Caucus and Working Group Reports

CAUCUSES

National Women's Caucus

The National Women's Caucus (NWC) held its annual meeting in Tulsa, Okla., on July 21 as part of the GP-US annual meeting. Thirteen caucus members from 11 states attended, plus six guests.

The meeting agenda included upcoming officer elections, the pending vote on bylaws amendments and annual priorities for the NWC. Holly Hart, National Committee (NC) delegate representing NWC, facilitated. 

Caucus members discussed the upcoming 2005 NWC elections to fill vacancies for secretary, treasurer, alternate to the NC, and two-year openings for co-chair and spokesperson. Members were encouraged to step up to leadership roles, including a call for volunteers to represent the caucus on GP-US committees. 

Most of the meeting was spent discussing NWC annual priorities. The bylaws provide that specified priorities "shall be amended, collected, posted and ranked in order of importance by the membership at least once a year." The caucus is approaching its one-year accreditation anniversary, and members are eager to make a difference as Green women working in united action for women.

Discussion also included creating a caucus brochure; running and supporting more women candidates; the caucus' role inside the GP-US, influencing policy and directional course; and reawakening the women's movement. As the meeting drew to a close, with committees forming and guests taking membership applications, the women in the NWC and the GP-US felt the energy of their growing bonds.

Holly Hart was elected secretary to the GP-US. Hart, from Iowa, has served as the first voting delegate from the NWC to the National Committee. Hart has also served as chair for the Platform Committee.

NWC recognizes Sanda Everett, our webmistress. Please see our new website, www.gp.org/committees/women/, which includes the NWC membership application. NWC members thank Sanda for requesting a webpage dedicated to caucuses www.gp.org/caucuses.shtml.

WORKING GROUPS

Strategic Planning

Preliminary results of the National Shared Vision Survey conducted by the Strategic Planning Working Group were released at the GP-US Annual National Meeting in Tulsa, July 2005. The final survey results are currently being made available to the National Committee, and work on two important followup plans is in progress: the Strategic Plan and an Organizational Development Plan.

About 600 party members took the survey. A few highlights of the results presented in Tulsa:

• Ballot access is a high priority. Access in all states was the highest-rated electoral goal at 9.1 out of 10; ballot access was also rated the top focus for the national party's efforts, at 8.2 out of 10.
• Media access is a high priority. Exclusion from the media was seen as one of the major factors preventing the election of more Greens. The top-rated goal for public image and media access, chosen by 78 percent of respondents, was to get more spokespeople on radio and television.
• A strong, well-defined agenda is the most important thing that helps elect Greens, according to 8.7 out of 10 respondents.
• More cooperation between all levels of the party--local, state and national--was what 79 percent of respondents said they wanted to see.
• Members want the national party's funds spent on, first, campaign aid for state and local races (8.1 out of 10) and then paid permanent staff (7.5 out of 10).
• The most important political issues for the party were the environment, the war and political/election reform.
• The environment and social justice were seen as the most successful issues for local organizing.
  

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