In two weeks, members will get a first look at the most significant changes coming to the League of Women Voters of Washington over the last decade.

In addition to the trainings, workshops, and the election of new officers and directors that happen traditionally at state wide events, members who attend the Power of Us, the state’s biennial council June 6-7 in Lacey, Washington, will get an overview of the new LWVWA Transformation Journey.

The transformation is expected to result in a larger, more unified and more impactful organization, said state President Karen Crowley, much like the national League’s Transformation Journey did after its launch more than 10 years ago

“This will build both capacity for local Leagues and the state League,” said Crowley.

In Washington, members at both the state and local level have known for a long time of the need to build capacity, Crowley said. “We’ve been under-resourced with not enough people to do the work. We’re known this for many years and we’ve known that there is much more work to be done.”

The result, Crowley said, is that local League members and local leadership will see greater support and direct investments back to them. “The Transformational Journey will build both capacity for local Leagues and the state League.”

The ability to make these changes, Crowley said, is in part due to the new dues structure that came about with the national organization’s transformation.

As a result of that reorganization, a larger portion of dues income is being directed from the national to the state. “You asked at last year’s state convention what we’ll do with those added funds and this is the answer. We’ll have increased resources and a better ability to service local Leagues.”

After the 2025 convention, Crowley convened a task force of three board members and three members from local Leagues to come up with the plan: Robin Barker from Bellingham-Whatcom; Vallie Needham Huisman, Thurston County; Barb Tengtio of Seattle King; and three state board members, Sasha Bentley, Toyoko Tsukuda, and Crowley.

The task force then moved forward with an extensive statewide survey that Crowley said “made clear the time is right for the LWVWA to evolve from being a resource provider to becoming an infrastructure builder.”

That focus includes reducing costs, risk and administrative burdens for local Leagues, making League values more visible and building capacity for leadership, communications and advocacy statewide, she said.

Also making the changes possible, Crowley said is the unanimous support of the state board “The board unanimously believes in this plan.”

Also notable, she added, is that board members themselves are making additional personal financial commitments to the plan over several years to come.

Implementation of the transformations will take time, Crowley said. “This will take place into 2027,” said she.

“But we are now on the road.”

Crowley will speak about the transformation journey at a 3:30 workshop Saturday titled Asked and Answered: How LWVWA will use new resources to support Local Leagues and build our collective capacity.

For those seeking more information or who aren’t able to attend council, Crowley said she will hold two briefings about the transformation plan via Zoom at noon and 6 pm on Thursday, June 18.

As local Leagues commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the state League is partnering with the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association to pay homage to the document’s First Amendment, which was adopted 35 years later. 

The state board, in late April, approved a project proposed by the Local News & Democracy team to help expand awareness about the vital connection between a free press and democracy. 

“As the state League’s study, ‘The Decline of Local News and Its Impact on Democracy,’ showed us, robust local news coverage is critical to having healthy communities and a true democracy,” state President Karen Crowley said.  

The president noted other extensive research links the loss of credible local news with declines in voting, in people running for local office and the public’s engagement in civic activities. The decline also is linked with higher government costs, greater political polarization and challenges in conducting public health efforts.  

One element of the project will be to encourage local Leagues to pose questions in pre-election forums to candidates about their perspectives on local news and whether legislation plays a role in addressing the news crisis. 

A second feature will be to ask local Leagues to write letters to the editors of their local news outlets about the importance of robust local news and why the League has identified it as a priority. 

Finally, the campaign is looking to create a series of op-ed essays signed by Crowley and local League presidents detailing the reasons for the League’s support for local news with suggestions about how to address the problem. 

Kate Hobbie and Dee Anne Finken, both from the Clark League and members of the Local News team are facilitating the project. Both will be in touch with local League presidents in the coming weeks to give them more information. 

Meanwhile, members are welcome to contact Hobbie or Finken to volunteer.  

Winners of the LWVJC 2025 Essay Contest are, from left, Claire Porter (first place), Livia Lee (second place) and Calliope Mosher (third place). Porter and Lee are from Port Townsend High School and Mosher is from Chimicum High School.

