It is with great humility and profound gratitude that I am writing to share with you the announcement of my candidacy for a Vice Presidency of Young Democrats of America. In this moment, young Democrats have much to be proud of, but we also have much work still before us. I am ready to roll up my sleeves with you, build on our accomplishments, and help lead YDA forward into its very bright future.

Barack Obama taught us all that change is never more powerful than when it powered by people like you and I – from the ground up. In helping to build the largest Young Democrats chapter in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and rebuild the Kentucky Young Democrats, I understand the importance of strong state and local chapters. YDA will be the organization it should be, only if our state and local chapters are built for long term success. I look forward to traveling across our nation and working with you to strengthen your chapter, and grow our grassroots.

We must embrace that elections are not an ending, but instead only a beginning. Once our chosen candidates have won, our work is not nearly finished. We must push them each and every day for what we believe in, and hold them accountable to us. We do this by generating the same effort in policy that we have proven we can put forth in politics and elections. We simply cannot be the leaders of tomorrow, if we are not right now the leaders of today – making change in our towns, cities, states, and across America.

I am honored to join the YDA Works team of candidate led by Crystal Strait. Our team offers a vision for YDA that moves us forward towards what we can and should be – the preeminent youth political organization in America. This team values hard work, dedication, and public service. We are ready to work with you to make the change we know is possible.

In the coming months, I look forward to talking with you, and listening to what kind of future you want for our beloved YDA. It is a conversation that begins now, and must continue on to Chicago and beyond. I ask not only for your support of candidacy, but your leadership in this movement. Elections are not an ending, and our work continues.

If you would like to learn a little bit more about me, I hope you will take a few moments to watch my YDA Works video.

Let’s Get to Work YDA!

Democratically yours,

Colmon Elridge
Colmon4yda@gmail.com

Here is a video of Colmon introducing Barack Obama at a campaign event in Kentucky in 2007: