2024 NOVEMBER ELECTION ENDORSEMENTS ARE IN!
UPCOMING EVENTS at WDHQ & GDHQ
Final days to pitch in to win the utterly critical elections of 2024
Westside Dem HQ, 1241 3rd St. Promenade, between Wilshire & Arizona (across from Sephora) — see below for more info/RSVP
(Scroll down for Grassroots Dems HQ actions (1027 Westwood Blvd., Westwood, between Weyburn & Kinross)
Last weekend phone banks at the WDHQ! Call voters in swing states starting at 8 AM
(remember, that’s 11 AM in North Carolina, Georgia, and Michigan)
https://events.democrats.org/event/712308/
Sign up or just drop in for as long as you like. And Saturday you may well get to call with and meet L.A.’s own Mayor Karen Bass!, along with other luminaries 😲 
Take a WDHQ bus from the 3rd St. Promenade to knock doors
We have some great, easier-on-the-posterior (shorter trip!) in-state options for you,
with very special guests
One-day canvass this Saturday, 11/2: bus to CA-45 for army vet • consumer rights attorney • city commissioner • small business owner Derek Tran!
9 AM meetup at the WDHQ — now with SPECIAL GUEST planned to kick things off!
Parking validation available in SM Parking Structure 2, 2nd Street between Wilshire & Arizona
https://www.mobilize.us/westsidedemocratichq/event/731997/
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One-day canvass this Sunday, 11/3: bus from the HQ to CA-40 for former Fire Captain • Pres. of the OC Professional Firefighters Ass’n. • VP, OC Central Labor Council (AFL-CIO) Joe Kerr — with thank-you appearances by **GOV. GAVIN NEWSOM & REP. KATIE PORTER**!
9 AM meetup at the WDHQ
Parking validation available in SM Parking Structure 2, 2nd Street between Wilshire & Arizona
https://www.mobilize.us/westsidedemocratichq/event/731974/
Ballot Curing (making sure every vote gets counted) at the HQ
Low stress, high-reward calling of voters who’ve cast ballots that weren’t accepted — we give them the opportunity to “cure” their ballots so they get counted. Very important in small-margin elections!
Every day from now till >past< Election Day!
Shifts start at 12, 3 PM, and sometimes 5 PM depending on the day
https://www.mobilize.us/westsidedemocratichq/event/720981/
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Come with us for the big final push:
Ride the bus to Las Vegas for a one-day trip Saturday, November 2
Carpool to Las Vegas Saturday to Sunday (we’ll cover hotel)
Ride the bus to Phoenix Friday to Tuesday
Filling up fast — email [email protected] to reach our Canvassing Queen, Dr. Lara, about joining these out-of-state trips
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO ON THE ABOVE & THE WDHQ
Grassroots Dems HQ, 1027 Westwood Blvd., Westwood
CLICK IMAGES BELOW FOR MORE INFO/RSVP
Grassroots Dems HQ
1027 Westwood Blvd., Westwood (between Weyburn & Kinross), Westwood
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO ON THESE AND OTHER GDHQ EVENTS
Thank you to the 120+ who attended our 2024 PaliDems Garden Party!
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2 PM: PPDC’s beloved VIP GARDEN PARTY (mingling with electeds, candidates, & other VIPs) returned to the Palisades Riviera
Assemblymember Jacqui IRWIN
Supervisor District 3 Lindsey HORVATH
City Attorney Hydee FELDSTEIN SOTO
City Councilmember Traci PARK
L.A. County Democratic Party Chair Mark RAMOS
+ NEW: Senior Obama Advisor & Dep. Press Secretary Bill BURTON
with video message recorded specially for the Garden Party from Rep. Brad Sherman
WHO WE ARE: PPDC, aka Palidems
The Pacific Palisades Dem Club is among the most influential Dem clubs in the US, proud to have led the founding and running of Presidential election year **Westside Democratic Headquarters**
… wildly successful Santa Monica GOTV centers with national reach, Because CA is safely blue and home to some of the country’s most giving democrats (you), we target not only CA voters but swing staters, too. This gives >you< the power to swing elections!
