ADP Bylaws - Article III

ARTICLE III
STATE COMMITTEE OFFICERS

SECTION 1. Officers. The statutory officers, Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer, shall be elected at each biennial organizational meeting. At this meeting, the State Committee shall also elect from its membership a First Vice-Chair of a different gender and county of residence as the Chair, a Senior Vice-Chair of the same gender and different county of residence as the Chair, three (3) Vice-Chairwomen, three (3) Vice-Chairmen, an Educational Coordinator, and an Affirmative Action Moderator. The National Committee Members are Party officers but shall be elected as described in Article X, Section 2. No more than two (2) of the four (4) Vice-Chairmen or two (2) of the four (4) Vice-Chairwomen shall be elected from the same county. The First Vice-Chair and Senior Vice-Chair shall be the highest-ranking vice-chairs of their gender. The Sergeant-at-Arms is a non-voting officer and shall be appointed by the State Chair; all other officers shall be elected.

SECTION 2. Election of Officers.
a) All nominations for State Committee officers shall be made from the floor of the convention or meeting and no slate identification shall be allowed on any ballots or balloting at these elections. Any duly elected or appointed State Committeeperson may be eligible for any elective office but no person shall be submitted as a candidate without the consent of such person having first been obtained. In all cases where there is more than one (1) candidate for office, voting shall be done by individual ballot. No county shall bind itself to the unit rule. An automatic recount is required if the number of votes cast is greater than the number of committeepersons present in person or represented by proxy or if the ballot shall result in the election of an officer not just the elimination of a candidate and there is a margin of less than six (6) votes between the elected officer and the next candidate. To be elected, a person must receive votes on a majority of ballots cast. In the event a second or subsequent ballot is necessary, the name of the candidate with the lowest vote total from the preceding ballot will be excluded. The same procedure shall be followed until a nominee shall have received votes on a majority of ballots cast.
b) Officers of the State Committee shall be elected in the following order: State Chair; First Vice-Chair; Senior Vice-Chair; Vice-Chairwomen; Vice Chairmen; Secretary; Treasurer; Educational Coordinator; and Affirmative Action Moderator.

SECTION 3. Duties of Officers. In addition to their duties as State Committeepersons, the duties of the Party Officers shall include but not be limited to:
a) The State Chair shall direct the affairs of the Party and shall be the spokesperson for the Party. He or she shall preside over all meetings of the State Committee, the Executive Committee, the Executive Board and Party Conventions or meetings as may be held. The chair shall submit a proposal for approval for an annual budget to the executive committee. He or she shall, after consultation with the executive board, assign appropriate duties to all vice-chairpersons. The chair shall, after consultation with the executive board, appoint such committees as required by these bylaws or deemed necessary by the Chair to carry out the programs and policies of the Party. He or she shall direct the central office of the party and other offices that it may establish.
b) The First Vice-Chair shall assist the Chair in the performance of his or her duties and in the absence of the Chair shall act in his or her stead. The First Vice-Chair shall be a member of the Democratic National Committee according to its rules and shall attend meetings of that committee along with the State Chair, and shall perform other duties as are assigned by the state chair.
c) The senior vice-chair shall be a member of the ADP bylaws committee. He or she shall be third in succession after the chair and the first vice-chair, shall substitute for them if both are temporarily unable to perform their duties, and shall perform other duties as are assigned by the state chair.
d) All Vice-Chairpersons shall perform such duties as are assigned to them by the state chair.
e) The Secretary shall keep records of all meetings of the State Committee, the Executive Board, and the Executive Committee and shall provide written or electronic copies of minutes to the members of the respective committee or board and to all county chairs in a timely manner; a roll of members of the State Committee; a copy of formal reports of its officers, committees, and sub-committees; and a copy of all resolutions adopted by the State Committee; and shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the State Chair. A written record of all meetings shall be kept on file at the ADP headquarters, with the exception of Executive Sessions.
f) The Treasurer shall be the custodian of all funds and securities of the Arizona Democratic Party; maintain adequate records pertaining to the finances of this organization and file all required federal and state reports; be responsible for the financial affairs of the Arizona Democratic Party; prepare an annual report for each fiscal year within forty-five (45) days of its closure for distribution at the next State Committee meeting; serve as a member of any committee pertaining to finance or that receives or disburses funds; and at least once a month, to the extent that funds are available and expenditures are authorized by law, pay outstanding bills which are those bills that have been duly incurred within the current budget as permitted by these bylaws. The Treasurer shall disburse funds in accordance with the direction of the Executive Board and where the legality of expenditure is questioned by the Treasurer, the opinion of legal counsel is final.
g) The Educational Coordinator shall assist with and direct the implementation of the Party Platform and program for multicultural outreach and have such other duties as assigned by the State Chair.
h) The Affirmative Action Moderator shall assist with and direct the implementation of the Party Affirmative Action Program as outlined in Article IX of these bylaws and have such other duties as assigned by the State Chair.
i) The State Committee-elected National Committeemen and State Committee-elected National Committeewomen shall have duties as described in Article X, Section 3, and have such other duties as assigned by the State Chair.
j) The Sergeant-At-Arms shall maintain order at all meetings of the State Committee and of the Executive Committee and shall keep an inventory of equipment that belongs to the State Party and shall report on this inventory at least once each year.

Section 4. State committee staff.
A)The chair shall appoint such staff, including counsel, as may be helpful to carry on the duties of the organization. No such appointment shall extend beyond the term of the chair.
The chair shall appoint such staff, including counsel, after consultation with the executive board, as may be helpful to carry on the duties of the organization. Staff shall serve at the pleasure of the chair.
B)Regional and local officers shall be consulted in local staffing decisions. Specifically, county chairs shall be consulted about the staffing and job descriptions of campaign workers based in their counties.

SECTION 5. Removal of State Committee Officers. Any regular officer of the State Committee shall be removed from office by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the total number of the State Committee.
SECTION 6. Vacancies. Vacancies among the officers shall be filled by an election of the State Committee at an open meeting called with at least twenty-one (21) days written notice mailed by the State Democratic Office or State Chair. The postmark will signify compliance with the twenty-one (21) day notice requirement. If the Chair vacates his or her position and is replaced by a person of the opposite gender, the Senior Vice-Chair shall become the First Vice-Chair of the Party with all attendant duties including membership on the Democratic National Committee, and the First Vice-Chair shall become the Senior Vice-Chair. A vacancy in the office of Chair may be filled by any State Committee member residing in any county, and no Vice-Chair will be disqualified by virtue of residency.
SECTION 7. Expenses of Officers. The officers may be reimbursed for reasonable out-of-pocket expenses in the performance of their duties as set forth in the annual budget.
SECTION 8. Annual Budget. The budget, approved by the Executive Committee, shall represent the expenditure authority of the Party, subject to amendment, and be in effect for the year starting on the first month after approval. Any expense in excess of the amount budgeted shall be subject to approval of the Executive Committee. A financial report shall be furnished at least quarterly by the Treasurer. No contracts for capital expenditures, employment, consultants or contracts in excess of $10,000 signed by the Chair or on behalf of the Party shall extend beyond the term of the Chair without approval of the Executive Committee.