Christine Pelosi to headline Young Democrats convention

CHARLESTON -- Christine Pelosi will deliver the keynote address during the West Virginia Young Democrats annual convention at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, April 5, at the Charleston Civic Center.

Pelosi is a nationally known author, attorney and former executive director of the California Democratic Party. She is the daughter of Nancy Pelosi, the first female speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives.

"This is an exciting time for the West Virginia Young Democrats, and we look forward to hosting Christine Pelosi in the Mountain State as we continue our work to get out the Democratic vote in 2008," said Rod Snyder, the organization's president.

The convention begins Friday, April 4, and concludes with a general session on Sunday, April 6. There are a number of political training sessions and special guest speakers scheduled throughout the weekend, including First Lady Gayle Manchin and Larry Matheney, secretary-treasurer of the West Virginia AFL-CIO.

The Young Democrats also will host three candidate forums, which are open to the general public. Democratic candidates for the 2nd congressional district will debate at 7:30 p.m. Friday; Democratic candidates for Secretary of State will debate at 10 a.m. Saturday; and Democratic candidates for state Supreme Court will debate at 2 p.m. Saturday.

Saturday night's keynote dinner with Pelosi is open to the general public and tickets are available for $50 per person by calling Travis Mollohan at (304) 345-2794 or e-mailing him at tmollohan@hotmail.com by Wednesday, April 2.

Complete details are available on the West Virginia Young Democrats Web site at www.wvyoungdems.org.

-- The Herald-Dispatch