The HQ also hosts fun events, ballot prop debates, and the Westside’s best selection of political merch
WDHQ’s 2024 Santa Monica election center
at 1241 3rd St. Promenade had its kickoff event on August 22: a soft open
watch party for Kamala Harris’s historic nomination
speech — with overflow crowd and local TV news coverage
With grand opening Sunday, September 1, 2024, attended by over 300 people who came to eat, drink, hear from Rep. Maxine Waters and other VIPs, and sign up to volunteer
WDHQ now open seven days/wk for election action
Promenade HQ Harris speech watch party & grand open pics:
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For 2024 the other amazing GOTV group founded and run by PPDC board members,
**Grassroots Democrats HQ**, has opened an HQ in at 1027 Westwood Blvd. in addition to their already operational Brentwood and Malibu pop-up HQs
Grassroots Democrats is a preeminent GOTV operation that’s among the most successful in the country, working hard and bringing in VIPs like Reps. Adam Schiff and Eric Swallwell to fire folks up!
Here’s an exciting look at some of what the Grassroots crew is up to:
READ MORE ABOUT PALIDEMS, THE HQs (sign up today!)
AND OUR PLATFORM HERE
Long story, but yes, Kamala Harris and Tim Walz
are the Democratic candidates for President and VP!
Here’s the campaign website: https://kamalaharris.com
President Biden may be out of the race, but we remain ever grateful for his leadership and legislative achievements. As part of the Biden/Harris administration, Harris can take credit for a(n) historically successful term, so you may still be interested in reading more on our NEWS page about the WhyBiden.com website, run in partnership with a PPDC board member
Pacific Palisades Democratic Club (aka PaliDems, or PPDC) celebrated its 70th anniversary in 2023! PPDC has an active membership base that supports our work promoting Democratic principles, legislation, and candidates. Members donate to the cause, attend events, and advocate locally, statewide, and nationally
** PAST EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS FYI **
Bus with us in October! You can depart from Westwood (left image) or Santa Monica (right image)
WEDNESDAY, 10/23/24
Trump, crushed by Harris in their debate, declined a CNN debate invitation. Harris accepted. So she’ll be holding a **town hall** Wednesday, October 23 on CNN, and your HQ will be streaming it at 6 PM
(phonebanking in one room, viewing in the other)
Come on in to watch, snack, and be part of what’s up at the HQ. And sign up to volunteer in the critical final days!
SATURDAY, OCT. 26
Join us Saturday, Oct 12, 19, or 26 at 3 PM for Spanish-speaking phonebank training at the WDHQ or virtually. Make calls to Spanish speakers to ensure we elect Kamala Harris and give her the Congress she needs — with extra fun on 10/26, with the Día de los Muertos celebration in full swing on the 3rd Street Promenade! CLICK HERE, or just come on down
That’s during the day. On Saturday night:
Professional MC and setup, 60,000+ songs to choose from 🎤 Let’s sing our hearts out for a cause that matters!
Good vibes guaranteed! Bring friends, bring your energy, and let’s hit those high notes for Kamala Harris, Tim Walz, Dems nationwide, and freedom & democracy! 💙 CLICK HERE TO RSVP
SUNDAY, OCT. 27
Join Brian Tyler Cohen (MSNBC contributor, YouTuber with 3 million subscribers and 2.3 billion views) at the HQ to raise $$ for not one but two of the most important CA congressional seats!
This Sunday afternoon: food • wine • friends
CLICK TO RSVP: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/willrollins_event_october27_sm
And Sunday night:
WDHQ supervolunteer PAULA POUNDSTONE made everyone’s day when she postcarded with us, then popped onstage to entertain the packed room
We begged her to come back and she didn’t hesitate to say YES! On Sunday, 10/27 at 7 PM, after the Harder-Rollins fundraiser,
the <Nobody Listens to Paula Poundstone.> podcast host / Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me uberguest / comedy legend returns
to your Westside Dem HQ to inspire and motivate us…
Whether or not you’ve been in to volunteer, come on down for this free show! CLICK HERE TO RSVP
** RSVP HERE **
He was the architect of Barack Obama’s 2008 epic grassroots organizing campaign, but his activism and organizing can be traced back to Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta’s campaign to unionize California farm workers in the late 1960s and 1970s, and even further back to the 1964 Freedom Summer in Mississippi.