In 1919, a year before women won the right to vote, League of Women Voters founder Carrie Chapman Catt announced three goals for the newly formed organization. One was to “make democracy so safe for the nation and so safe for the world that every citizen feels secure.”  

Borrowing from that idea, the League of Jefferson County on May 1 kicked off its fourth annual essay contest for high schoolers with this prompt:  

How as voters can we ensure that democracy is safe and citizens feel secure? 

The students’ responses will be published in June. If they are anything like last year’s, they will be heartbreaking, refreshing, moving and thought-provoking — so much so that the judges will have a hard time narrowing down the winners, said Karen Steinmaus, the local League’s essay contest lead. 

“Our high schoolers are definitely engaged, writing on immigration, LGBT rights, and federal funding cuts that impact school lunch programs,” Steinmaus added. 

Ninety-six high school-age students participated in 2025, thanks to outreach by League members to civics, history and science teachers in Jefferson County schools, and to home-schooled students.   

Prize money came from the Jefferson League’s Civic Education Grant fund. Steinmaus said the League last year was able increase prize payouts to $500 for the first-place finisher, $300 for second and $150 for third.  

By Judy Hucka, co-president, LWV of Whidbey Island

The Whidbey Island League has co-sponsored all of the past year’s pro-democracy rallies on the island:  Hands Off, Make Good Trouble and No Kings.  

But rallies aren’t eveyone’s cup of tea, and we wanted to do something that offered more tangible ways to advocate for our democracy. 

Thus was born the April 18 Democracy Fest, a nonpartisan and “big-tent” event emphasizing education, celebration and fun for all that took place at Greenbank Farm. Response exceeded our hopes, with more than 350 attendees, including about 50 young future voters and quite a few “dogs for democracy” walking their humans.  

The vibe resembled that of a county fair, with music, games and food trucks. 

A few highlights: 

• The arrival, on horseback, of Paul Revere and under-recognized 16-year-old Sybil Ludington, who performed a rousing skit about their courageous rides to warn “the British are coming” during the Revolutionary War. Coincidently, the fest was held on the 251st anniversary of Revere’s famous 1775 ride. 

• A democracy trivia contest with questions from the new U.S. citizenship test 

• A kids’ voting booth, where future voters weighed in on how to solve problems facing Whidbey’s animals. Dog-friendly fireworks was the winner, edging out reducing marine plastic pollution to save the orcas and improving deer-crossing safety. 

• Workshops by the Island County elections supervisor on election security 

• A democracy sing-along and tribal stories from America’s oldest democracy 

• Tables with information on voter registration, voting rights legislation and voting threats  

The event was organized by the Whidbey Island Pro-Democracy Coalition, which includes the League, Indivisible Whidbey, and several other local democracy advocates. 

 All in all, it was a community-building day, reminding us all that “democracy is not a spectator sport!”  

Now in its fifth year, the League of Women Voters of Pullman’s annual Visual Arts Competition is a wrap with students from throughout the county having explored civic life through a variety of creative expressions. 

The competition’s theme, inspired by Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown’s message at the state League Convention in June, was “90% Happens Locally.” 

Students in grades 3–12 reflected on how local government decisions shape their daily lives — and their responses were thoughtful, imaginative, and inspiring. 

Judging the artwork was no easy task. A panel of local leaders — including the Pullman mayor, a Pullman City Council member, and the Whitman County Auditor— reviewed each piece, considering a work’s relevance to the theme, visual effectiveness, originality, and clarity of message.  

The art was displayed at Neill Public Library, giving the community an opportunity to view entries. The exhibit culminated in a mid-April Artists’ Reception, highlighted by students speaking about their work.   

Additional displays are planned in downtown Pullman for the May Art Walk and at the Whitman County Library’s Libey Gallery through June. 

Supported by the League’s Education Fund, the program connects youth, art and civic understanding, said event committee chair Carolyn Joswig-Jones. 

As partisan redistricting and the elimination of voting protections dominate the news, the LWVWA and the Washington Redistricting Commission Reform Task Force continue their move toward a better plan. 

