Elected officials grilled and served up burgers and dogs, nearly a hundred members and friends chatted and ate together, several Democratic Party caucuses and allied organizations shared their messages, and several West Side Democratic candidates addressed the crowd at the annual West Side Democrats of Bernalillo County picnic Saturday at Mariposa Park. (See picnic photos.) Even Democratic candidate for Lt. Gov. Stephanie Garcia Richard showed up near the end of the picnic, rushing here from a campaign event south of Albuquerque.

“We had a great turnout. The weather cooperated; it was a comfortable afternoon. And we got off to a great start with our West Side Challenge,” said Dorothy Wilkinson, WSD chair. “Picnickers volunteered for approximately 70 hours supporting our candidates in the November election. And we are building on that great start to connect WSD members and friends with candidates, so we all can work together to keep New Mexico blue and to keep our West Side blue.”

The challenge started with an auction-style event headlined by WSD Ideas Team Chair Laurie Gould. “Who do we have for 2 hours? 2 volunteer hours to support our candidates?” Then she upped the ante to 4 hours, 6 hours, and even 10 hours. “It was a lot of fun and our picnickers stood up to the challenge,” Laurie said.

To keep the momentum going, WSD is contacting the campaigns to coordinate volunteer opportunities for canvassing and phone banking. Dorothy Wilkinson will assist with phone banking and WSD member Karlyne Nordholm will schedule dates for members to participate in campaign canvass. (Watch for more details and volunteer opportunities in upcoming newsletters.)

• Phone bankers will gather at the DPNM coordinated campaign office.
• Canvassers will be asked to wear WSD T-shirts or buttons while they canvass. Laurie will be their support, assisted by Karlene when needed.

WSD had sweetened the pot to encourage members to volunteer. Every time a volunteer participates, they will get a raffle ticket for a raffle conducted at the WSD November thank you party. WSD will keep track of volunteer hours for the newsletter and other promotions. We will also share the volunteer schedule to encourage more volunteers to participate.

The goals of the West Side Challenge are simple:

• Keep the West Side Blue by focusing our efforts on our local candidates, while supporting the entire slate.
• Bringing West Side Dem members together in an exciting and fun way that develops a stronger Democratic community.
• Strengthen the relationship between the WSD and our local elected Democratic officials.

For the November election, our primary focus will be Rep. Charlotte Little (House District 68), who faces the most challenging opponent. Rep. Little has served two terms and we want to keep her in office representing the West Side. This is the type of race where direct contact with voters can make the most difference.

WSD volunteers will also support Rep. Joy Garratt and Rep. Cynthia Borrego in their reelection bids. “As the election gets closer, we will shift into get out the vote mode and work with the West Side Coordinated Campaign to remind Democrats to vote for all the Democrats on the ballot,” said Laurie. “We're starting small, but hopefully we'll gain more volunteers in the next 75 days and help make a difference in the election.”

"We have an opportunity, as members of the West Side Democrats, to reach out to our fellow Democrats and get good candidates elected," she said. "In a close election, every knock on a door, every phone call, can make a difference. We want WSD members to have a great experience and to participate in this important election. We are stronger together, stronger for the West Side."