The Delaware Democratic Party has announced the formation of a State Democratic Veterans Caucus. The bylaws of this new PAC were accepted and approved at the recent meeting of the state party’s executive board.
U.S. Air Force veteran Jeff Quiggle of RD9 has been instrumental in forming the new caucus, with important support from Army vets Terrell Williams and RD9 Chair Kevin Caneco. There are many Democratic veterans throughout the state, and Jeff and the others realized that it was important for them to have a more distinct voice in the party and for the state party to be better represented by veterans.
There is a longstanding misconception that virtually all veterans are conservatives, but that is far from true. “We have to counter the right-wing narrative that veterans are somehow tied to a right-wing agenda. Most of us are not. The Caucus will be a good way to demonstrate that to the people of Delaware,” Quiggle said.
“We veterans have a superpower that we are compelled to use,” he continued. “That superpower is that people generally will listen to us when they won’t listen to a non-veteran.” He recounted several instances he encountered during his work on Democratic campaigns in Texas, conversations he had with voters who resisted his approach until they learned he was a veteran. “I discovered that when someone noticed that I was a veteran, I’d get a conversation when otherwise I might not have.”
The primary impetus for the formation of the Veterans Caucus included several considerations:
Veterans are a distinct group within the Party and should organize so they have a voice in the Party.
Veterans need to develop priorities and lobby the Legislature to make sure they are aware of those priorities.
Veterans should be an active and visible participant in Democratic Party activities and events.
Caucus member Tom Iarossi, a retired US Army First Sergeant and Vice President of the Eastern Sussex Democrats, summed up the formation of the Caucus this way: “The oath we took as servicemembers committed us to defending the principles of equality and justice that define our country. The Caucus ensures that the Democratic Party shares our unique perspective and can communicate that to voters.”
Veterans who are registered Democrats and who would like to learn more about the Caucus can contact Jeff at jeff_quiggle@yahoo.com.
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