Recommendations of the

Coalition to Replace Jay Jacobs

Proposal to Governor Hochul

Recommended Party Reforms

Recommended Party Chair Job Description/Qualities

Overview:

Responsibilities:

Qualifications and Experiences:

Proposal to Governor Hochul

We, the 1,700 members of the Coalition to Replace Jay Jacobs, comprise a statewide body of moderates, liberals, and progressives. Elected officials, State and County Committee delegates, grassroots activist leaders and volunteers, and outraged voters from across the Democratic spectrum have joined our movement.

With one resounding and collective voice, we again call on Governor Hochul to work with us to replace New York State Democratic Party Chair Jay Jacobs and propose that we rebuild as an energized, professionalized, and mission-driven New York State Party.

Our proposal for change is  the direct, inevitable result of years of ineffective leadership under Jay Jacobs, demonstrated by 5 critical failings:

1. Handing Radical Republicans Our Keys to the House. The New York Democratic Party utterly and unacceptably failed to protect the United States House against radical Republicans last November. After egregious and damaging losses , we must hold the Party Chair accountable.

• Four Congressional seats flipped to Republicans by wide margins, two in the Party Chair’s own Nassau County
• New York underperformed Democrats nationally in 2022 across every type of race
• No statewide Congressional delegation ran further behind their 2020 level than New York
• Our Governor barely eked out a win – running behind Biden’s 2020 numbers by 17 points
• We lost numerous New York Assembly and Senate seats in reliably Democratic districts we should have held

2. Causing Unforced Errors and Damage. In 2021, three democracy-strengthening ballot proposals^[1] gave our Party and our state a once-in-generations chance to establish fairer elections, truly representative maps, and a higher level of civic engagement. All three went down in  defeat, paving the way for a redistricting process that ultimately contributed to New York Democrats’ losses in 2022.

• Republicans spent $3 million to defeat these proposals and disenfranchise our voters^[2]
• Jay Jacobs sat out the contest, refusing to allow the party to spend or do anything to win on these measures^[3] 
• This lack of support was so extraordinary that the Democratic State Senate Campaign had to divert funds from its candidates to fight for passage^[4] 

3. Undermining Party Candidates. New Yorkers deserve a State Party Chair who will unequivocally focus on improving the lives of New Yorkers by helping every Democrat running against a Republican to WIN. Though he claims to be committed to the Party’s success, Jay Jacobs has repeatedly sided against fellow Democrats, and even supported Republicans over Democrats.

• In August 2022, despite the incumbent’s popularity and easier path to victory, Jacobs donated the maximum amount allowed—$2,900—to a county legislator running in the Democratic Primary to unseat Representative Jamaal Bowman of Westchester County.^[5] 
• Jacobs not only refused to back primary winner India Walton for Buffalo Mayor, but he also  likened supporting her to supporting David Duke in the press^[6].

4. Hollowing Out the Party. Jay Jacobs has declined to professionalize the New York State Democratic Party to build sustained progress year-round. Jacobs has left crucial communities of our voters chronically unengaged, allowing too many Republican candidates to go unchecked.

• Throughout swing districts in New York last year, the lack of funding and field support was evident in no yard signs, disorganization, under-funded candidates, and last-second voter contact; to quote one New York Senator, the State Democratic Party “was nowhere to be seen.”^[7]
• Year-round, sustained attention to voters’ needs and concerns may have helped protect New York Democratic candidates who lost by small margins.
• Tiny, purple New Hampshire has a professionalized, year-round Democratic Party four times the size of New York’s, with 16 full-time staff members. New York maintains only four^[8]

5. Perpetuating Infighting (and Narratives of Division). The New York Democratic Party can no longer afford to waste our precious time and energy on division. Yet, Jay Jacobs continues using his position and  wealth to perpetuate the narrative of Moderate vs. Progressive. He falsely lashes out at his critics as “far-left,” while acknowledging that most people hear this as divisive^[9] 

• Many candidates who lost in the five Biden districts were center-left, including Bridget Fleming, Josh Riley, and Robert Zimmerman–these Moderate Democrats paid highly for Jay Jacobs’ ineffectual leadership
• So did the hundreds of Moderate and Center-Left grassroots volunteers who showed up all year to knock doors for these and other candidates

New York Deserves Better. Now.

We, the Democrats of New York, deserve and demand a State Party that works as hard for us as we do for our party candidates, and with an equally singular focus on winning. We seek a State Party that operates like a non-profit with a guiding mission, not the personal apparatus of any elected official.

