In 1928, much as today, the Democratic Party in our state stood at a crossroads. As infighting over prohibition threatened to tear the party apart, senior party leadership gathered in Raleigh and declared that “if the Democratic Party in North Carolina is to be saved, the young Democrats will have to do it.”

Gubernatorial nominee O. Max Gardner charged his executive secretary, Tyre Taylor, with organizing the young Democrats in the state, and that year, the Young Democrats of North Carolina (YDNC) sprung into action under Tyre's leadership. Nearly a century later, YDNC is the oldest Young Democrats chapter in America and the founding chapter of Young Democrats of America.

Though much has changed since those days, the Young Democrats of North Carolina remains focused on making North Carolina a better place by promoting its issues, its young people, and the spirit of the Democratic Party.