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Vote No: Constitutional Amendments on April Ballot
Two questions about proposed amendments to the WI Constitution are on the April 2 ballot. Both concern election funding and administration. The League of Women Voters of Wisconsin and other voting rights organizations urge citizens to VOTE NO on both questions.
 Question 1: “Use of private funds in election administration. Shall section 7 (1) of article III of the constitution be created to provide that private donations and grants may not be applied for, accepted, expended, or used in connection with the conduct of any primary, election, or referendum?"
 Question 2: “Election officials. Shall section 7 (2) of article III of the constitution be created to provide that only election officials designated by law may perform tasks in the conduct of primaries, elections, and referendums?"
Voting rights partner organization Common Cause published an informative statement about the importance of rejecting the proposed amendments. Read the explanation from Common Cause here. Also, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has published a guide to what those questions mean, and what they would (or wouldn't) do if added to the state Constitution. Please spread the word to your contacts.
You can also access the League's own resources. Use the button below to find the Vote No webinar recording, toolkit, slides and other helpful information!
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VOTE411 April 2024 Voter Guide
We can continue to promote VOTE411.org until election day on April 2.
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You can volunteer to encourage participation by signing up to write emails about VOTE411.org to friends, neighbors, relatives, and colleagues who live in Milwaukee and Waukesha County. Sign up here where a sample script is available. Click on any of the events saying “Campaign to Encourage VOTE411 Participation.”
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You can write the emails any day before the Spring Election. Don’t worry that the dates don’t match.
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Do you belong to a Neighborhood Association or a Homeowner’s Association? Write one of your letters using the sample script to the communications person asking if they could forward your letter to everyone in your neighborhood or your homeowner’s group.
The League’s goal is to provide voters with the information they need to vote confidently on April 2. | LWV Yard Signs and Bumper Magnets Available!
We are offering yard signs again this year. We have two kinds of signs:
- Vote From Home
- VOTE/VOTA (Vote on one side and Vota on the other)
Yard signs (18" x 24") are available on a first come first served basis. We also have metal stands. | |
BUMPER STICKERS ARE PICTURED BELOW
If you would like any of these items,
We will contact you.
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V | | |  | Election Observers Needed on April 2
The League of Women Voters of Wisconsin (LWVWI) is recruiting volunteers across the state to observe the Spring Election on April 2. Election observers help ensure a fair election by watching for signs of voter disenfranchisement and intimidation, and by monitoring the way Wisconsin's election laws and procedures are being applied. Even if you only have a couple hours to spare on Election Day, you can still sign up to be an election observer. Learn more and sign up to volunteer today!
Volunteers will receive online training, a reporting form, a polling place assignment with flexible shifts, and an Election Day hotline number for questions or for reporting a problem. Questions? Contact LWVWI Voter Education Manager Eileen Newcomer at enewcomer@lwvwi.org or at (608)256-0827. Please share this opportunity with anyone who might be willing to be part of this vital program. |  | | Celebrate Spring
Sunday, April 21, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m.
Wauwatosa Public Library, Firefly Room
7635 W. North Avenue
Join the League of Women Voters of Milwaukee County for an informative discussion about accessible walks and paddles in the Milwaukee area. LWVMC members, Karen and Jennifer Lemke, authors of Easy Walks and Paddles in Milwaukee, will share the inside scoop on many accessible trails and waterways in the Milwaukee area, as well as additional information about public restrooms, benches, nearby eateries, environmental issues, fascinating historical tidbits about the people who previously inhabited these spaces, and details about Milwaukee’s social and cultural history.
The Sisters Lemke will be in conversation with LWVMC member Dorothy Dean, founder and executive director of Disability Justice. Easy Walks and Paddles in Milwaukee provides important accessibility information for Milwaukee’s beautiful and abundant green spaces so that more people with disabilities, seniors, and families with children can enjoy these easy-access spaces.
| Difficult Conversations: Talking About Abortion & Contraception
The Reproductive Rights Committee will be hosting Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin’s 2-hour workshop, “Changing Hearts and Minds on Reproductive Health and Rights.” The workshop helps participants develop effective communication skills and messaging when discussing equitable access to contraception and abortion. The Reproductive Rights Committee will be hosting both virtual and in-person workshops.
