Politics DNC panel pushes to scrap David Hogg's vice chair election

[Polybius]

Source: CBS News

A Democratic National Committee panel on Monday recommended redoing David Hogg and Malcolm Kenyatta's elections to party vice-chair, as Hogg faces a separate intraparty battle over his push to primary some Democratic politicians.

The DNC's credentials committee passed a resolution determining that Kenyatta and Hogg's election in February was incomplete due to violations of the party's charter, and the party should hold two new votes with only candidates who previously ran participating. The resolution will now be presented to the entire DNC.

Monday's resolution came in response to a challenge brought by Kalyn Free, a Native American committeeperson from Oklahoma who lost to Hogg — a 25-year-old Parkland school shooting survivor best known for his gun control advocacy — in one of the vice chair races. Free alleges that during February's election, the DNC improperly combined two questions and tallied votes together. In doing so, Free argues, the DNC used procedures that gave male candidates an advantage over female candidates, violating the party's charter.

During a more than two-hour meeting, committee members debated whether the election violated party rules. Representatives for Hogg and Kenyatta, a Pennsylvania state lawmaker, argued it's up to the DNC chair to interpret whether voting procedures are consistent with the rules. Kenyatta's representatives also argued holding a re-vote under new rules could "disenfranchise" party members who voted in February.

Read more: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/david-hogg-vice-chair-vote-dnc-democrats/

[Prairie Gates]

1. Anyway...

Last edited Tue May 13, 2025, 12:06 AM - Edit history (1)

[Fiendish Thingy]

2. Systems resist change

And will resort to ratfuckery if necessary.

[SunSeeker]

5. No, Kalyn Free, a Native American woman, wants the DNC rules complied with.

Her challenge to the DNC election dates from late February, well before the disagreement between Hogg and the party went public. It came right after she lost to Hogg and Kenyatta in an improperly conducted election.

Here is what she is asserting was done improperly:

DNC rules require that the national party's executive committee "shall be as equally divided as practicable" along gender lines. (If the committee includes members who identify as non-binary, they don't count for the purposes of gender division.) As DNC members met earlier this year for the multi-hour process of voting in a new slate of officers, the vote for the three vice chairs being the last position to be filled, it became clear that the party needed to elect at least one man to the final two vice chair spots to maintain the required gender equity on the seven-person executive committee.

The party then decided to hold a single vote to decide the final two slots instead of holding separate votes for each position.

Free claimed that the combined ballot unfairly benefited Hogg and Kenyatta, the only two men left in the race, because members had to vote for at least one man on the combined ballot. She argued it's possible they could have voted differently if the ballots were separated.

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/dnc-panel-recommends-redo-vote-david-hogg-malcolm-kenyatta-rcna206337

[slightlv]

4. It seems democrats are taking the wrong lessons

away from what the repubs have been doing. We want to *fight* them with new ideas, fresh methods, and a will to do the best for all people. Not stay rooted in outdated policies that no one else honors any longer. (sigh) That's just my opinion. But then, I really do like the fighting attitude this new younger people bring. Reminds me of what I was doing at that age. This is the age to do it; when you feel invincible. Wait too long, and not only age gets you -- but inertia does, too. It's not only alway wisdom that comes with age.

[SunSeeker]

6. This isn't about fighting "new ideas." This is about enforcing gender equity at the DNC.

The vote for the two empty seats was combined into one vote, instead of each seat being voted on separately. This disadvantaged one of the candidates, Kalyn Free, a Native American women. As I note above, DNC rules require that the national party's executive committee "shall be as equally divided as practicable" along gender lines. As DNC members met earlier this year for the multi-hour process of voting in a new slate of officers, the vote for the three vice chairs being the last position to be filled, it became clear that the party needed to elect at least one man to the final two vice chair spots to maintain the required gender equity on the seven-person executive committee.

The party then decided to hold a single vote to decide the final two slots instead of holding separate votes for each position.

Free claimed that the combined ballot unfairly benefited Hogg and Kenyatta, the only two men left in the race, because members had to vote for at least one man on the combined ballot. She argued it's possible they could have voted differently if the ballots were separated.https://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=3458178

And this isn't about David Hogg. As Malcolm Kenyatta stated:

I worked my a-- off to get this role and have done the job every day since I’ve held it,” he said in a long thread on X. “This story is complex and I’m frustrated—but it’s not about [David Hogg]. Even though he clearly wants it to be.”

https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/dnc-panel-recommends-redo-vote-david-hogg-malcolm-kenyatta-rcna206337

[jaymac]

7. too bad this situation was not reported earlier

Because it sure does look like DNC piling on on David Hogg. no diss to Kenyatta but we need more David Hoggs. did you hear his question to Kevin Mccarthy in Maher's overtime about for profit prisons? The DNC is hidebound and David Hogg is only one of the younger and smart dynamic persons the DNC has. We need their voices out there loud and clear, not to mention their passion.it would be a shame to remove him, it sends a bad message. Is there no way ms. Free could be appointed? because we need indigenous peoples voices heard also. Final thought, good going David Hogg, keep it up.

[LauraInLA]

8. Kalyn Free has been very vocal about this for quite a while. I guess we haven't been paying attention.

[slightlv]

13. Paying attention?

I've never even seen her name in writing, let alone heard anything about her before. As someone who helped elect Sharice Davids, I'm not exactly sitting in the back row of Native rights. So, then, the question becomes how is David getting his name and ideas out there, through all the noise, and she's not? I'm more interested right now in the Democratic party changing to become an active, engaged, competitive party again. We tried POC, we tried women, and the fact is we've got a raging racist, misogynistic 1/3 of the country who will never vote for a woman or POC, and probably won't ever vote a democrat into office, period. And then we've got a hell of a lot of apathetic Independents and Democrats who don't see that there votes, and ideas, count for crap. We need people who have voices and ideas like David's. Right now, I'd like to see them come from women... but I'm game for ANYBODY... who can cut through the noise and raise both expectations and excitement. We've got a country and an ideal to save right now, before anymore "progress" can be made.

[Skittles]

14. geezer here

and I agree - in any other job with "results" like the last election there would be immediate change....they need to pass the baton already, get out of the WAY

[Biglinda 52]

9. oh oh

There goes the midterms!

[HereForTheParty]

10. They'll do what they can to thwart AOC in a senatorial or presidential run as well

You read it here first.

[SunSeeker]

12. This has nothing to do with AOC. This is about Kalyn wanting a proper vote on Vice Chair. nt

[Linda ladeewolf]

11. Democrats have such a gift

For snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. We need Hogg in there, but I also think the DNC arranges things, in essence they rigged the vote, so they wouldn’t have a female in power. As someone above said, they are too bound by tradition and old ways of doing things. We need these young people and fresh ideas and new ways of doing things. Us old farts just don’t get it yet. I’ve learned a lot online. Like most young people I use my computer for everything. I just don’t watch television anymore, it’s hooked up to my computer, so I can watch movies or shows on it, I never see a commercial unless it’s on YouTube. I see billboards, I see YouTube commercials, sometimes. The young people know what’s going on.