Dear LWVOR members,
Welcome to November 2021! This is election week for some districts; Check your County Clerk listing on the SoS page to be sure, if you haven’t gotten a ballot.
October’s virtual Fall Workshop and local League Pesticides consensus meetings are complete. Member agreement committees now need to convene to develop positions for both the Hard Rock Mining and the Pesticides studies.
Holidays are approaching and the League is working hard to improve prospects to make the future brighter for all of us. Local Leagues are resuming some in-person activity. LWVOR Voter Education / Service is gearing up for 2022, watching as two lawsuits filed against last month’s Oregon redistricting map adoption may affect our 2022 election calendars. Action coalitions are working on pre-session filings for the short legislative session. Nationally, we’re pushing for passage of federal social safety nets and voting rights legislation. We’re proud of our members attending COP26; watch our social media! Please thank the members in your leagues working on each of these and choose ways to help!
I encourage everyone to take a deep breath, take care of yourselves and each other. The last few years have been so stressful. We may be able to see each other again soon and we’ll want to work with renewed vigor. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
Becky Gladstone, President, LWVOR
Please keep reading for more information on:
LWVOR Action News
COP 26 CLIMATE. LWVOR members are attending and reporting on COP26 from Glasgow. See their news forwarded in LWVOR social media, linked in this newsletter.
REDISTRICTING. Oregon’s new congressional district maps have been challenged by two lawsuits. One suit asks the Supreme Court to get rid of the Legislature’s plan entirely, while the other alleges Democrats punished one of their own. A member forwarded this from The Washington Post: Democrats backed a commission to draw fair House lines in Colorado. Now they worry they gave up their power.
ACTION RETREAT. The Action Committee will hold an annual retreat meeting soon and convene two member agreement meetings for two studies, scheduled to fit in time for board position adoption before the 2022 short session. This is as pre-session work is underway for the upcoming 2022 short legislative session.
To learn more, see the LWVOR website, Take Action!
Communications Committee Survey
Watch your email in the next few days for an All-Member survey from this committee. Your responses will help to set LWVOR communications’ strategy going forward. Local League leaders have stepped up to facilitate providing surveys for members who do not have emails.
Voter Education / Service
LWVOR will need Voter Education / Service volunteers for the May 2022 Primary Election! Please prepare now and reserve time in your schedules so you can help!
Collect local candidate and ballot measure information for Vote411
Reps will need volunteers to help present civil and informative candidate and measure forums, coordinating with LWVOR and each other to share event news and tips.
Distribute printed Voters’ Guides and share more complete Vote411 information digitally
Register voters
GOTV! (Get Out The VOTE!)
Volunteer for the Election Protection Hotline, for which LWV is a coalition member.
Oregon’s 2022 elections will be as busy as any for the League, with candidates already declaring for major races. Compare the coming 2022 Oregon elections to this, from last year’s newsletter. Remember that Oregon did not have to stand in line to vote and Oregon’s popular Vote By Mail had enviable voter turnout.
Election drama is high as I write this. The League will work steadfastly to defend our democratic principles, especially our elections. Please follow us on social media for daily updates, read your email, and reinforce to all that WE MUST COUNT EVERY VOTE.
CANDIDATES: To see the 69 candidates already filed, go to ORESTAR and click the fine print, middle of the page, “Candidates for 2022 Primary Election”. These are the major 2022 races:
US Senate, (currently held by Sen Merkley)
All federal House seats, now increased to 6 for Oregon
The Oregon Governor. Kate Brown is term-limited and 14 candidates have already filed
BoLI, Commissioner of Labor & Industries
Judges, including a seat for state Supreme Court Justice.
BALLOT MEASURES Campaigns, some repeatedly filed, like redistricting, are working hard. To see the list, go to the SoS’s IRR page (Initiatives, Referrals, and Referenda) for a full list. Click the small button “Summary Results” for the full list. Filings aren’t automatically withdrawn so some of the 43 currently listed may be redundant.
LWVOR growth is REALLY IMPRESSIVE! 129,481 Oregonians used Vote411.org in 2020! We will repeat the local Voter Education publicity grants. This growth reflects your efforts. Thank You for making them work!
Vote411.org works because we “deliver the GOODS” and voters find what they’re looking for. We count on local members to collect candidate filing and ballot measure info. Contact your local League to volunteer in advance so we can know we’re in good stead!
Voters’ Guides
LWVOR hopes that usual distribution channels (local leaders’ suggestions below) will be fully functional, post-COVID, by the 2022 primary. Printed Voters’ Guides are valued as outreach and an introduction to the League, including in Spanish. We still need to emphasize that print versions include only about 7% of what we cover online. We encourage Vote411.org online use whenever possible. Our aim is to provide full individual ballot information. We continue to invite all candidates (who provide campaign filing emails). We have the capacity to cover all local ballot measures, with local Leagues’ help.
Where does your League share printed Voters’ Guides? Here are some examples:
Local elections Offices
“Congregate care” places, great for older people
Meals On Wheels, libraries, and food pantries
Grocery stores, places of worship, to other nonprofits
Civics Education Events
Please share your League and civics education events with LWVOR staff, lwvor@lwvor.org, and we can help with publicity! Send links to your recordings to share, too!
Harvard Case Studies
Oregon Leagues have participated in the Harvard Case Studies for a few years, invited by Dr. Deirdre Kamlani, LWV CT, who coordinates Leagues’ participation. LWVOR members are invited to attend and invite high school teachers to this event, offering a unique chance to learn by experiencing a case discussion first hand. The case reading will be sent automatically upon registration (make time to review the materials in advance).
The Case: a pivotal debate at the Constitutional Convention of 1787 Wed, November 10th, 7pm (Eastern), REGISTER.