Save the Dates:
May 1, 6-8 PM - Virtual Workshop or
May 4, 10 AM-Noon - In-Person Workshop
This is an interactive workshop focussing on skill development, so participation is limited to 25 individuals per session. If demand for the workshop exceeds the available slots, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin is willing to offer additional workshop(s) so all interested members can receive training. If registration is closed due to high interest, a wait list will be created and used for registration for additional workshops.
Look for Program and Registration information in your inbox soon! |  |
Tickets Now on Sale for the 2024 LWVWI Annual Meeting in Green Bay, WI!
This year's theme is Tipping Points & Shared Purposes - Challenges of 2024 & Beyond: What We Need to do This Year to Move Through Them Together. Issues we face today affect us in more ways than the obvious. How do we encourage everyone to come together again in our hyper-polarized world? From civics education to artificial intelligence to fair redistricting and beyond, we explore how to find balance before reaching the tipping points.
FORMAT: Hybrid (in-person and virtual options)
DATE: May 31 - June 1, 2024
LOCATION: Oneida Hotel and Conference Center, Green Bay, WI
For additional information on theme, lodging, parking, & material, visit the LWVWI Annual Meeting Hub. |
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Friday March 22 | 10:00 a.m. to Noon
Community Room at the East Branch Library
Our March meeting is a general discussion meeting and a chance to continue talking about "Milked," (our February Book Club choice) and any other topics of interest to the group! Hope to see you there!
Warmest Regards from, Marie Garnhart, Pat McFarland, Mary Ellen Spicuzza | |
Coffee for our Cause has been a great branding opportunity.
Coffee for our Cause promotes our brand of empowering voters and defending democracy. Hate to see it end?
To continue the Coffee for our Cause fundraiser, the project needs a new leader. The Coffee for our Cause timeframe is from July through November. This is a very worthy and satisfying project to work on. Please contact Mary Sussman to express interest or get additional information at susscommunications@att.net. | | |  | Milwaukee Turners and UWM's Center for 21st Century Studies present Trust & The Vote: The University and Its Role in Democracy
March 28, 1:30 p.m
Register here for this virtual roundtable
Join the Milwaukee Turners and UWM’s Center for 21st Century Studies for a roundtable discussion. Do universities have a responsibility to support and maintain our democracy? Do they play a role in shaping our democracy? Facilitated by UW-Milwaukee's Kennan Ferguson, the discussion will include diverse perspectives ranging from a university student who has collected student responses around these questions, a university professor and historian who challenges the economic practices of universities, as well as a university president. Panelists include:Ron Daniels (President, John’s Hopkins University), Davarian Baldwin (Historian, Trinity College), and Bailee Jones (UWM student government). | Wisconsin: America’s Most Enduring Political Battleground
| | Sunday, March 31, 2024 | 10:00 am - 11:00 am
In-Person: Max Otto Hall
First Unitarian Society of Milwaukee
1342 N. Astor Street, Milwaukee
Online: Also available on the YouTube channel
Craig Gilbert, former Journal Sentinel’s Washington Bureau Chief and fellow at Marquette Law School’s Lubar Center, will discuss why Wisconsin is once more at the epicenter of presidential politics, how has it remained a 50/50 battleground despite big regional shifts, and how the balance of power here changed in the Trump Era. He’ll also discuss the critical role that the shifting partisan landscape of metro Milwaukee will play in this year’s presidential campaign. Host: Jerry Fredrickson. Free and open to the public. |  |  | Accessing Member-Only Website Portal
The LWVMC website has information and resources that are available only to LWVMC members. To access the membership directory or members-only resources and volunteer opportunities, log in by following these instructions. Contact Mary Ellen Spicuzza at me.spicuzza@lwvmilwaukee.org with 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
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