The 2023 YDSA Convention will be held in person in Chicago, Illinois from Tuesday, August 1 – Thursday, August 3. Check this page for updates!
Who can attend the Convention?
The YDSA convention is open to elected delegates from official YDSA chapters. The national DSA office will inform each official YDSA of the size of the delegation they can send to the convention. Delegation sizes will be proportionate to the number of dues-paying members in each chapter. Chapters will then hold elections to decide which members will represent them at the August convention. All delegates must be dues-paying members of DSA. If you aren’t sure whether or not your chapter is official please check the chapter list here.
What happens at the Convention?
At the convention, delegates will debate and vote on pre-submitted resolutions and changes to the national YDSA constitution. Resolutions are directives for the national organization – adopt a national priority, organize a campaign, create a resource to support chapters, etc. The best resolutions are not just statements, they direct the organization to do something. Each resolution requires a simple majority vote of seated convention delegates to pass.
Constitutional changes are edits or additions to YDSA’s national constitution. Our constitution outlines our national leadership structure, membership requirements and much more. Each constitution change requires a 3/5 vote of seated convention delegates to pass.
Also at the convention we will elect a new National Coordinating Committee, or NCC. The NCC is comprised of 9 students from YDSA chapters who lead the organization outside the convention. They will create committees, run campaigns, plan national events, and do much more to sustain the national organization over the next year. The NCC has two co-chairs who also sit on DSA’s NPC, and seven at-large members.
Pre-Convention Calls
In the months leading up to the convention we’re holding a series of calls to help YDSA chapters and delegates prepare to set our priorities and elect leadership for the coming year. Delegates and alternates should attend as many calls as possible to make sure that you arrive in Chicago informed and ready to make the most of the time we have together.
Pre-Convention Timeline
Please note that these dates may be subject to change
Monday, March 6
- Primary Submissions open
- NCC nominations open
Friday, March 31
- Final deadline for chapter applications and renewals
Monday, May 1
- Final deadline for official chapters to submit membership list updates. All updates must be submitted through the chapter affiliation form.
Monday, May 8
- National office sends out delegate apportionment (the max number of delegates each chapter can send to convention based on membership number) to all official chapters.
Thursday, June 1
- Primary submissions close
Monday, June 12
- Deadline for chapters to submit the results of their delegate elections
- NCC nominations close
Saturday, July 1
- Secondary submissions close
Tuesday, August 1 – Thursday, August 3
- 2023 YDSA Convention