Tune in May 26 for the latest LWVWA Democracy Power-Up and learn about the solution proposed by democracy advocates detailed in “Building a People First Commission,” a new report analyzing the results of an important survey conducted last fall. 

Based on five years of study and analysis, the People First Commission would strengthen transparency, accountability, access and citizen engagement. California, Michigan and Colorado already have such commissions. 

This is an opportunity to stand up against partisan gerrymandering to build toward true reform. 

The one-hour power-up will be offered twice on Zoom. Register for the noon presentation or the 6:30 p.m. presentation.   

Questions? Email Alison McCaffree, Redistricting Issue Chair, at amccaffree@lwvwa.org. 

Three high school seniors in Benton and Franklin counties will learn this month that they’ve each been awarded a $2,500 scholarship that honors a League member who worked tirelessly to promote democracy, teach civics and introduce young people to voting. 

The Marilyn Perkins Scholarship honors a woman who served as local League president and as member of the state League board. Perkins moderated many candidate forums and was deeply involved in other League efforts. She died in 2021. 

Scholarship committee co-chairs Judy Golberg and Peggy Gregory said criteria for the Perkins scholarship were designed to enable a diverse population of students to be considered.  

Grades are less important than students’ desire to further their education, Goldberg said. Winners may use the funds to attend trade school or pursue other avenues of higher learning.  

Previous years’ winners, Golberg said, “have been quite ambitious, involved in the communities and are doing well in their lives.”  

She added, “Our winners have come from small farming communities as well as our larger school districts.” 

Applicants submit 500-word essays on a theme selected each year by the scholarship committee. Themes have included voting in local elections and how to encourage one’s peers to vote.  This year’s theme is whether the Electoral College serves the country well or should be abolished.  

When the scholarship was founded in 2022, two winners received $1,000.  Perkins’ husband, John Perkins, made an initial donation to support the program for five years. Additional donations have continued to come in from League members and others in the community.  

Nearly 90 Kittitas-area middle school students participated in a regional civics competition hosted by the local chamber of commerce and affiliated with the National Civics Bee. The League helped with various aspects of the event.  At one point in the event, audience members were invited to participate, too. 

By Dee Anne Finken, Communications Portfolio Director, LWV of Washington

Kittitas and Spokane Leagues have been busy in recent months guiding young people to learn more about civics by way of competition.  

In Kittitas County, Charli Sorenson reported the local League accepted an invitation from the county’s chamber of commerce for the first time to help with a nonpartisan competition for middle-schoolers affiliated with the National Civics Bee.

Meanwhile, the Spokane-area League participated this spring in the KSPS public media-sponsored Civics Bowl, featuring high school students answering questions about American, Washington state and tribal history and government in a Jeopardy-like format. This is the Spokane-area League’s fourth year to be involved. 

Eight Spokane-area high schools competed, said Beth Pellicciotti, Civic Education Committee chair.  

Pellicciotti said the Spokane League’s sponsorship is vital to the broadcast as more than a dozen League members wrote hundreds of questions based on Spokane Public School history texts, which include the LWVWA’s The State We’re In: Washington text. 

Competition in Spokane continues with the semi-finals wrapping up next week and the final round set for June 1.   

Pellicciotti noted that prior to the first competition recording this year, Spokane League and community members participated in a dress rehearsal. “Even if they didn’t get all the correct answers, they still had fun!” 

In Central Washington, meanwhile, Sorenson said Kittitas was one of only a handful of chambers in the state to participate in the national chamber-sponsored contest. “We helped publicize the event, contacted local schools to urge student/teacher participation, contributed volunteers, and added to the prize pots,” said Sorenson, the local League’s vice president. 

“This event knocked our socks off - it was well organized, the kids were awesome, and we received many 'thank you!’s” and 'see you next year!,” Sorenson said. “We encourage other Leagues to explore co-sponsorship of this civics event in upcoming years.”  

In Kittitas, nearly 90 students submitted essays based on a uniform prompt that asked them to propose an idea for improving their community.  From that, 20 students we selected for the in-person contest.  The first-place finisher won $650, with $350 and $175 going to the second- and third-place finishers. 