Jay Jacobs pretends the State Party is required to function how he runs  it – but his way is not the only way, the best way, or even a functional way. His proposed modifications to the State Party fail to meet the moment, reflecting an inadequate, limited vision that cannot affect the transformation required. New York’s grassroots have proven^[10] that reform is possible, and other states have proven that true reforms to State Democratic Party operations can pave the way to great things.

It is self-evident that Jay Jacobs cannot lead the transformation within our party that must happen this year to win in 2024. We cannot run the risk of any Republican victories at the Presidential, Congressional, or state levels, which would pose unprecedented threats to our freedoms, our democracy, and even our security as a nation. The House Majority PAC clearly agrees, building its own, redundant infrastructure  to ensure a better outcome in 2024, rather than investing its $45 million war chest directly with the New York State Party, to be managed by a proven-ineffective Chair.^[11] 

Good leaders take full responsibility for the failures on their watch, and don't waste time defensively pointing fingers. They look for solutions, work collaboratively to create them, and include everyone in implementing effective strategies, exhibiting a real desire to win.

We reiterate our call to Governor Hochul to work with us to find and elect a real party leader who:

• Embodies actual democratic values
• Unites all wings of our party
• Will ensure progressive, fair, and dedicated leadership at every level of government

New Yorkers deserve no less.

The Coalition to Replace Jay Jacobs

Recommended Party Reforms

After hearing from Wisconsin, Michigan, and Ohio state Democratic Parties, and holding over a dozen internal coalition meetings the Reform Committee of the coalition identified elements of successful state parties and broad reform proposals for the NYS Democratic Party.

ELEMENTS OF SUCCESSFUL STATE PARTIES

We learned that the path to successful reform follows a fairly similar structure.

CRITICALLY: In both Michigan and Wisconsin, State Party Leadership supported the following reform efforts:

• Defining the State Party Chair as a full-time position
• Implementing a statewide, year-round organizing program engaged in electoral and issue advocacy.

• Both programs hired at least 20 paid organizers from the communities where they worked and provided a living wage.
• Among other responsibilities, organizers train local volunteers to support voter outreach and community organizing efforts. This training and outreach included deep canvassing on local issues, and participating in a statewide “day of action” once a month.

• Building a purposeful, meaningful relationship with organizations across the state that focus on issue and/or electoral advocacy. This includes 501(c)(3)s and (c)(4)s entrenched in local communities.
• Developing a robust fundraising program. Fundraising is critical not only to support democratic candidates, but to maintaining year-round engagement.  
  

To that end, we propose the following reforms to the New York State Democratic Party:

RECOMMENDED REFORMS

Develop a true State Party mission: New York Dems is “committed to ensuring that New Yorkers have progressive, fair, and dedicated leadership at every level of government.” But that cannot happen and is not happening because of the limited presence the party has in New York communities. Our state party’s mission must include educating Democrats on the policies we are fighting for on all levels of government, and getting more people involved in governance and party efforts.

Professionalize the State Party: The state party chair and executive director positions must be  paid, full-time positions . The party should directly employ and adequately pay for additional dedicated workers focused on electoral and issue organizing, data management and analysis, policy development and support, and any other needs to  build and maintain a year-round state party operation, including supporting/providing electronic communications between State Committee members and Democrats throughout the state.

Year-round organizing effort. The party should initiate a program similar to those in Michigan and Wisconsin that includes hiring 15 or more organizers to do  outreach and training year-round statewide, including listening tours and town halls in rural, suburban, and urban locations. Organizers should come from communities they work in and represent our state’s diversity. The benefits will be greater visibility & public engagement in voting. The party should invest in Data Analysis.

Campaign support: The party must support Democratic primary winners, and use primaries to develop new voters, not intervene in primary competitions between candidates. Campaign support should go beyond elections and include issue-based campaigns focused on policies that publicly elected Democrats are working to pass locally, statewide, and federally.

Fundraising: As much as possible, the party should build a base of small grassroots donors. The organizing effort can be a selling point, as WI & MI have shown.

Inclusion: The party must deliberately and proactively reach out to New York State’s diverse communities to build an active organization that looks like our state and is respectful of all Democrats regardless of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, marital status/partnership status, national origin, pregnancy and lactation accommodation, race, religion/creed, sexual orientation, geographic locations, and status as a veteran or active military service member. By recruiting staff to work in their hometown communities, we build a network of engaged residents and voters.

Collaboration: The party must work with other groups doing similar work, including active county & local committees, local political clubs, unions, nonprofits including 501(c)(3)s and (c)(4)s, and other organizations. Collaboration should be done around organizing, candidate recruitment, etc.