Who is he? Marshall Ganz, of course! And he is coming to the Westside Dem HQ Sunday, 10/6 at 11:30 AM to talk about his new book, People, Power, Change: Organizing for Democratic Renewal.
Grassroots Dems HQ
1027 Westwood Blvd., Westwood (between Weyburn & Kinross), Westwood
CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO ON THESE AND OTHER GDHQ EVENTS
VICE PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE WATCH PARTIES
Tuesday, Oct. 1, 6 PM PDT, hosted by CBS
Moderated by Norah O’Donnell & Margaret Brennan
Venue: New York City
After delivering the decisive margin of victory to defeat Donald Trump in 2020 along with many of his handpicked midterm candidates in 2022, young voters will once again determine whether Democrats can defend the White House and take back full control of Congress this November. That’s why Voters of Tomorrow and the Grassroots Democrats HQ are committed to training a record number of youth organizers to turn out young voters in swing states and House districts over the final weeks of this campaign
Please join us and special guests Mark Hamill and Congressman Eric Swalwell on Tuesday, September 17 at 6:30 PM in L.A. for Alliance for the Future, a reception supporting critically needed youth organizing and turnout programs
Westside Democratic HQ
1241 3rd St. Promenade, Santa Monica (between Wilshire & Arizona, across from Sephora)
Next Karaoke for Kamala night: Friday, 9/27/24
Tuesday, September 10 Presidential Debate Watch Party
Co-hosted by PPDC as a founding member of the WDHQ consortium
Join the excitement and watch the Harris-Trump debate on the big screens
at the Westside Democratic HQ on the 3rd Street Promenade
** Tickets are free but you do have to CLICK HERE TO RSVP **
Or CLICK HERE to watch with the Grassroots Dems at their new site in Westwood
After its sneak peek pre-open to watch Kamala Harris’s DNC acceptance speech, the Westside Democratic Headquarters (WDHQ) officially opens its 4000 SF campaign office and storefront at 1241 3rd St. Promenade (first block south of Wilshire, across from Sephora) on Sunday, September 1 at 1 PM —
with food • drink • entertainment • VIPs to celebrate the 20th year of the WDHQ, which opened our first Presidential HQ in 2004! CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO & TO RSVP
Our WDHQs have guided thousands of volunteers from 2004 through 2016 in Santa Monica (on Montana, the Third St. Promenade, and Wilshire), followed by a 2018 midterms HQ in Westwood. Covid pushed us to Zoom in 2020 but now we can gather online >and< in-person
Thanks to the almost 300 who were excited to come together to watch and celebrate!
The Westside Dem HQ (WDHQ) transitions from virtual to real-world GOTV operations, opening an election hub in a big, fun space on the 3rd Street Promenade
SATURDAY, AUGUST 17, 3 PM: PPDC brought “Political Musical Satire” with TV writer and sought-after speaker David Misch to a packed house! Location: a beautiful canyonside backyard on Chautauqua in the Palisades. MORE INFO HERE
Thank you to the 100+ who came to the 2024 Labor Awards in support of the WDHQ!
THURSDAY, JUNE 27, 6 PM: First Presidential debate
Location: WDHQ reserved the mezzanine of Barney’s Beanery on the Promenade for group watching and emotional support, and GDHQ gathered in Brentwood. Happy to see everyone who came. Many heated discussions followed…
45 people signed up (thanks to all!) to see the
MAURICE SENDAK EXHIBIT
at the SKIRBALL CULTURAL CENTER with us on 6/2/24
Why? Chance to meet fellow Dems in a fun environment, welcome new members, and get everyone fired up for the November election!
PPDC co-hosts with GDHQ a canvassing event in Corona to send Will Rollins (CA-41) to Congress
CLICK HERE for more
In April, we walked through beautiful new George Wolfberg Park in the Palisades
Sunday, April 28, 2024, 12 PM
Thank you to the 45 who signed up to attend!
