2017 Report of the South Carolina Democratic Party Credentials and Rules Committee
Eric Graben of Greenville and Mel Hart of Calhoun, Co-Chairs
The committee met on April 13, 2017 at 5:30 pm and adopted the following recommendations to the Convention:
Proposed Additions and Revisions to the SCDP Rules as Amended on April 30, 2016:
IV. STATE PARTY ORGANIZATION IV.1. OFFICERS
A. VI.1 State
Amendment of the fourth sentence of the third paragraph of Section VI.1, effective for the 2018 County Party
Officer elections to read in its entirety as follows:
“It shall also elect the county chair and three vice-chairs who shall satisfy the following criteria:
the first vice-chair shall be a person of a gender not the same as the chair; the second vice-chair
shall be a person of a race not the same as the chair; and the third vice-chair shall be a person
between the ages of 18 and 36.
B. VI. State
Amendment to the SCDP Rules to amend Section VI.2 by adding the following proviso to the end of the last
sentence in the second paragraph of such section:
“; provided however, that no Alternates may be added during the period starting on the tenth
day prior to the date of any State Convention and ending upon the conclusion of that State
Convention.
C. XIV. Precinct Reorganization
For the year 2018 only, South Carolina’s county Democratic Parties will be able to choose between one of the
following two methods of reorganizing. This choice must be made by September of 2017. Following the 2018
process, the State Executive Committee will choose one of these methods to be used in subsequent years.
1. The first method is the traditional process set forth in our 2016 Party Rules.
2. The second method is as follows:
a. By November 15 of odd-numbered years, each incumbent county chair, with the advice and consent
of the county executive committee, shall appoint a nominating committee. This committee will use its
best efforts to select, for each precinct in the county, a member of the county executive committee
and where possible an alternate
No later than one week before the county convention, this list of nominees for membership on the
county executive committee will be distributed to the current committee members and precinct
officers, to the county’s Democratic elected officials, and to such other Democrats as may be
identified and contacted.
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3. County conventions will be held on a date and time set by the State Executive Committee.
a. Any registered voter in the county who considers himself or herself to be a Democrat may attend
the county convention and, upon registering and providing whatever information is required, will be
a voting delegate of the convention.
b. Election of members of the county executive committee will take place at a time set forth on the
convention agenda.
c. When the slate of executive committee members is proposed, any voting delegate may submit her
or his own name to the convention to be elected a member of the executive committee from his or
her precinct.
4. The new county executive committee members will take office immediately upon their election.
a. The first meeting of the newly constituted county committee must take place no later than 21
days following the county convention.
b. The county Executive Committee members will be charged with building an organization within
their own precincts where such an organization is deemed by the county committee to be
useful.
5. Other business at county conventions will be conducted as in the past, including the election of officers and
delegates to the state Democratic convention.
6. The state Executive Committee must, by September of 2017, develop and pass a set of regulations to be used
to carry out this plan. Such regulations must include, but are not limited to, timing of the process, makeup
and conduct of nominating committees, determine qualifications, methods of publicizing the process, conduct
of elections within county conventions, and such other details as may make this new process successful for
those counties using it. No later than September of 2018 the state committee must thoroughly evaluate this
process and decide whether it is to be used in every county in 2020, or whether the old process will be used
statewide.
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