ARTICLE I – NAME
The name of this organization shall be the Democratic Women’s Council of South Carolina. It shall be affiliated with the Democratic Party of South Carolina and shall work in harmony with the party.
ARTICLE II – OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this organization shall be:
To support the principles and platform of the Democratic Party.
To work for the election of Democratic Party candidates at all levels of government.
To initiate, carry out and support programs and projects on behalf of the Democratic Party and its candidates.
To cooperate with the Democratic Women’s Clubs as deemed mutually beneficial.
To identify and help prepare Democratic women to run for public office.
To encourage and mentor young women as future leaders within the Democratic Party.
To encourage and support the continued participation by women of all ages, races, religions, and other recognized classifications in the South Carolina Democratic Party’s planning and decision making at all levels.
ARTICLE III – MEMBERSHIP
Membership in this organization shall be open to all registered voters who support the principles of the Democratic Party. There shall be two categories of membership: Regular and Student.
Regular members shall be persons in South Carolina who support the Democratic Party, its objectives, and its candidates. Student members shall be persons who are under the age of 30 and attending college or high school full time.
Membership may be denied to any person who does not uphold the principles of the Democratic Party or who supports the nomination and campaign of an individual who is a candidate or elected official in a party other than the Democratic Party.
Dues shall be set by the Executive Committee of the organization and shall be reviewed periodically to determine their sufficiency.
ARTICLE IV – OFFICERS
Elected officers shall be a President and six Regional Vice Presidents, one from each Congressional District. These officers shall be elected at the annual fall meeting for terms of one year and may serve no more than three full consecutive terms. Upon the resignation or incapacitation of any elected officer, the position will be appointed by a majority of the other elected officers.
The President shall appoint a Secretary and a Treasurer each year.
The Past President shall be an honorary voting officer.
The President shall appoint a Parliamentarian, who shall be an ex officio, non-voting officer.
ARTICLE IV-OFFICERS AMENDED
Amended to read-Elected officers shall be a President and six Regional Vice Presidents, one from each Congressional District. These officers shall be elected at the annual meeting for terms of two years and may serve no more than two full consecutive terms in the same office. Upon the resignation or incapacitation of any elected officer, a majority of the other elected officers will appoint someone in the position to serve out the remaining term of the vacated office.
The President shall appoint a Secretary and a Treasurer each year.
The Immediate Past President shall be an honorary voting officer.
The President shall appoint a Parliamentarian, who shall be an ex officio, non-voting officer.
ARTICLE V – QUALIFICATIONS FOR OFFICERS
Any regular member of this organization may serve as an officer so long as her dues are paid in full and she is a resident of the State of South Carolina, registered to vote, and supports the Democratic Party. Student members may serve as an officer so long as her dues are paid in full, and she is a resident of the State of South Carolina, she is registered to vote, and supports the Democratic Party. However, a student member is prohibited from serving as President until her studies are completed.
Officers may serve in other capacities within the Democratic Party so long as their duties do not conflict with the objectives and rules of this organization. Any women serving as an officer who becomes a candidate for elective office will resign from her position as an officer.
ARTICLE V - QUALIFICATIONS FOR OFFICERS AMENDED
Amended to add the sentence- No elected official can serve as an officer.
ARTICLE VI – DUTIES OF OFFICERS
The President shall preside at meetings of the Council and Executive Committee and perform such duties as ordinarily pertain to this office. She shall create committees and appoint chairwomen and committee members with the approval of the Executive Committee and be a voting ex-officio member of all committees except the Nominating Committee.
The Vice Presidents shall maintain contact with the Democratic Party County Chairs and Democratic Women’s Clubs in their respective Congressional Districts and assume other key activities as required.
The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping records of the proceedings at all meetings of the Council and the Executive Committee. She shall be responsible for conducting correspondence and maintaining a file of all records and letters of value to the organization as directed by the President. All minutes and records shall be delivered to her successor at the close of her term.
The Treasurer shall collect dues and other revenue, make disbursements, keep accounts, make reports to the Executive Committee, make an annual report to the full membership, file all tax returns and reports required by the Democratic Party and law, and perform other financial tasks as directed by the President.
The Parliamentarian shall provide advice on order of business as required.
The Immediate Past President shall assist the president and other officers as required and chair the Nominating Committee.
