The Democratic Club of Mesquite has expanded over the last few years according to Fred Toval who is club President.
“The Democratic Club of Mesquite is always on the outreach. We are trying to get new members and we are gearing up for a fierce election,” Toval told the MLN June 28.
The whole thing began in 2008 when then Sen. Barrack Obama was running for president.
“He was very attractive as a candidate for the Democratic Party,” Toval said. “My wife and I were both Hillary Clinton supporters until he came along. We switched and said we are going to go with this guy.”
By making phone calls and knocking on doors, Toval was actively trying to get Obama elected.
“I was doing things that ordinary, grass-root supporters do,” Toval added. Other Democrats noticed his work and followed his actions. “It was like a snowball, I gathered people around me. Pretty soon there were 25 or 30 of us that I was leading. After the election the people in my group said they thought we should from a club. They nominated me to be the president.”
The club became official in July of 2009 and has continued to grow.
“From the 30 people I had then, I now have over 100 in my club,” he said.
Toval also has another 200 people on his email list and he estimates that between those people and their family and friends he has some communication with about 25 percent of the Democrats who vote inMesquite. However he still is working to get more members on his side.
“Right now we have 1,900 registered Democrats inMesquite, and something like 2,800 registered Republicans. In order to defeat them I have to outperform them,” he explained. “We out performed them in 2008. We had more people vote for the Democratic Party than there were registered Democrats in the city,” he said.
One of the reasons the club is so popular is the guest speakers they get at meetings. “We have all the candidates who are running for office on the Democratic ticket come to see us,” Toval said. And he does mean everyone: senators, congressmen, state legislators, assemblymen, and judges have all been guests in the past.
Toval said he and his club members are ecstatic about the June 28 Supreme Court decision on health care.
“They look at it as a victory,” he noted. “They look at it as a defeat of the forces of evil. If the Supreme Court had cut down the health care law they would have been signing their death warrant in the election. They had to do what they did,” said Toval.
Toval is also confident that President Obama will beat Gov. Mitt Romney in November. “Despite what the polls say I think President Obama is going to be re-elected by a surprising margin,” he said.
Even though he already has a significant influence, Toval is hopeful that more locals who share his views will get in touch with him.“
If you’re interested in progressive ideas and a society in which everyone has a fair shot at a quality life then contact me,” said Toval. You can do that over the phone at 801-574-5336 or by email at ftoval@aol.com.