Data Dude, At Your Service

Hi! I'm running for re-election to the Democrats Abroad Germany Membership & IT Coordinator position for the 2025-2027 term. You can drop by my campaign page from last term if you like. I plan to attend the Meet the Candidates sessions on Thursday, February 27, 2025 at 7:30 pm CET and Sunday, March 9, 2025 at 3:00 pm CET.. Here's some more stuff about me. But you are also welcome to ask me questions via email — use cliff at omg dot lol and you'll find secure contact methods at https://keys.cliff1976.net.

DA Germany elections are happening via online absentee voting for the very first time. This means you no longer have to attend a meeting (virtual or in person) to cast your ballot. Nor do you have to mail anything in! Please request your online absentee ballot by RSVPing to the election "event" before Sunday, March 2, 2025 at 6:00 pm CET and then vote for me!

Candidate statement

I helped found my local chapter in 2020 and have since been its Secretary. I'm active in several IT-related capacities.

Nationally: you elected me to this position in 2023. I took on the new responsibilities administering our email accounts, distribution lists, and shared storage. In that, I found a way to save hundreds of dollars. I made your data available to you for voter outreach while strictly following our data handling rules. I provided training and consultation on how to use our systems.

Globally: I contribute to acute/ongoing global member data quality initiatives. I am the person identifying congressional districts for members — critical for taking back the U.S. House. I devised a cheaper and more consistent way for this, saving hundreds of dollars from the global IT budget. I actively test DA's Vote From Abroad ballot request system, and always look for ways to make the system more user-friendly. I strive for that in other areas too: make the technology accessible to the voter and the volunteer.

I am proud of what DA achieved in the 2024 election cycle am sure IT contributions made it faster, easier, cheaper and more effective. If re-elected, I will need to start preparing for a knowledge transfer nearly immediately, because I want sustainable knowledge sharing, and I will be termed out in early 2027.

For 2025-27, I plan to continue along the path I began in 2023:

  1. optimize voter outreach
  2. use your feedback to drive improvements benefitting all country committees
  3. share best practices for membership data
  4. recruit a small team for load-sharing and bottleneck prevention

We've got big results to deliver in 2026. I want to get the most mileage out of the resources available to us, and make success easier for our successors.

Endorsements

Nicole Groß
Communications Coordinator, DA Germany
It is my pleasure to endorse Cliff for re-election as our DA Germany Membership & IT Coordinator. I have had many opportunities to collaborate with Cliff over the past two years, and without fail he has been helpful and enthusiastic. He has guided me through initial IT issues and is responsive, knowledgeable, and generous with his time and know-how. Cliff is quick to volunteer for new projects and dedicated to the goals of Dems Abroad at the local, national, and global levels. I wholeheartedly endorse him.
Geoff Simmons
Chair, Hamburg and Northern Germany Chapter
I‘ve had numerous interactions with Cliff over the past two years, and it‘s been refreshing to get to the geeky level with someone from the IT field. DA is not a technology undertaking, of course, but I can confirm that Cliff is well-qualified in the technical skills that the role requires. He applies those skills well in the service of our cause, and will continue to be an great asset for DA Germany over the next two years.

Merrill Oates
Director of Data and Analytics, DA Global IT
I am very pleased to endorse the re-election of Cliff Stuehmer as the DA-Germany Membership and IT coord.

As colleagues on the DA Global Tech and Data teams, Cliff and I have worked together on a wide range of projects. He has demonstrated consistent dedication to DA's efforts to find new voters and update DA membership records.

I have always appreciated Cliff's ability to ask frank and insightful questions have helped us to refine the focus of our projects and achieve the goals help DA to run better. I am certain that by re-electing him DA-Germany will continue to see improvements in its membership and technical resource menagement."

Pete Kaiser
Global IT Team Volunteer
Cliff is smart, hardworking, cooperative, imaginative and dedicated. We've worked together on DA's IT team for years, and he has been a terrific colleague. His sense of humor helps!