OUR PURPOSE:
The Licking County Democratic Club is a grassroots community organization dedicated to citizen education, service, and political action around the critical issues that face our community, our state, and our nation.
We work to support Democratic policies, candidates, and office holders who:
Advocate for the common good
Have high ethical standards, competence, and openness to diverse points of view
Affirm equality of opportunity for all Americans regardless of race, age, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or gender identity or presentation
Affirm everyone’s right to equal justice and protections under the law
Support equal access to health care, food, housing, education, and employment
Support thriving, safe communities with public works that include public transportation, good roads and bridges, clean air and water, and diverse cultural institutions
Ensure fiscal responsibility, fairness, and accountability
Are committed to transparency and truth in communication, disavowing disinformation
WHO WE ARE:
We are active citizens from the cities, villages, and townships of Licking County committed to the needs of middle class and working people and their families, women, minorities, veterans, the disabled, and the poor.
OUR CORE BELIEFS:
· GOOD GOVERNMENT- We support government that is both efficient and effective, protecting the individual and the community from threats posed by nation states, terrorists, crime, and natural disaster. Our public servants should serve no master except the people, administer the laws impartially, and relentlessly enforce the highest ethical standards.
· INVOLVED CITIZENRY - Civic participation is the essence of democracy. When citizens run for office, serve on local boards, and exercise their citizenship rights, they help their communities thrive and grow. As local Democrats, we encourage everyone to be involved in the issues that affect our community and beyond.
· VOTING RIGHTS - We are committed to the sacred principle of “one person, one vote” and will work to end partisan gerrymandering and make voting easier and more accessible by supporting automatic voter registration, same-day voter registration, early voting, and universal vote-from-home and vote-by-mail options.
· QUALITY PUBLIC EDUCATION- We believe that our children’s well-being and our community’s economic health depend upon excellent, innovative, and effective public schools that are adequately funded and held to high standards with teachers who are supported and well trained.
· SUSTAINABLE, DIVERSE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT- We believe government has a critical role in ensuring a strong and sustainable economy through infrastructure maintenance, job training programs, and necessary regulations. A fair, stable, and adequate tax and revenue system is fundamental to a viable community, and we believe paying taxes is a civic responsibility of individuals and businesses. We support a worker’s right to a living wage; a safe, fair, and equitable workplace; and the right to organize and bargain collectively. We support government programs that assist those not fully served by economic development such as youth, the elderly, and the disabled.
· HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS, HEALTHY COMMUNITIES: A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY- We believe all citizens have a right to health care, and that it is the government’s responsibility to ensure that individuals, businesses, and government work- collaboratively to provide quality health care for all citizens.
· SUSTAINABLE ENERGY, SAFE ENVIRONMENT- We strongly advocate for policies that encourage renewable energy and resource recycling and conservation; guarantee clean air, water, and food; and address issues of climate change. To protect the environment, we also call for responsible land use policies that preserve farmlands, support open lands, and contain urban sprawl.
· SUPPORT FOR OUR SERVICE MEMBERS AND THEIR FAMILIES- We believe that members of the American military should never be put in harm’s way except in direct defense of our nation or in an international peacekeeping mission. We believe that our government must ensure they and their families are treated with dignity and with the benefits to which they are justly entitled.
ENVISIONING THE FUTURE:
We envision a world where these core beliefs ensure that all Licking County citizens live in dignity, contribute to their communities, and pursue their potential so that all of us can thrive in this place we call home.
Let this living document serve as our call to engage meaningfully, respectfully, and cooperatively in the common work of creating positive change by using our skills, ideas, and energies in support of our community and the wider world.