Young Democrats of America host first DNC chairman race candidates forum

Source: The Hill

12/07/24 9:20 PM ET


In the first candidate’s forum in the race for Democratic National Committee chair, all four publicly declared candidates spoke to Young Democrats of America (YDA) at their annual winter meeting, with each candidate vowing to institutionalize monetary support for the party’s youth wing.

“Each of the four of them coming here shows that they are serious about reaching out to young voters,” Young Democrats of America President Quentin Wathum-Ocama told The Hill. “No matter what you think of any of the candidates, they’re all committed to building a multi-generational, working-class party, so I think that for me, that’s why it was so important for them to hear what we say.

The four candidates running are Minnesota Democratic Party Chair Ken Martin, Wisconsin Party Chair Ben Wikler, former Maryland Gov. and Social Security Administrator Martin O’Malley (D), and New York State Senator James Skoufis (D). This is the first time Young Democrats of America have hosted a candidate forum with DNC candidates. Wathum-Ocama added that he was “glad that none of the candidates are interested in doing things like we have in the past.”

During the forum, the four candidates agreed to make Young Democrats a “funding line item” for the national party. Young Democrats of America operates as an independent 527 political organization that has to raise money independently of the party.

Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/5028484-young-democrats-of-america-host-first-dnc-chairman-race-candidates-forum/