Communication: Regular people should be able to access the state party. The party should  develop and distribute relevant messaging to the public, and work in partnership with supporters to raise the profile of the party and its mission.

Other. The party should engage in candidate recruitment and training.

Recommended Party Chair Job Description/Qualities

Overview:

Democrats across the ideological spectrum in New York are united in seeking a new Chair for the Democratic Party of New York. The Democratic Party of New York is working to build a grassroots party defined by integrity, transparency, and dedication to core Democratic principles. The aim is to create a well-resourced and appropriately staffed party organization that not only supports Democratic candidates during election season but actively provides distinct benefits year-round to the vast statewide party infrastructure in non-election years.

As the leader of the Democratic Party in NYS, the Chair’s responsibilities include authority over state party finances – overseeing both fundraising and expenditures for party campaigns and organizational needs – and overall statewide political strategies and voter outreach. The Chair will also appoint members to ‘Special Committees’ of the State Committee and the paid staff, including the Executive Director and other professional administrators employed by the State Committee.

The ideal candidate will be able to build and lead a grassroots party that brings together individuals and communities across New York, building a team with the skills needed to win elections in New York State. The ideal chair will support Democratic primary winners, and use primaries to develop new voters, not intervene in primary competitions between candidates.

Lastly, and most importantly, the NYS Party Chair will be focused on ensuring the election of Democrats to offices across New York State at all levels of government.

Responsibilities:

Strategic Direction:

• Leads and guides the development of the NYS Democratic Party platform based upon feedback received after an extensive outreach campaign.
• Collaborate with statewide leadership, party organizers, and Democratic stakeholders to identify Democratic Party priorities and messaging.
• Establish “special committees” and appoint leaders to address party priorities.
• Identify potential risks and opportunities for the party.
• Develop potential Democratic candidates by supporting candidate recruitment, training, mentorship, and development. Develop and foster new leadership.

Elections & Campaigns:

• Manage statewide campaign strategy efforts, including budgeting, field, voter engagement advertising, and social media.
• Support Democratic candidates in general elections by providing advice on field, issue and communications strategy.
• Recruit viable candidates for open seats and challenges to GOP incumbents.  
• Develop screening mechanisms to ensure  that candidates’ backgrounds and experiences accurately reflect  their messaging.
• Lead and coordinate party fundraising for both statewide elections and key state legislative and Congressional races.  
• Build a base of small grassroots donors.
• Provide strategic communications in support of party priorities such as ballot propositions and issue campaigns.

Party base building:

• Represent the Democratic Party in local, state, and national media outlets and build a visible public profile as state party leader and spokesperson, as party bylaws stipulate.
• Engage local parties and campaigns to ensure voter outreach and engagement.
• Ensure the maintenance of party and voter data.
• Advocate for voting laws that make voting easy in NY state.
• Deliberately and proactively conduct outreach to New York State’s diverse communities and demographics to build an active organization that looks like our state.

Communications & Engagement:

• Develop communication strategies to engage voters about Democratic party values and priorities that includes paid media, social media and earned media and harness the tremendous talent in the arts (movies, TV, Broadway, artists, comedians, music) that exists in NY to contribute to the effort.
• Ensure Democratic Party messaging addresses any false statements put out during a campaign.
• Provide sufficient transparency to ensure the state committee members are informed of the party direction and priorities to be active party messengers.

Qualifications and Experiences:

• Proven track record in leading with integrity and transparency
• Demonstrated strategic leadership
• Experience engaging with the media respectfully and productively
• Demonstrated fundraising experience for campaigns, non-profits, or advocacy groups
• Proven ability in forming strong interpersonal relationships with elected officials, party leaders and activists, and leaders of key constituencies
• Experience as a field, communications, or finance campaign staff member
• Demonstrated dedication to Democratic values including but not limited to:

• diversity, equity and inclusion in terms of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, marital status/partnership status, national origin, pregnancy and lactation accommodation, race, religion/creed, sexual orientation, and status as a veteran or active military service member;
• reproductive and labor rights;
• economic and environmental justice
  

• A stellar voting record representing their constituents and principles of the Democratic Party, if an elected official
• An unblemished reputation

Requirements - Skills:

• Ability to bring people of all segments of the Party together
• Strong strategic vision for the future of the Party
• Ability to form strategic and collegial relationships for fundraising, party building, and campaigning. Ability to form strategic partnerships with other political parties when goals align
• Ability to mentor and/or support county party leadership
• Willingness to learn the party rules to ensure the clear and transparent management of the party