While there is little doubt that the Leon County Democratic Party has had a significant impact upon recent elections, by no means do we deserve all -- or even a majority -- of the credit.  There have been NUMEROUS organizations and individuals whose participation has made the all the difference.  Nevertheless, it's helpful to reflect on the activities of the Leon County Democratic Party and the election results of the past few years as a reminder of just how far we've come:  

• In early 2006, the Leon DEC established a permanent office, permanent phone line, and its first-ever website at www.LeonDems.com.

• In June 2006, former Sen. Max Cleland served as the keynote speaker for the Leon County DEC's first Collins-Steele fundraising dinner.

• Out of the 67 Florida counties, Leon County was #1 in percentage voter turnout for the 2006 general election and 10th in the primary election.  These were Leon County's highest rankings in at least ten years. Leon County contributed 44,000 votes to Sen. Bill Nelson's margin of victory and 36,000 to CFO-elect Alex Sink's margin.  Locally, we won every single race in which a Democrat candidate was running.

• During the 2006 elections, the Leon DEC distributed 15,000 mailers listing state and local Democratic candidates and made nearly 40,000 phone calls to voters.

• In 2006, the Leon DEC launched a political TV ad contest with Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Howard Dean, Florida Democratic Party Chair Karen Thurman and local community leaders serving as judges. The winning ad (shown below) was professionally produced and aired on local television during the weeks preceding the general election. To view the ad, click here.

• The Leon DEC has been nationally recognized by the Democratic National Committee for its success in grassroots mobilization. For an example, see the DNC national website posting.

• In June 2007, the Leon DEC worked alongside County Commissioner Cliff Thaell, Common Cause Florida and the League of Women Voters to bring lobbying reform to our county government.

• In August 2007, the Leon County DEC was honored to have Sen. Barack Obama as the keynote speaker for our second Collins-Steele fundraising dinner. The Senator and his staff took time off from their own fundraising to help raise money for the Leon DEC.

• In October 2007, the Leon County DEC won the Florida Democratic Party's Golden Gavel Award for outstanding accomplishments over the past year.

• In November 2007, the Leon DEC produced and submitted a videotaped question for the GOP's CNN/YouTube presidential debate on November 28, 2007. To see the video, click here.

• During the summer of 2008, the efforts of the Leon DEC were nationally recognized twice by Barack Obama's presidential campaign on its national blog. (Photo of one of our events is below.) Working with Obama staff and volunteers, the DEC was also featured by the campaign's Florida blog.

• In July 2008, the Leon DEC became the first county party in Florida to advertise on Facebook, the social networking website. As of November 2008, the Leon Democrats' ad has appeared more than 900,000 times on Facebook pages in the Tallahassee area.

• In the 2008 general election, Leon County contributed 36,036 votes, or 15.3%, to Barack Obama's margin of victory in Florida. With 61.7% for Barack Obama, our county had the third highest Obama percentage in the state, behind Gadsden and Broward counties.

• Out of the 67 Florida counties, Leon County was #1 in percentage voter turnout for the November 4th, 2008 general election. This is our second #1 ranking in a row for our general election turnout.  (See below for a graph of Leon County's statewide ranking in percentage voter turnout, from 1996 to 2008.)
  

• During the 2008 general election, the Leon DEC mailed 14,700 slate mailers listing national and local Democratic candidates and handed out more than 20,000 slate flyers to voters during early voting and on Election Day. With this massive push to encourage down-ballot voting, it's safe to assume the Leon DEC contributed heavily to the victories of Michelle Rehwinkel Vasilinda for House District 9 (who defeated Republican Peter Boulware by 430 votes) and Akin Akinyemi for Leon County Commissioner (who defeated Republican incumbent Ed DePuy by 9,337 votes).

• In June 2008, the Leon DEC completed the qualification process for new DEC members. We had 183 Leon County Democrats turn in their qualifying papers to become precinct committeepeople. This is a 40% increase from four years ago!

• By the end of the 2008 term, the Leon DEC's membership had grown to 236 members, including elected officials. This is a 45.6% increase in membership from the 162 members of December 2005. 

• The Leon DEC has had remarkable success in its fundraising efforts. Between January 1, 2006 and November 5th, 2008, the Leon DEC collected $144,000 in contributions from 1,239 separate donations. This results in an average donation amount of $116.22.

• The Leon DEC created a new logo and produced Leon County Democratic Party bumper stickers, lapel stickers, and a banner to increase visibility of the Party at local events.
  

• The Leon DEC participated in FAMU's Homecoming Parade in 2007 and 2008.

• The Leon DEC participated in Celebrate America's Fourth of July events at Tom Brown Park in 2006, 2007, and 2008.

• In February 2007, the Leon DEC participated in Keep Leon County-Tallahassee Beautiful by cleaning up litter along Orange Avenue.

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"In the end, Senator McCain and President Bush are like two sides of the same coin and it doesn't amount to a whole lot of change." -- Sen. Hillary Clinton (June 27, 2008)