The Young Democrats at Georgia State officially transitioned to their new executive board for 2020 on Jan. 13.
The tasks of the Executive Committee include general supervision of the Young Dems’ affairs between meetings, planning general meetings, making recommendations to the Young Dems and performing other duties outlined in their constitution.
Of the new leadership board, four out of five are women. The board includes Libby Seger as president, Nida Merchant as vice president, Bianca Acha-Morfaw as secretary, Ndubuisi Onwumere as treasurer and Lucia Gambino as the community outreach coordinator.
All of the current members of the executive board were not in a position prior to this year’s election. Each officer was a general member of the Young Dems at Georgia State before applying, with no prior experience. The term of each officer lasts a full year, beginning January of each year.
The application process for the organization’s new executive board was brief — the former executive board went through applications and conducted phone interviews before they selected the new executive board.
“I made the calls for the final interview and offered the positions on Jan. 4,” Kristyn Drummonds, former president of the organization, said. “I trained Libby on Jan. 13 and did officer transition on that day.”
Drummonds is passionate about her decisions for the new leaders of the Young Dems.
“I was looking for people with the most passion and the boldest ideas,” Drummonds said. “I wanted to give the Young Democrats people who would truly represent them well and work hard to keep the trajectory we are going in high.”
Serger, president, emphasized the importance of her term lasting through the 2020 presidential election — what she calls one of the “most important presidential elections in history.”
“As the president, I am in charge of overseeing the organization and representing Young Democrats of Georgia State at any Democratic National Committee functions or political events,” she said. “We are hoping to dive into activism by hosting voter registration drives, collaborating with other organizations, and hosting events that engage students to become more active members of society.”
Serger plans on encouraging voters her to age to get involved with canvassing, phone banking, protesting and even speaking at state-level meetings.
The tasks of the President include leading all meetings of the Young Dems, represent the Young Dems at all official Democratic functions — both local and national — oversee the operations of the executive board and perform other duties assigned to the position, according to the by-laws.
“I really want to facilitate dialogue and raise awareness of politics being such an important tool in our community,” Merchant, the Young Dems vice president, said.
Merchant is also a staff writer at The Signal and was a member for about two months before applying for the executive board.
As only a freshman at Georgia State while still holding an officer position, Merchant communicated her passion for politics and asked to expand the position of vice president from only being second-in-command.
“My primary goal is to interact with students at Georgia State,” Merchant said. “As a minority student, I want to pass the mic to those who have not felt their voice to be heard in an organization.”
Acha-Morfaw, secretary, is an older member of the Young Dems at Georgia State and has been a member of the organization since 2016.
“My job according to our by-laws is to keep the minutes of meetings and provide notices and communications as necessary,” she said.
Acha-Morfaw applied for the community outreach coordinator position, but the previous executive board thought she was better suited for the secretary position.
“My biggest priority as secretary is to make sure that communication between the executive offices is efficient and to hold more meetings to give members an opportunity to express themselves,” she said. “Also I want to guarantee voter turnout not only in the general election but in local ones, as well as building a more politically literate campus.”
Onwumere, who will oversee the budget for the Young Dems, has been a member of the Young Dems at Georgia State for about five months before entering the new position of treasurer.
“I want people to know that the Young Democrats are not just some counter organization to the College Republicans at Georgia State,” she said. “We’re here because we believe that there are basic issues that young people — college students, specifically — care about.”
The treasury position, according to the by-laws, is an unelected one.
“I believe the overall mission of the Young Democrats is to engage the student population to participate in the political process and advocate to them the platform of the Democratic Party, such as creating a healthcare system that works for everyone and achieving equal pay for equal work.” Onwumere said.
Gambino, the community outreach coordinator for the organization, wants to encourage students to vote in both local and national elections while feeding themselves factual information. She has been a member of the Young Dems for one year.
“My tasks consist of collaborating with other organizations, coordinating student involvement in the organization, encouraging student engagement in the local political process and providing students with resources and information,” Gambino said.
Gambino, like Serger, agrees that the 2020 election is one of the “most important elections of our lifetime.”
“I plan to mobilize students with accurate information in order to inspire them politically,” she said. “My vision for the Young Democrats in 2020 is to remain a goal-oriented and fact-based organization ready to help elect more Democrats into office and flip as many districts as possible.”
The Young Democrats at Georgia State plan to host their first meeting of the year on Feb. 3.
