Recap from March 12 Business Meeting
Courtney Bruder, CCDC Chair
Hello, Cherokee Democrats! Here’s a quick recap of last Thursday’s meeting!
We have a few vacancies to fill 
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A chair for the Service Committee and the Activities Committee; if you’re interested, please contact me or Deb Kent
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A chair for the Legislative Committee; if you’re interested, please contact me or Julie Glade
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New leads for both Democrats Connect and Coffee & Conversations; if you’re interested, please contact me or Betsy Matteis
I’m excited to announce that we elected Linda Anton as a postholder for district 1!
We are thrilled to announce that every state legislative seat in Cherokee County will be contested by a Democrat! For the first time in several election cycles, you will have a chance to vote for a Democratic state senator and state house rep regardless of your district! 
This would not have been possible with Julie R. Glade’s tireless, relentless efforts, and I want to give her the biggest thank you for her hard work! You can find each of these candidates on our website: HERE If you don’t know your district, our website has links about this as well. Check out who you can vote for and consider lending your time and talent to getting these incredible candidates into office 
Primaries begin next month, so make sure to take yourself and some friends to the polls! Let’s frighten these corrupt Republicans with a strong turnout in the primaries and bring it home with massive wins this November 
Please join us at our business meeting next month (April 9) to hear a debate between our two candidates for CD 11—Chris Harden and Barry Wolfert. Make an informed decision during the primaries!
For the first time in 13 years, we will be able to vote to send a Democrat to the Georgia Supreme Court. Election Day for that is May 19. This election is crucial, so make sure you go vote! If you will be gone on Election Day, plan to vote early. If you’re struggling to get your friends to vote, make a day of it. Plan to vote then go to brunch, whatever it takes to increase our voter turnout and start redirecting this state to the left!
Our fundraiser this year will be on May 2 from 4-7. Our Fundraising Committee is partnering with Latino Outreach for a fun, festive event! If you want to join us and also save a little bit of money, snag some of the early bird tickets and come have a fantastic time! Contact Julia K if you’d like to volunteer to help with setup and get a discounted ticket 
Lastly, we heard from three candidates:
- Anthony Aragues, who is running for HD 21. Anthony is running on a People Over Politics platform. Check out his website to learn more of his amazing plans!
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Bella Bautista, who is running for HD 14 and is the first woman to ever run for this seat! Her primary concerns include stopping data centers and private equity!
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Angelia Pressley, who is running for a Public Service Commission seat! As we all know, we flipped two of these seats last year. Getting her onto the commission will give Democrats a majority to begin truly helping Georgians rather than further enriching the Georgia Power shareholders!
We have a full and exciting year ahead of us. Let’s make some waves!
Anthony Aragues
Bella Bautista
Angelia Pressley
Service Committee
Deb Kent, Service Committee Chair
The Cherokee Democrats hit a new high in food donations! Over 1,000 lbs. of food was donated to Dominic’s Mission Pantry in Ball Ground on February 20th.
CCDVets Committee
Ryan Nellums, Veterans Affairs Committee Chair
The CCDVets had an incredible February dinner.
We were honored to welcome State Senator Josh McLaurin, candidate for Lieutenant Governor of Georgia, and Jason Tanner, candidate for House District 20, as our guest speakers. We’re grateful for their time and for sharing their vision and priorities ahead of the election.
Our members also showed up big for the community, collecting 77 pounds of food and a generous grocery gift card donation. Every contribution makes a difference.
We’re also gearing up for a meaningful service project with Sleep in Heavenly Peace, a nonprofit dedicated to building beds for children in our community who don’t have one. With 27 volunteers registered for March 7th, we can’t wait to get to work!
And a special moment of the evening, we proudly recognized two of our veteran members for their service to our country. We shared valuable resources available through the Georgia Department of Veterans Services.
This is what CCDVets is all about. Community, service, and honoring those who served.
Latino Outreach
Jessica Elejalde & Ludi Aleman Co-Chairs
- Volunteers canvassed in Gilmer County on February 14, engaging with community members and sharing information.
- A presentation titled “Understanding the Latino Community: Perspective, Values, and Practical Engagement” was delivered on February 7 at Coffee & Conversation.
- Outreach efforts with local law enforcement continue as part of strengthening communication and collaboration.
- Members attended a virtual meeting with Senator John Ossoff and Latino leaders across Georgia to discuss community concerns and engagement.
- Dana and Melissa collected food donations from Veterans Affairs to support community members in need.
VoPro Committee
Linda Kaminski, Voter Protection Chair
May 19, 2026 – General Primary (Early Voting & Election Day Info)
Link to Cherokee Co Advance Voting Times and Locations
Advanced Voting (aka Early Voting):
4/27/26-5/2/26, M-Sat (voting hours 8:30 am – 5:00 pm)
5/4/26 – 5/9/26, M-Sat (voting hours 8:30 am – 5:00 pm)
5/11/26 – 5/15/26 M-F (voting hours 8:30 am – 7:00 pm)
ELECTION DAY: 5/19/26 (voting hours 7:00 am – 7 pm)
Voter Registration Services
Fundraising Committee
Julia Kang, Fundraising Committee Chair
The Fundraising Committee is starting to plan the annual spring fundraiser to be held in late April. We will need help with decorations, food, entertainment, getting sponsors and silent auction items. If you are interested in helping please complete our volunteer form and select Fundraising. Volunteer HERE
2025 Summer Picnic Fundraiser
Events Committee
Betsy Matteis, Committee Chair
We had a great turnout for the March Coffee & Conversations to hear CD11 candidate Chris Harden and a short town hall with our CD7 candidates, Tony Kozycki, Larry Long, Case Norton, and Jayson Toweh. You can find links to all candidates websites by visiting CherokeeDemocrats.com
If you missed the event you can view it on our YouTube channel HERE.
Chris Harden | CD11
Tony Kozycki | CD7
Larry Long | CD7
Case Norton | CD7
Jayson Toweh | CD7
Communications Committee
Stephanie Bolton, Communications Committee Chair
Website Updates:
Our Voter & Election Info page now links to a page that lists all the candidates running in Cherokee and includes links to their websites. Please visit their websites to learn more about them, then donate and/or volunteer. Check their pages often as many are having their campaign kickoff events and canvassing on a regular schedule. Get involved, we need everyone to help spread the word about our wonderful candidates.
Social Media Updates:
👍Like, Comment On, and Share our posts, this helps us spread the message farther. Be sure to also follow all our candidates on social media and Like, Comment On, and Share their posts to help more voters find out about them.
SM NOTE: All our official social media channels are open to the public. This means anyone, including Republicans, can see and comment on our posts. If you choose to engage with negative comments please remain respectful. Or, don’t feed the trolls.
Newsletter Updates:
The Communications Committee is looking for a volunteer to help put this newsletter together monthly. This will entail getting a short summary and photos from each committee covering recent events, accomplishments, and announcements. Experience using MailChimp helpful. If interested please complete our volunteer form and select Communications. Volunteer HERE