Winners will go on to compete at the state level early this summer.  

The competition boosted student understanding of civics and its importance to democracy as well as expanded public awareness of the League’s work, Sorenson said. “It underlines our support of civics and democracy. It keeps us in the public eye.” 

Pictured on the front page is Carolyn Byerly, a Thurston County League board member, addressing the audience at a recent “Local News Crisis!” forum at Saint Martin’s University. Also speaking were Jill Severn, a columnist for The JOLT and author of the LWVWA’s “The State We’re In” civics textbook series; and Bill Will, former executive director of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association. 

A “Local News Crisis!” forum co-hosted by the Thurston County League in early April drew 300 people to hear how monopoly ownership and hedge-fund buyouts have helped create news deserts across the country. Those areas are served by no local news outlets.  

Nationally recognized media scholar Victor Pickard, via Zoom, emphasized the danger the situation poses to democracy. 

Both policy and market failures are to blame for the loss of local news, Pickard said. Federal policies have enabled consolidation.

The result is a lack of news and a proliferation of misinformation — much of which appears on social media, to which the public increasingly turns for information. 

Other speakers included Carolyn Byerly, professor emerita, Howard University, and a LWVTC board member; Jill Severn, columnist for The Journal of Olympia, Lacey and Tumwater, and author of the state League’s “The State We’re In” civics textbook series; Bill Will, former executive director of the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association and chair of The JOLT board of directors; and Danny Stusser, founder and publisher of The JOLT (the Journal of Olympia, Lacey and Tumwater).  

Byerly shared details of the state League’s study “The Decline in Local News and Its Impact on Democracy,” which was completed in 2022 and led to adoption of the state League’s, and ultimately, the national League’s, position. The position states that government has a responsibility to support conditions under which credible local journalism can survive and thrive.  It supports new funding models for local news. The JOLT, a non-profit organization, represents one of those emerging models.  

The JOLT and OlyFed, a mutual savings bank, also co-sponsored the event, which took place at Saint Martin’s University in Lacey. 

League members looking to protect equitable access to sports for Washington girls and access for vulnerable students to trusted adults about sensitive questions will soon get support for how to best address these issues with the public.  

The state League Board voted in January to sign on to the NO Hate in WA State campaign against the two initiatives which will be on the Nov. 3 ballot.   

Karen Tvedt, who leads the Social and Economic Justice efforts of the state Lobby Team, told the LWVWA board of directors in late April that she and fellow Lobby Team colleagues are working on strategy based on League positions, joining with other like-minded activists, and preparing documents for members to use to defeat IL26-001 and IL26-638 and protect Washington children. 

IL26-001 seeks to reverse legislation passed by the Legislature in 2025 and would undo protections for vulnerable students. The initiative has been described as “much ado about nothing” as the parental rights it is purported to protect have already been firmly established in federal and state law for nearly 50 years.

IL26-638seeks to subject ALL girls wishing to participate on sports teams to invasive medical exams to prove that they are biologically female. The initiative does not apply to boy athletes – just girls.  League leaders note it could result in thousands of girls seeking to play sports having to undergo invasive genital exams. The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction estimates that only a handful of trans girls would be found ineligible to play girls sports if IL-638 were to pass. Girls of color and those living in poverty are likely to suffer the most harm.

The state board voted to oppose both proposals in January, when the measures were introduced as initiatives to the Legislature. When the Legislature declined to take action on the bills by the close of the 2026 legislative session, the measures became initiatives to the public that voters will see on the November mid-term ballot. 

The League’s opposition to both measures stems from its long-standing positions on equal access to fair and equitable education, equal treatment and privacy rights. 

Because the state League opposes the initiatives, League members are free to provide information about the cons of these initiatives at tabling events, according to state President Karen Crowley. 

More information about the campaign is available from No Hate in WA State, Vote No on IL26-001 & IL26-638.   

“We’re looking to make ourselves available to do presentations to local Leagues about the campaign and help members better understand what the initiatives are and what they would do,” Tvedt said.