Everything you ever wanted to know
about being a PC but were afraid to ask
1. What is a Precinct Committeeman?
The precinct committee representative is the main liason and relationship builder between the party and the voters in that precinct.
2. How do I become a PC?
If you are interested in becoming a PC, call 630-834-1461 and we will help you. In short, the two ways in which one becomes
a PC are:
A) Being elected
The best way to become a PC is to be elected in the February Primary. In order to get on the ballot, you have to collect a
minimum of 10 signatures from registered voters in your precinct and you must also be a registered voter in that precinct.
B) Getting appointed
In precincts in which no one is elected, the chair of the township party organization with approval of the county party chair may
appoint someone to serve until the next primary; such appointees need not live in their precincts. For help with this please contact us.
3. What if there's already a PC in my precinct?
If there is an existing committee member in your precinct, you have a few options. You can get on the ballot for the next election to run
against that person, but we would only recommend doing this if you feel that the current person isn't doing an effective job. Alternatively,
you can volunteer to assist the current committee person in your own precinct, thus doubling his or her effectiveness, or you can be
appointed to "loop," i.e. work a different precinct that doesn't have an elected committee member. Neither of these last two options
will allow you to vote for party leadership, appoint election judges, etc., but you will be doing the important work of helping to elect
Democrats.
If you don't know whether there's already a Democratic PC in your precinct, click here and input your address:
http://cms.dupageelections.com/pages.asp?pageid=228
4. What are the primary responsibilities?
PCs are relationship managers in their precincts. This means convincing voters to go to the polls and support good Democratic
candidates, and listening to their concerns so that they can be conveyed to candidates and party leaders. There are various means
through which PCs support candidates: meeting voters door-to-door, sending out letters or postcards, making phone calls, or hosting
neighborhood get-togethers at their homes or nearby public places.
Note that you don't need to support every Democratic candidate. Voters in your precinct need to know that you are sincere, that you
are telling them to vote for a candidate you really believe in. If you have a problem with a certain candidate then use your time to
support a Democrat in a different race.
5. How much time will it take?
Generally not a lot. A PC might walk his or her precinct once or twice per election. Walking a precinct might take six to eight hours.
You can reduce the workload by recruting extra volunteers in your precinct; see below.
6. Will I be working alone?
Hopefully you won't. The most effective PCs are usually those who have recruited extra volunteers to help. Larry Quick of the
Quick 'n Clean Foundation has put together a plan for building dynamic precinct organizations.
See http://www.qnc.us/dems/candidates.html
7. Why are PCs important?
The precinct committee person is vital in getting local Democrats elected to office. In 2002, candidate Tom Berry ran against
Congressman Henry Hyde, and lost in every precinct. In 2004, Christine Cegelis very nearly defeated Hyde getting close enough to
force him into retirement. What made the difference? One factor was the dedicated volunteers Cegelis had in selected
precincts; she won every precinct in which she had such a volunteer.
Besides working their precincts, Democratic PCs vote to elect the leadership of the county and township Democratic organizations.
This is vitally important as the performance of the party leadership has a huge impact on whether Democrats get elected. PCs may
also nominate election judges in their precincts.
8. Is there any kind of training?
Operation: Turn DuPage Blue conducts Precinct Committeeman trainings every two months. Our next training is July 21st. We are
also sponsoring a more extensive training through Wellstone Action coming to the College of DuPage on August 3-5. Spaces may
still be available. Go to www.wellstone.org and click on TRAINING PROGRAMS to find out more.
9. How long is a PC term?
Elected PCs serve for two years. Appointed PCs serve until the next election; they may then be re-appointed anytime after the county
party convention at which the party officers are elected.
10. Why the gender-biased terminology?
"Precinct committeman" is the official name for the position, as defined by Illinois state law. Some people are working to change the
name to something that isn't gender-biased, but until this can be accomplished "precinct committeman" is the legal name.