Harvard Business School Professor, David Moss, will moderate a live demonstration of the Madison case at a special Community Case Discussion on Zoom. This case centers on a key debate at the Constitutional Convention of 1787: Should the federal government have veto power over state laws? How much power-and what kind of power-should the federal government have over states?
Upcoming Tigard Public Library Civic Education Programs
Thank you to League member Donna Cohen, a featured speaker at the LWVOR 2017 Fall Workshop, for sending these, sponsored by Tigard Public Library, Free and Virtual.
Beyond Voting: Elections and Campaign Financing (REGISTER) Friday, Nov 5, 2021, 6:30-8:00pm
Election security, fraud, and voter suppression
Redistricting / gerrymandering
Electoral College
Alternative voting systems
Campaign finance issues / tracking
The Constitution: Fulfilling Democracy’s Promise?
Democracy, the Constitution and Representation in Congress
Friday, December 3rd.,6:30-8:00pm
Status of democracy
Structural issues / representation
Interpreting and changing the Constitution
Registration link posted at Tigard Public Library two weeks prior.
Studies Update
To learn more about our studies and to volunteer, please head to our Current Programs page.
Child Care
The Child Care Update Study Committee is requesting local League volunteers to interview some of their local child care providers. If you are interested or want more information contact Kathleen Hersh.
Election Systems Update
The committee is currently in the expert interview stage, on schedule. If you are interested or want more information contact Peggy Bengry.
Pesticides and Biocides
Thank you to all who participated in the member consensus process! The Member Agreement Committee will be meeting to consolidate input and craft a position for board approval. For information, contact Action Chair, Alice Bartelt.
Fundraising, Holiday wish lists?
As the weather cools, we want to be warm and housed, want to celebrate fall colors and harvests, and think of sharing our bounty with others. League leaders compared fundraising notes. Here’s a partial list:
LWV Curry will observe GivingTuesday and put a note in their newsletter. They will run a gift-wrapping booth in their community holiday bazaar, counting on it for great League visibility.
LWVPDX has been producing holiday cards since 2012-2013, in appreciation of their members. They use members’ images and public testimonials taken throughout the year, and include an envelope and coupon for return donations. 2021 will be their second Giving Tuesday, with a goal of $2000, starting with an internal match of $500. They ask members to repost and retweet.
Lane sends soft fundraising outreach, asking members to round up their membership renewal figures in July, also a nonmember letter in March. Their “fruit loops” annual fruit order sales are underway, with the option to buy and donate as a support for Food for Lane County. LWVLC wants someone to gift them a building to manage and rent out to other nonprofits.
Umpqua Valley has slots for donating directly on their website, advertises with a membership drive, and sends letters to past donors. Be sure to take a look at the Abigail Scott Duniway suffrage musical, A Musical For the Ages, A Frontier Family Feud! They’re looking for in-person engagements, also ZOOM.
#GivingTuesday is just after Thanksgiving, great timing for year-end IRA distributions, tax write-offs, etc. Several Leagues will participate, including LWVOR, via social media.
Investments
Leagues absolutely value and need our donors' time, talents, and treasures, all important and all needed! Ted Kaye, LWVOR Investments Committee, spoke to leaders and used an Apple Orchard analogy for legacy investments.
Having apples and cutting down the trees if you need the wood can both be beneficial. A few donors might like to give perpetual proceeds (the apples) while protecting capital, and some might want to give you what you need right now (the trees). For the apples, think “25”: give $25 so that $1 annually (a long-term, 4% average) can keep giving you apples.
*LWVOR gets $5,000 in proceeds annually from funds at OCF, Oregon Community Foundation. We discussed SRI (socially responsible investing, e.g. barring alcohol, gun, fossil fuel stocks) and ESG (environmental, social, and corporate governance ratings, see wiki).
Recommended Reading – LWVOR FALL WORKSHOP!
This month’s recommended reading boosts our Fall Workshop presentations. A number of presenters sent materials for follow-up reading. Enjoy!
This year’s Fall Workshop presented four virtual sessions, all recorded and posted. Thank you to the Events Committee, Chair Robin Tokmakian, Program Chair Sheila McGinnis, Membership & DEI Chair Kathleen Hersh, our staff, the Amazing A&A, Amanda and Allison, for meeting tech support, video editing, and website posting, and our publicity contractor, Sarah Andrews, for social media.
These sessions are all worthy of review, please take a look!
Defusing Contentious Conversations
We can all be thankful for diversity. If this sounds challenging for your Thanksgiving table, or perhaps the upcoming candidate forums, this workshop is for you! Dr. Busch outlines four clear steps to help find common ground. The goal is understanding, not persuasion.
LWV Oakland’s Volunteer Development Experience
Learn how LWV Oakland’s one-year-old Volunteer Development Committee is building capacity to recruit, engage, train, and retain volunteers, with practical tips, resources, and ideas you can implement!
Garrett Epps, Keynote: Can SCOTUS bring US Together?
As we begin a new Supreme Court Term, Americans have every right to ask, “What are the prospects for the survival of our democracy? What will happen to the right to vote, the right to choose, the right to peaceable assembly for redress of grievance? Are there any guardrails left?”
See Professor Epp’s new release: The New Supreme Court—A Brief Inimicus Curiae, the forward to the ACS 20-21 Supreme Court Review.
Constructive Conversations in a Diverse World, Cheryl Graeve
Concerned about rancor and polarization threatening our democracy? Want our
public life to be more grounded in understanding and respect? This session covers constructive conversations to find common ground and bridge our differences. Learn how empathy, listening to understand, and humility can overcome divisions and open doors to meaningful connection.
Thank you for reading! I am thankful for our League Teamwork, and for what each of you is doing.
Yours In League,
Becky Gladstone, President, LWVOR
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