Sample Constitution

Our purpose will be to pursue the ideas of liberty, justice, and freedom for all regardless of ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity, or physical disability. We shall pursue these ideas through support of the Democratic Party and its ideas, ideals, and candidates. With these thoughts we establish this constitution.

ARTICLE I

Name

The name of this organization will be the __(Chapter Name)__ Young Democrats.

Section 1: __(Chapter Name)__ will be chartered with, and affiliated with the __(Name of Your State Young Democrats Organization)__, and by and through the __(State Young Democrats)__, will be affiliated with the Young Democrats of America.

Section 2: __(Chapter Name)__ will be charted with __(Name of Your County Democratic Party)__ and work as closely as possible with all levels of the Democratic Party.

ARTICLE II Membership

Section 1: Membership requirements for the __(Chapter Name)__ will be the same as those of the Young Democrats of America.

Section 2: Membership will not be affected by ethnicity, gender, color, national origin, sexual orientation or identity, or physical disability.

ARTICLE III Officers

The __(Chapter Name)__ will be composed of the __(Chapter Name)__ Executive Board and the remaining members. The Executive Board will consist of the officers of the __(Chapter Name)__.  The organization will have five (5) officers, one of which will be non-voting.

Section 1: The four (4) voting officers will be: President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

Section 2: The one (1) non-voting member will be the Executive Director.

ARTICLE IV     Officer Duties

Section 1: The President will be the chief executive officer for the organization.  He or she will preside over all chapter meetings.  The President will have all of the following duties and powers.  The absence of a specific power or duty from this list is not necessarily a denial of its existence.

A. Establish administrative procedures not otherwise provided for by the Constitution or By-Laws of this chapter.

B. Act for and on behalf of the high school chapter when they are not in session.

C. Attend all meetings of the State Young Democrats.  When the attendance of the President is not possible, he or she will appoint a suitable replacement and give this person his or her voting proxy.

D. Establish the agenda for each meeting of the chapter (general and executive). 

E. Serve as delegation chair to the State Young Democrats state convention.

F. Appoint chairpersons and vice-chairpersons of all committees, standing and adjunct, except that the President shall not appoint the chairpersons of the Recruiting and the Fund-raising Committees.

G. Be an ex-officio member of all committees.

H. Appoint an Executive Director without approval of the Executive Board to assist the President in the execution of the President’s duties.

I. Remove anyone from any appointed position without the approval of the Executive Board or the general body.

Section 2: The Vice-President will have all of the following duties:

NOTE: Some state parties require the President and Vice President to be of opposite gender. Follow your state’s guidelines.   

A. Chair the Recruiting Committee.

B. Appoint a co-chairperson of the Recruiting Committee, pending the approval of the Executive Board.

C. Act as President Pro-Tempore in the absence of the President.              In a case where the President’s office becomes vacant the, Vice-President will become the President automatically and will assume all powers, duties and responsibilities associated with that position.  The office of the Vice-President then is vacant and will be filled by an appointment by the new President, pending the approval of the Executive Board and the general body.

D. Assist the President.

Section 3: The chapter Secretary shall have all the following duties and powers:

A. Keep accurate minutes of all chapter meetings (general and Executive Board).

B. Assure publicity for all upcoming events and meetings.

C. Keep an accurate mailing list and phone directory of all members.

D. See to all correspondence of the chapter as directed by the President.

Section 4: The chapter Treasurer will be the chief financial officer of the organization and shall have all the following duties:

A. Chair the Fund-raising committee.

B. Appoint a Director of Fund-raising, pending the approval of the Executive Board.

C. Be responsible for developing fund-raising ideas and soliciting donations.  

D. Maintain accurate financial records for the organization.

E. Advise the chapter President and the Executive Board of the financial condition of the chapter.

F. If deemed necessary by the Executive Board, the Treasurer will file any reports for the State Democratic Party or the State Ethics Commission in a timely manner.

ARTICLE V Executive Board

The __(Chapter Name)__ Executive Board will be the chief policy making body for the chapter.

Section 1: The Executive Board will have all the following powers necessary for the proper and legal execution of all duties of the __(Chapter Name)__.

Section 2: The Executive Board will meet no less than twelve (12) times during the course of one (1) fiscal year.

ARTICLE VI    General Body

The __(Chapter Name)__ general body will meet no less than eight (8) times during the course of one (1) year.

ARTICLE VII Elections

Section 1:  Elections of officers will be held at the first meeting in February of each year. All terms are for one year.

Section 2: The order of elections will be as follows: President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

ARTICLE VIII

Standing Committees

There will be two (2) standing committees.  These committees will be the Fund-

raising Committee and the Recruiting Committee.  Each of these committees shall have

five (5) or seven (7) members depending upon the preference of the committee chair.

ARTICLE IX Forming New Committees

The President or the Executive Board may form adjunct committees at any time for any reason they deem necessary.

ARTICLE X Supporting Candidates

The __(Chapter Name)__ will never oppose a Democrat candidate for political office, either by supporting non-Democrat candidates or by not supporting all Democrat candidates in a primary, nor will the chapter support a non-Democrat candidate, even if said candidate does not have a Democrat opponent.

ARTICLE XI

Constitutional Amendments

Amendments to this constitution must be submitted in writing to the chapter President and chapter Secretary at least two weeks (14 days) prior to the meeting at which the amendment will be considered.  The President is obligated to place the amendment on the agenda for that meeting.  The amendment will be considered approved if two-thirds (2/3) of the Executive Board and two-thirds (2/3) of the general body (in attendance) vote in favor of the amendment.

ARTICLE XII

Number of Offices

No one person may hold more than one office in the __(Chapter Name)__ organization.

ARTICLE XIII

Sponsor

The chapter will select a faculty member to serve as the chapter sponsor.  The sponsor will aid in the running of the chapter and serve as a liaison between the chapter and the school administration. In the event that a faculty member cannot be found, the chapter will then select a member of the community to serve in that position. 

Sample Bylaws

Chapter Name. There must be no ambiguity as to the identity of the group.

Object and Reason for the group's existence. This alone will help you combat abuse of power, and will help you keep the organization focused.

Members. This explains the members' rights, limitations, and qualifications. It clarifies issues such as fees, attendance, resignations, and honorary membership.

Officers. Explains methods for nominations, voting, elections, and filling vacancies, as well as term of office and duties.

Meetings. Details quorum, regular meetings, special meetings, and conventions. Often, the remaining Articles are referred to as the Constitution. In many cases, organizations refer to all the 9 Articles as the Constitution and the Bylaws as if they were one document.

Executive Board or Board of Directors. The board's composition, power, and quorum are clearly stated in this article.

Committees. Standing committees must be described as to name, composition, manner of selection, attendance, and duties.

Parliamentary Authority. The rules of order must be clearly established. It could be Robert, Sturgis, Cannon, Demeter, Riddick, etc. The important thing is to have a document which assures order under fire. Regardless of the rule book, an organization is ruled first by local, state, and federal laws; and then by its parent organization; followed by any adopted special rules of order; and finally by its adopted parliamentary authority.

Amendment of Bylaws. Typically, a Bylaw can be amended with 2/3 of the collected votes, if a prior notice has been given during the prior meeting. Otherwise, it takes a majority of the entire registered membership to amend any Bylaw. Some organizations have additional Articles for matters of Finances, Policies, or Discipline.