Originally scheduled for Saturday, March 23, 12 PM
Followed by lunch & talk about the history of the park with a local expert & Wolfberg family member at Veterans’ Gardens (picnic tables near the bocce court in Palisades Park)
** Free Thyme Cafe lunch for 1st 20 to RSVP **
Click here for tickets or more info
1) PPDC endorsed two board members — Jen Miner and Tamara Levenson (who’s on Rep. Brad Sherman’s slate) running to attend the Democratic Convention as delegates. If you registered, send someone from your very own Dem club to rep us all in Chicago this August!
2) PPDC is co-hosting, with Grassroots Dems, a discussion with Heather Cox Richardson, historian and best-selling author! She’ll speak **FRIDAY, 4/11/24** about the stakes of 2024 elections and what we can do to defend democracy. Learn how you can make a difference with the launch of Volunteer Blue, a new effort of 15 highly committed organizations. CLICK HERE
The Westside Dem HQ hosts a State of the Union watch party tonight! Thursday, March 7, 2024 • Zoom starts 5:15 PM • President Biden starts 6 PM
Connect with fellow supporters and rally behind President Biden’s message of positivity and progress in real time. The event is virtual and free — click below to register — so pop in from wherever you may be. With special guests!
Laura Friedman, Assemblymember (soon to be Congressmember*); Mark Gonzales, Chair of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party (soon to be Assemblymember*); and Congressional top-two’s Will Rollins and Derek Marshall
* If we do our GOTV work with enough muscle!
2024 ANNUAL MEETING, Sun., 2/4/24, 2 – 4 PM
Thanks to the 175 of you who RSVPed!
**ALERT: BECAUSE OF THE STORM, THE MEETING WILL BE HELD EXCLUSIVELY VIA ZOOM**
Your excitement for this event is contagious, but Mother Nature had other plans! We’ll miss seeing you in person and sharing refreshments. Your safety and the safety of our incredible electeds are our primary concerns. Stay safe and dry!
Every year the club holds a meeting, open to all, featuring local elected officials, with updates and Q&A. For 2024, we kick off the most consequential election year in memory with
Update: Mayor Bass was scheduled to attend but now has to hold a press conference about the storm. Other electeds may similiarly be called away at the last minute. We’ve been working hard to hold the best possible meeting for you despite the storm…
This event serves as the club’s official “Annual Meeting” (though the club holds many events throughout the year and its board meets monthly), at which the 2024 board candidate slate will be up for ratification by all club members in good standing who are present
Admission is free, with donations requested to help defray costs ($10 suggested)
50+ guests came Midweek : )
Thank you for supporting PPDC’s work by attending our TOUR OF PALISADES HIDDEN GEM: HISTORIC VILLA AURORA fundraiser! On December 7, 2023, we gathered for a docent-led tour of this storied US/German arts institution.
Zev Y BOOK TALK
Thanks to all who attended our 10/22/23 Zev Yaroslavsky book signing, including Zev!
2023 Summer garden party
Thanks also to all 126 of you who came to PPDC’s Garden Party on Sunday, August 6!
And to Rep. Brad Sherman, Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin, Supervisor District 3 Lindsey Horvath, City Attorney Hydee Feldstein Soto, City Councilmember Traci Park
…for their informative presentations, Q&A, and genial presence as the community got to hear from and spend one-on-one time with them in a lovely, informal setting
– photo gallery –
PPDC initial and subsequent statements
on the horrific attacks of 10/7/23
10/9/23
The Pacific Palisades Democratic Club condemns the brutal attacks that took place in Israel, and our hearts go out to all who are suffering. We acknowledge the complexities of the political situation in the region and support those who call for peaceful resolutions and respect for human rights. There is absolutely no justification for terrorist acts against civilians, or military attacks against a democratic nation, and we stand with Israel after this national tragedy.
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Curious about past goings-on at PPDC?
Click the links below to explore our site’s front pages going all the way back to 2012!
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2017 – 2012 HOME PAGE ARCHIVES (the deep dive, if you dare)