I'm an elected precinct committee person and an elected state committee person.

Most people don’t know what those positions mean.

Regardless of voter registration, most people aren’t involved in party meetings or activities and would have no reason to know.

During the last three election cycles (2018 & 2020), we saw a huge increase in “Get out the Vote” (#GOTV) involvement as well as attendance and participation in political party meetings.

With the ramped up attacks on voting access and voter exclusion, the trend is likely to continue.

But the structure and acronyms can seem overwhelming for those newly introduced.

Most people aren’t interested in ‘moving up the ranks’ and don’t want a PhD in the political party structure, but they would welcome a very general understanding of the terms and how things work.

In the United States, political parties consist of three parts:

1. the Party as government (members of the Party who hold public office),
2. the Party as an organization (committees, leaders and activists who work to promote the Party and the candidates), and
3. the Party as electorate (citizens who support the Party through party identification).

State and local party structures and processes are determined by a combination of state statutes, party by-laws, and party board decisions.

Even though the focus is so often on the national committees (i.e. DNC & RNC), state and local parties have more influence than the national party around their region… with state and local party decisions tending to override those of the national party due to a focus on local needs, which may or may not always align with national proposals.

This is a VERY general and simplistic explanation of the Arizona Democratic Party structure and roles.

Precinct

One of several districts into which a city or town is divided for the purposes of voting and representation in city or town government. This is the lowest level of party organization.

Wards

An administrative division of a city or borough that typically elects and is represented by a council member – also known as districts in some cities and towns.

Legislative District (LD)

The state of Arizona is divided into 30 Legislative Districts. The Legislative District (LD) is the basic political operating unit.

Each LD is represented by one State Senator and two State Representatives.

These positions are directly elected by voters within the legislative district boundaries.

Each registered political party has a committee in each LD, made up of precinct committee persons who get out the vote for their candidates and represent their neighbors within the party.

County District (CD)

An administrative division of a county that typically elects and is represented by a County Supervisor who sits on the County Board of Supervisors. Most counties have between three and five county districts with one elected Supervisor representing each district. The Board of Supervisors usually has legislative, executive, and judiciary functions. Not all states have elected County Supervisor positions.

Congressional District (CD)

One of a fixed number of districts into which a state is divided, each district electing one member to the national House of Representatives.

Each state also has two Senators. They are not divided by any districts. Everyone in the state has the same two Senators.

Every person lives in a congressional district, a state legislative district, a county district, a local precinct, as well as a ward/district if they live in an area that elects city/town councils.

All of these electorate divisions determine who shows up on your personal ballot and are created through redistricting after each census determines population locations every ten years.

On a side note, 2020 was the census year and district maps will be redrawn in 2021.

While Arizona has an Independent Redistricting Commission to redraw the Congressional and Legislative Districts in 2021, the County Board of Supervisors draw their own County District maps in Arizona… so the County Supervisors elected in 2020 redraw the maps, without oversight, in 2021 and those boundaries will remain until the next census in 10 years.

Precinct Committee Person (PC)

The office of precinct committee person is defined in Arizona Revised Statutes (ARS) Section 16, Chapter 5, Article 2.

The precinct committee person is an elected official with responsibilities prescribed by the State and by his political party. Every recognized political party in Arizona has precinct committee positions.

PC Responsibilities include:

• Voting, in person or by proxy, at each and every district and county party election when qualified to do so. This allows you to elect who leads our legislative districts and county party.
• Assisting the Party in voter registration.
• Assisting and encouraging voters to vote on election days.
• Attending District and County meetings.
• Working within the precinct from which elected.
• Creating enthusiasm and support for the Party.
• Help to elect candidates.
• Promote Party ideals.

A Precinct Committee person (PC) is a neighborhood leadership role, being ‘in the know’ about party activities and issues, increasing the flow of information between your neighborhood and the party, as well as being involved with decision-making on the local level.

You can be an influencer for the party, elections, and people you know. You can be elected as a PC for your precinct. It basically takes 10 signatures from registered voters from your Party as well as Independents (for Republican and Democrats, other Parties have their own rules).

Though few precincts are competitive, meaning they have the number of 'seats' filled (though you can still get elected!), most precincts have openings just waiting for someone like you to step forward.

(That there are a set number of seats per precinct and how that's determined​ is beyond the beginners level and really not important for a precinct committee person to know.)

All it takes is becoming involved in your precinct or Legislative District (LD) meetings and filling out the forms. (Some states have meetings on the precinct level but Arizona meets on the LD level).

After the election period has ended, and if a vacancy still exists, which is usualy the case, Legislative Districts (LDs) will begin PC appointments in January – so talk to your local LD board members whenever you are interested!

State Committee Person

The Arizona Democratic Party is organized into a state committee, an executive committee, and an executive board.

The state committee is the governing body of the party, helps determine Party policy and platforms, and is responsible for electing State Party leaders.

An elected PC must become an elected State Committee person in order to vote at State Committee meetings as well as run for County or State Party board positions.

You can visit your own State, County, or Legislative District Party websites, or social media, to find out how to be more involved in democracy at all levels!

#GoLocalVoteLocal