Get to know your candidates

The 2024 Fall Primary Voter Guide is published. Depending on your District, you may have one or more state races in the August 13 primary election. There is one local race in the primary which is for Milwaukee County Treasurer.

1) After you have signed into VOTE411.org by entering your address, check if the candidates have answered the League’s questions.

2) If they have, reach out and thank them. You can use social media, email, or phone. You can say “Thank you for responding to questions for the VOTE411 online Voter Guide so voters can be informed before casting their ballots.”

3) If any of the candidates haven’t answered the League’s questions, contact them and ask that they do so! Write or call your candidates today and urge them to answer the League’s questions! This message can be simple: “As a voter, I want to hear where my candidates stand on the issues. That’s why I’m calling on you to respond to the questions posed to you for Vote411.org.”

Note: This is an opportunity to encourage and persuade candidates to respond, so please be respectful but direct in your messages. When candidates know that voters care about something (in this case, creating a voter guide to keep voters informed), it is in their best interest to respond!

Candidates who have questions about their invitation to participate can contact the Voter Guide team at voterguide@lwvmilwaukee.org.

And don’t forget to keep spreading the word about Vote411 to family, friends, colleagues and neighbors. Our democracy works when everyone votes!

Vote NO: August 13 Federal Funds Constitutional Amendment Questions

The questions on voters’ ballots

Question 1:“Delegation of appropriation power. Shall section 35 (1) of article IV of the constitution be created to provide that the legislature may not delegate its sole power to determine how moneys shall be appropriated?”

Read more about what this question meansBallotpedia Question 1

Question 2: “Allocation of federal moneys.Shall section 35 (2) of article IV of the constitution be created to prohibit the governor from allocating any federal moneys the governor accepts on behalf of the state without the approval of the legislature by joint resolution or as provided by legislative rule?”

Read more about what this question meansBallotpedia Question 2

What does a “Yes” or a “No” vote mean?

A "yes" vote supports amending the state constitution to require legislative approval from both the senate and assembly before the governor can expend federal money appropriated to the state.

A "no" vote opposes this amendment, thereby allowing the governor to accept and allocate federal funds without seeking an approval vote from the state legislature.

Stance:The League of Women Voters of Wisconsin opposes these constitutional amendment questions and urges voters toVOTE NO on both questions.

And here’s a toolkit with more information about the amendments, social media posts and other deep dive information about these issues.

NO to Amendments Toolkit

Newsflash on Coffee for Our Cause

This year, LWVMC will be working with East View Coffee Company for our important fundraiser. East View was founded and is owned by Jenny Ulbricht, the daughter of LWVMC member Kathy Ulbricht. East View brings a new business model and more than that, a company whose story is aligned with our values. Gender equality, environmental action, and social justice are woven into everything they do.

East View partners with women-owned coffee farms, championingquality and providing opportunities for growth. With smart packaging andcarbon-neutral shipping, East View ensures that our love for coffee doesn’tcome at the expense of our planet.

Here are the highlights as of now:

• Coffee is the only product being sold with four kinds, including a decaf.

• Three (3) bag (12 oz bag) minimum sale which includes free shipping to a single address in the 48 mainland states.

• All orders will be placed online (help provided if that is a barrier)

• All payments will be made online by credit card (reach out to Kathy Ulbricht if this is a problem)

Here is what we need on the sales/marketing side to make this a success:

• A minimum of forty (40) League members to be part of the sales team.

• LWVMC members to help with marketing.

• League members with expertise in graphic design to create social media ads.

Please email Mary Voelker at m.voelker@lwvmilwaukee.org with questions, suggestions and/or offers to help!!

FUND DEVELOPMENT - MONEY MATTERS

2024 Spring Appeal

If you haven’t responded to the 2024 Spring Appeal, there is still time!! Your donation will help carry out our voter services and advocacy work to empower voters and defend democracy!

Why do we need financial donations from members when we pay dues? Because individual membership is currently $75, with LWV US receiving $32 and LWV WI $30. That leaves $13 staying here at LWVMC.Not enough to pay for our budgeted operating and program expenses!

You can donate by check made payable to League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County and mailed to the league office at 6737 West Washington Street, Suite 2218, West Allis, WI 53214. Or you can donate by credit cardHERE.

Another way to giveis to donate all or part of your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) from your IRA. Talk with your financial advisor about the tax benefits of making a Qualified Charitable Distribution gift from your IRA to the League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County. Have the check made out to the League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County. Our EIN number is 39-6096750

THANK YOU!!

Election Integrity and Security Panel Discussion

Tuesday, July 9, 2024 from11:45 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.

Milwaukee County War Memorial Center

750 N. Lincoln Memorial Drive, Suite 320

$25 for Milwaukee Press Club members, $30 for non-members, $20 for students; lunch is included.

Registration and pre-payment required; registerhere.

A program focused on election integrity and security will be held Tuesday, July 9, hosted by a partnership among the Wisconsin Alliance for Civic Trust [WisACT],Rotary Club of Milwaukee,Milwaukee Press Club,WisPolitics.comandWisconsinEye. The panel discussion will be moderated byPatrick Marley, reporter forThe Washington Post, who reports on voting and election issues in the Upper Midwest.The panel includes:Kathy Bernier, Wisconsin State Director, Keep Our Republic;Paulina Gutierrez, Executive Director, Milwaukee Election Commission;Meagan Wolfe, Administrator, Wisconsin Elections Commission.

Weaving a Legacy: Ho-Chunk black ash basketry

Museum of Wisconsin Art

205 Veterans Avenue, West Bend, WI

August 3 - November 10, 2024

This Museum of Wisconsin Art (MOWA) exhibition will introduce audiences to the historically important and visually compelling tradition of Native basketmaking in Wisconsin. Featuring nearly 200 works by more than 40 Ho-Chunk makers from the mid-1800s to the present, the exhibition is curated by Ho-Chunk artist and University of Wisconsin–Madison Professor of Photography, Tom Jones. In an act of cultural preservation, Jones has collected and studied thousands of Ho-Chunk baskets—piecing together tribal history—for more than a decade.“This project raises serious questions regarding historical and gender-based injustice, the cultural impact of tourism, and the importance of primary Indigenous-driven research to reset the art historical canon,"said Laurie Winters, MOWA’sExecutive Director

Accessing Members-Only Website Portal

TheLWVMC websitehas information and resources that are available only to LWVMC members. To access the membership directory or members-only resourcesand volunteer opportunities, click on the button below. Contact Mary Ellen Spicuzza atme.spicuzza@lwvmilwaukee.orgwith any questions.

Support Local Democracy. Support Your League.

Your support is critical to help our nonpartisan grassroots organization reach voters play a critical role in democracy. It would not be possible to empower voters and defend democracy without your support.

Thank you! LWVMC