Nevada Caucus Site Asks Leaders to Sign NDAs

Site leaders for Saturday's Nevada caucuses were asked Friday to sign non-disclosure agreements preventing them from speaking to the media, a move a Nevada State Democratic Party official said is standard practice. 

Nevada State Democratic Party Chairman William McCurdy on Saturday told CNN the goal of the NDAs is "preserving the integrity" of the caucus process and to make sure "folks have an ability to know that when they cast their vote, it's safe."

The party also required NDAs in the 2018 election, saying staff and volunteers are privy to strategic information.

He also insisted signing the agreements is voluntary, but if they signed it, they will have to abide by its rules.

According to a copy of one of the four-page agreements, site leaders are told they are to report media requests to the party's executive or communications directors, and adds, in all capital letters: "THERE ARE NO EXCEPTIONS." The document also says leaders cannot provide any background to journalists, either on or off the record.

Seth Morrison, who had trained as a site leader, told CNN he refused to sign the agreement and that after, he was offered a lower-level volunteer position, so he quit. 

"The wording of that agreement is very broad," Morrison told CNN, adding the agreement also covered disclosing business methods, practices, and other information. "If I were to quote disparage the party or talk to the media without their permission, they could sue me for everything I own."

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