Officers are expected to attend all Council and Executive Committee meetings.
ARTICLE VI – DUTIES OF OFFICERS AMENDED
Amended to read, third paragraph last sentence (All minutes and records shall be delivered to her successor at the close of her term.) has been deleted and the following sentence has been added to the Article as the last paragraph “All officers shall deliver all records pertaining to the DWC organization to their successors within 30 days after the close of their term.
ARTICLE VII – COMMITTEES
The Executive Committee shall consist of the officers listed in Article IV and shall meet in the months between Steering Committee meetings to review, discuss and propose actions regarding Council administration and activities.
The Executive Committee shall conduct the business of the Council between full membership meetings. Four members shall constitute a quorum.
The Nominating Committee shall consist of the Past President and two members appointed by the Executive Committee.
Ad Hoc committees shall be created as needed. No member shall serve on more than two standing and/or ad hoc committees at any one time.
ARTICLE VII – COMMITTEES has been amended to add the Steering Committee and change the Nominating Committee to read: The Steering Committee shall consist of the officers listed in Article IV, the Presidents of active local or county Democratic Women’s organizations in good standing in the SCDWC, the Chairperson of the South Carolina Democratic Party, the National Committee woman, other women who hold statewide Party offices, and the Executive Director of the South Carolina Democratic Party. Additional At-Large members may be appointed by the President and Executive Committee. The Steering Committee will serve as an advisory committee and shall develop and propose issues for Executive Committee action, and may review status of women and women’s issues in the South Carolina Democratic Party, communicate information that affects women in politics, and serve as a liaison between the local organizations and the State Council.
The Nominating Committee shall consist of the Immediate Past President and two members appointed by the Executive Committee. One member shall be a retiring member from the Executive Committee and one member from the general membership.
ARTICLE VIII – MEETINGS
There shall be an annual business meeting for the general membership. Officers will be elected every year at the annual fall meeting and shall assume responsibilities at that meeting. Reports of past and current activities will be given and plans made for future activities. Other general membership meetings may be called by the Executive Committee.
The Executive Committee may meet at the call of the President with proper notification in a timely manner. All meetings of the general membership and Executive Committee shall be open to the public and to the news media, except in such cases as the President shall call for executive session.
ARTICLE VIII – MEETINGS AMENDED
Amended to read-There shall be an annual business meeting for the general membership. Officers will be elected every two years at the annual meeting and shall assume responsibilities at that meeting.
ARTICLE IX – ELECTIONS
The officers shall be elected annually. The Nominating Committee shall present a slate of officers to the Executive Committee, which shall notify the membership in writing at least thirty days prior to the annual fall meeting. Additional nominations may be made in writing to the Nominating Committee or from the floor prior to voting.
ARTICLE IX – ELECTIONS AMENDED
Amended to read: The officers shall be elected bi- annually. The Nominating Committee shall present a slate of officers to the Executive Committee, which shall notify the membership in writing at least thirty days prior to the annual (fall -delete) meeting. Additional nominations may be made in writing to the Nominating Committee or from the floor prior to voting.
ARTICLE X – FISCAL YEAR
The fiscal year shall be from January 1 to December 31.
ARTICLE XI – DUES
Amended to read: Annual dues of SCDWC members are determined by the Executive Committee and changes may be presented for approval at the next general meeting. Dues must be received by the SCDWC Treasurer in January. New members dues must be paid at least thirty (30) days prior to any meeting in order for the member to be in good standing. New member dues paid after the annual meeting are applied to the following membership year.
ARTICLE XII – AMENDMENTS
Amendments to these Bylaws shall be presented to the Executive Committee in writing. Amendments approved by the Executive Committee shall be submitted to the general membership for a vote at the annual meeting.
ARTICLE XIII – EFFECTIVE DATE
These Bylaws shall be in effect upon adoption by a majority of the members present at the annual meeting. The Executive Committee shall have the responsibility for implementing the articles herein.
Adopted May 11, 1999; amended June 23, 2001; amended May 3, 2003; amended October 23, 2004, amended November 15, 2008
Approved this 15th day of November 2008.
s/ Nancy Kolman
President, Democratic Women’s Council of South Carolina
s/ Carol Fowler
Chair, South Carolina Democratic Party
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