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<h2>Message from the Chair</h2>I want to share my opening remarks from the DRC meeting at the state convention:

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<h2>Message from the Chair</h2>As your new Chair, I want to thank everyone who attended this year's Conference in Albany on April 26 and 27. You are the ones who make the conference happen by coming together to share your energy and experiences with each other.

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Federal Elected Officials

U.S. Senator

Chuck Schumer

Kirsten Gillibrand

DRC Counties Represented: Ulster (part)

U.S. Congressman (NY-18)

Pat Ryan

DRC Counties Represented: Tompkins, Cortland (part), Broome, Chenango, Otsego, Delaware, Sullivan, Ulster (part), Greene, Columbia, Rensselaer (part)

U.S. Congressman (NY-19)

Josh Riley

DRC Counties Represented: Schenectady, Montgomery (part), Saratoga (part), Rensselaer (part)

U.S. Congressman (NY-20)

Paul Tonko

DRC Counties Represented: Cayuga (part), Cortland (part), Madison, Oneida (part)

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John Mannion

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It falls to us to open the first session of the 2026 New York State Democratic Convention. The DRC is usually focused,&nbsp;rightfully, on state issues and politics.&nbsp;But while New York State remains strong today, our nation is in peril.I'd like us to begin with moment of silence for Renee Nicole Good and Alex Pretti, who were executed last month by our Federal government in Minneapolis. ....Thank you.&nbsp;The fathers of my generation went to Europe as young men to defeat fascism. They came home to create the longest run of peace and prosperity in the history of the western world.Europe in the 1940s was lucky. America came to save them.But today fascism has come to America. There's nobody to save us except ourselves.We know they're going to send secret police into our cities to terrorize our voters into not voting. We know they're going to seize and destroy ballots where they can. We know they’re going to lie, cheat and steal every vote possible.But they still can't be everywhere. Our job is to surprise them and win in places like rural New York where nobody expects us to win. In the next three weeks, our job is to recruit a candidate for every ballot spot, from tax collector to Congress, because we can't win any race we don't enter.&nbsp;I don't care whether they're progressive Democrats, moderate Democrats or conservative Democrats, as long as they're willing to run on our line and caucus with our party when they win. We need to get them on the ballot, fund them as well as possible, knock doors for them, and do all we can to support our election workers this fall.We know how to do this. We know that many of our voters are unhappy with the other party. If we do our job, we will win everywhere in November. --Bill Thickstun

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The DRC is the Voice of NYS Counties with Populations under 250,000

NY State Assembly members for DRC Counties

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Dana Levenberg

NY Assembly member (AD-100)

Paula Kay

NY Assembly member (AD-103)

Sarahana Shrestha

NY Assembly member (AD-104)

Jonathan Jacobson

NY Assembly member (AD-106)

Didi Barrett

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NY Assembly member (AD-108)

John McDonald

NY Assembly member (AD-110)

Phil Steck

Montgomery (part), Schenectady (part)

NY Assembly member (AD-111)

Angelo Santabarbara

Saratoga (part), Warren (part), Washington (part)

NY Assembly member (AD-113)

Carrie Woerner

NY Assembly member (AD-115)

Michael S. Cashman

NY Assembly member (AD-119)

Marianne Buttenschon

NY Assembly member (AD-123)

Donna Lupardo

NY Assembly member (AD-125)

Anna Kelles

NY Assembly member (AD-127)

Albert Stirpe

NY Assembly member (AD-140)

William Conrad

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The Democratic Rural Conference of New York State

In these dark and difficult days for our nation, what can individuals do?We can work to elect local Democratic candidates to office. I understand that the effort can sometimes feel discouraging in Republican towns and counties. But it’s far more important here than in areas where Democrats are more likely to win. With every door we knock and every call we make, we are defending democracy. Connecting with voters is valuable even when local candidates lose, because every vote we win this year is also a potential vote next year in state and federal elections.We are the ones--Democrats on the ground in rural counties--who know how to do this. We have flipped rural Congressional districts in 2009 (NY-21, Bill Owens), 2011 (NY-26, Kathy Hochul), 2018 (NY-22, Anthony Brindisi), and 2024 (NY-19, Josh Riley and NY-22, John Mannion). This fall I urge you to support Michael Cashman (<a href="https://cashmanforassembly.com/">https://cashmanforassembly.com/</a>) who is defending a Democratic state Assembly seat (AD-115) in a November 4 special election.We win by knocking doors, making calls, donating to candidates, and attending any event where we can listen to the concerns of voters. We know that we can’t lead people forward from twenty miles in front of them. We have to meet them where they are and lead them forward from there. We win by working with Democratic committees, Unions, Indivisible groups, community organizations, and by appealing not just to Democrats but also to independents and moderate Republicans.In our counties, the other side is never far away. They’re our neighbors, our friends, our own family members. We can only win by treating everybody respectfully. Just as the customer is always right in business, the voter is always right in politics. When they’re wrong about facts, it’s not useful to correct them. They’ll just tune us out. What we can do is respond to the anxiety and pain they’re feeling. Feelings are never wrong. We also can’t reproach them for decisions they’ve made in the past. We have to treat them with forgiveness and compassion, not judgement. That can sometimes be hard. But it’s the only way we can win.Our differences are not as great as we've been led to believe by the forces that want to divide us. Like all voters, majorities of rural voters support the work of local government: public safety, maintaining roads and bridges, economic development in their communities.Beyond that, they support preserving Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and the Affordable Care Act. They support veterans. They support Ukraine. They support the Post Office. They support public education. They support raising the national minimum wage. They would welcome good union jobs building housing, wind turbines, solar panels, and improving the electrical grid. They support campaign finance reform. They support higher taxes on the wealthy, to reduce inequality and restore basic fairness to our economy. These are our issues.As I said in April, New York State is a microcosm of the nation. We have a progressive coastal city, politically mixed suburbs, and a more conservative heartland. When we win across rural New York, we'll know how to win across America. --Bill Thickstun

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Lea Webb

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<h2>Registration For 2026 Conference Now Open</h2><a href="https://drcny.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/drcny/event.jsp?event=47&amp;">View Agenda and Register Here Now!</a>

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<h3>We are committed to strengthening the Democratic Party throughout rural New York in order to enhance economic prosperity and quality of life across the state.</h3>The Democratic Rural Conference represents the 47 counties in New York with populations under 250,000. Democratic Party County Chairs and State Committee Members from those counties are DRC voting members. All counties regardless of size cast an equal weighted vote in DRC elections. Each county pays annual membership dues for its voting members, currently set at $90 per county by the board. The DRC welcomes other registered Democrats to join us as Associate Members for $10 per year. Associate Members receive all DRC communications, are invited to all DRC events, may serve on DRC committees and may attend board meetings.<h3><a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/democratic-rural-conference-of-new-york-state-1?refcode=email&amp;amount=10&amp;refcode2=assoc_memb" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">CLICK HERE</a> to become an Associate Member of the New York State DRC by making a $10 annual membership donation.</h3>

<h2>Message from the Chair</h2>In these dark and difficult days for our nation, what can individuals do?We can work to elect local Democratic candidates to office.

2026 NYS Convention Message From the DRC Chair

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The DRC Connects NYS Counties with Populations under 250,000. We are committed to strengthening the Democratic Party throughout rural New York in order to enhance economic prosperity and quality of life across the state.
The Democratic Rural Conference represents the 47 counties in New York with populations under 250,000. Democratic Party County Chairs and State Committee Members from those counties are DRC voting members. All counties regardless of size cast an equal weighted vote in DRC elections. Each county pays annual membership dues for its voting members, currently set at $90 per county by the board.

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