 18 to be a member of the Steering Committee to provide advice to the Committee but they do not have a vote.

Section 5. The Steering Committee Chairpersonshall have the authority to appoint subcommittees to accomplish the Mission of the Party.

Section 6. The Steering Committee activities shall be reported monthly to the Party Membership.

Article 8. Meetings 

Section 1. The PartyMembership shall meet at least four (4) times each year unless otherwise altered at the discretion of the Steering Committee or Party Membership.Dates of the meeting shall be set by the Steering Committee and/or Party Membership.

Section 2. The SteeringCommitteeshall meetwhenever necessary to execute or plan party business. 

Section 3. Thirty percent of the members presentat theMass Meeting, or the Steering Committee shall constitute a quorum at meetings. 

Section 4. A minimum of a ten (10) daynotice shall be provided by the Party orthe Steering Committee Chair, which may use email, phone, website or any electronic means to interested persons.

Section 5. A simple majority of those present and voting shall be necessary for the passage of any motion or resolution at the Party Meeting or Steering Committee Meeting unless otherwise noted.

Section 6. When necessary, voting may be conducted by email or electronic means.

Section 7. “Robert’s Rules of Order” shall govern all Democratic Party Meeting, Steering Committee, Executive Committee, or Special Committee meetings. 

Article 9. Removal 

Section 1. Removal Criteria an Officer and/or elected Member may be removed from Steering Committee or Party Membership for (a) Failure to attend three (3) consecutive meetings without proper excuse and notice, (b) For malfeasance, (c) For supporting any candidate in opposition to the Democratic nominee running from the Ninth Congressional District, and (d) For ceasing to be a registered voter in the Ninth Congressional District.

Section 2.  Removal Process and Appeal

Before making a recommendation regarding the removal of aMember or Officer, the Committee shall provide the Member or Officer with ten (10) days written notice of the charge to remove and an opportunity for a hearing before the Committee or Party. The removed Member or Officer may appeal the Committee decision to the Ninth District Committee.

Article 10. Vacancies 

Vacancies of Party Officers shall be filled at any regular meeting of the Party Membership. Nominations will be accepted from the floor and voted on by a majority of members present. 

Article 11. Amending Bylaws 

These Bylaws may be amended by two-thirds of the Smyth County Democratic Party members present and eligible to vote after presentation at a meeting, of which members were given advance notice by at least ten (10) days. Bylaws must be re-examined and reapproved every two years after reorganization.

Article 12. Precedence Of Laws 

If any provision of the Bylaws conflicts with the Democratic Party of Virginia Party Plan, Federal or State laws, said plan and/or laws shall supersede.

Article 13.Smyth County PartyEndorsements

The Smyth CountyPartymay not formally endorse contested candidates for office prior to their nominations. The Smyth County Partyalso may not endorse during the reorganization process or officer elections at any level of the Democratic Party of Virginia.

Article 14.

All officers, steering committeemembers and sub-committeemembers, at the expiration of their term of office, when removed under Article 9, Section 1. or when their offices are declared vacant, shall deliver to their successors or the Party chair all books, papers, moneys and other property in their possession belonging to the Smyth County Democrat Party. Delivery should be soon as possible but no later than (10) ten days.

If non-compliance of Article 14, by the Officer, steering committee and subcommittee then, Article 8 DEMOCRATIC COUNTY AND CITY COMMITTEES, Section 8.9 Removal will be invoked.

Adopted     August 20, 2025

Amended   July 19, 2026