2026 NYS Convention
Message
From the DRC Chair

It falls to us to open the first session of the 2026 New York State Democratic Convention. The DRC is usually focused, rightfully, on state issues and politics. 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. 

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. 

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