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Two Articles by Rick Gonzales Over 70 people attended the Davis Democratic Club’s (DDC) Annual Champagne Brunch on May 18 at Josh and Athena Chapman’s beautiful South Davis home. The guests enjoyed great food and mimosas. along with plenty of political conversations concerning not only Davis but the entire nation. DDC Chair Stephen Souza emceed the event, and Robin Sousa was instrumental in decorating and setting up for it. The speeches began with Congressman Mike Thompson calling in to address the group. Next to speak was District 2 Supervisor Lucas Frerichs, followed by District 4 Supervisor Sheila Allen, Davis City Councilman Josh Chapman, and Councilwoman Donna Neville. Some other elected officials in attendance were former Assemblywoman Helen Thomson, former Public Guardian Cass Sylvia, former Supervisor Jim Provenza, former Supervisor Don Saylor, and Davis City Councilwomen Gloria Partida and Linda Deos. DDC members Jan Agee, Gary Hopkins, and Ameer Alaswaf welcomed the attendees at the entrance. Many guests who came have missed previous Champagne brunches. DDC members Bill Ritter and his brother Dan drove the furthest to attend the event from Sunnyvale in the Bay Area. Bill is a former DDC Chair, who was very active in previous years in Davis politics. This event is a major fundraiser for the DDC. Nearly $7,000 was raised, as some attendees also paid their 2025 DDC membership dues. On June 1, DDC Vice-Chair Rick Gonzales will begin calling DDC members who have not paid their 2025 dues, and Gary Hopkins will update the membership list. Only those who have not paid will be contacted. Gonzales noted, “Kudos go to the UC Davis College Democrats who helped with the set up and clean up at the event. The College Dems are the number one College Democratic Club in California and are very active in many political events throughout the state. They are the best!” The Club’s Facebook page (https://Facebook.com/DavisDemocrats) has photos taken by Luba Schmid, who attended with her husband Carl. Many Democrats are finding it difficult to know how to handle all the awful policies and executive orders that are being implemented. The DDC will continue to post information about protests and events taking place in our community, so that members will know ways in which they can participate and can continue to talk to each other. Not only are Democrats upset, but many Republicans are also unhappy. We need to prepare for the 2026 midterm elections to take back both the US Senate and House of Representatives. The work starts now! Photos by Luba Schmid 
 Photos by Luba Schmid by Oliver Snow On May 18th, the Davis Democratic Club (DDC) celebrated their 33rd annual Champagne Brunch. Despite the tough election results in 2024, this year’s brunch held a focus on organizing to fight back in 2026. The Davis Dems also took the opportunity to highlight some Democratic victories that DDC has contributed towards. We are so grateful to Josh and Athena Chapman for hosting us at their beautiful home in South Davis, they have been gracious hosts of this event for the past several years. The brunch was also supported by DDC Board Members who brought food and drinks (especially Stephen Souza, Robert Marr, and Helen Thomson who helped supply Champagne for the event), and the Davis College Democrats who arrived early to help set-up and stayed to help clean-up. Congressman Mike Thompson called in to open the program for the event, thanking Davis Democrats for their work and continued activism which helped get Democrats just 3 seats short of a majority in the House of Representatives. In 2026, Democrats will win the House of Representatives and take back oversight authority over the presidential administration. Following Congressman Thompson, DDC President Stephen Souza welcomed attendees to the event and spoke a bit about the history of the Champagne Brunch. He expressed gratitude to the Chapmans for hosting the event since its return following the COVID-19 pandemic and announced that, to give the Chapmans a break, next year’s event will be held at the home of Holly and Matt Bishop. President Souza also introduced the various current and former elected officials who were in attendance, including Vice Mayor Donna Neville and Gloria Partida, Josh Chapman, and Linda Deos from the Davis City Council, while Mayra Vega attended from the Woodland City Council. Yolo County Board of Supervisors Vice Chair Sheila Allen and Supervisor Lucas Frerichs were both in attendance, as well as retired Supervisors Jim Provenza and Don Saylor. Former Davis Mayor Brett Lee was also at the brunch, as well as former Yolo County Public Guardian Cass Sylvia. We were honored to also be joined by former Assemblymember Helen Thomson, who brought champagne to the event. Chair Jake Whitaker of the Yolo County Democratic Central Committee was also in attendance. Many of the officials present spoke about urgent issues facing our community, and our nation. Supervisor Frerichs and Vice Chair Allen both spoke about the severity of the situation in Washington DC, with the proposed Republican cuts to Medicaid (MediCal) taking center stage. They also highlighted positive work happening at the county level, including the construction of the new Walnut Park Library in Davis and the opening of the new Woodland Regional Park which will preserve 160 acres of open space in partnership with the Yolo Habitat Conservancy. Councilmember Chapman emphasized the damage that Republicans in Washington are doing to federal institutions and emphasized the importance of organizing for Democrats in the 2026 midterms. Councilmember Neville spoke about her role on the Board of Directors for NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Yolo County and echoed concerns about the suffering that pending Medicaid cuts would inflict on those who live with mental illness. In addition to the current local elected officials, former Supervisor Don Saylor highlighted the importance of election integrity and praised the work of Yolo County Assessor/Clerk Recorder/Chief Elections Official (ACE) Jesse Salinas. A fundraiser is being held for ACE Salinas on May 29th at 6:00 pm, and Saylor encouraged local Democrats to attend. More info can be found at this link (embedded here), or by emailing salinas4yolo@gmail.com. Chair Whitaker of the Yolo Democrats again highlighted the importance of organizing locally and spoke about a phonebank the Yolo Dems hosted on May 20th to encourage voters to call their Congressional Representative and ask them to vote against Medicaid cuts. DDC Vice President Rick Gonzalez wrapped up the program by reminding attendees to pay their dues to the Davis Democratic Club, which can be done online at this link (embedded here). The event was a big success, with over 70 attendees and more than $6,000 raised to support DDC as we begin organizing for 2026. Thank you to all who attended and helped make this year’s brunch so special.  Photos by Luba Schmid |
Published by the Davis
Democratic Club
Temporary Newsletter Editor: G Richard Yamagata
