By Lunell Haught, President, LWV of Washington 

I hear it takes soooo looooooooong to get anything done in the League. Sometimes that’s true—and there’s a reason—the League of Women Voters is based on democratic principles. We each have a voice, and it simply takes time to hear all the voices in a democracy. We could be an organization in which a few (a board or a staff) decide for the many, but we aren’t organized that way. Delegates attend the state meeting (convention) to decide what we want to do, how we want to use our resources, and who our leadership should be. We use Robert’s Rules of Order not to squelch people but to ensure that the lone voice can be heard and considered in decision-making. This means we really are a grassroots organization.  

We are organized this way so when the League “speaks” it is based on objective study, which informs the consensus process that goes into creating the positions we use in lobbying. This ensures we know what we are talking about and that the membership (grassroots) is behind an action. It takes time to do our own research and go through all the local Leagues to develop consensus. We do our own homework, and we pay our own way. That is part of why we are so respected.  

It sometimes takes a while to do things because the League is an all-volunteer organization. Most of us have full lives, care for others, and have jobs and obligations—the League is part, but not all, of our life.  

On the other hand, we can turn on a dime. It took us only a short time to adapt to the new environment caused by the pandemic, for example. We have staged meetings (council, convention, Action Workshops, Lobby Week, voter services, debates) involving hundreds of people who learned how to use Zoom technology within a week. With the help of one paid employee we have responded to requests, modified processes, tried new ideas, and created a statewide network of people interested and active in both new and continuing League work.  

The point is that some things do take time because we value doing our own research or adopting research studies and positions from other Leagues. We also value our credibility. We value our nonpartisanship, which is increasingly difficult. We value all the voices that make up our grassroots organization. 

If you want to try something new, please do. Very few things are written in stone. Suggesting ways to do things differently is refreshing, and it helps when initiating something new to find out what has been done before and how that worked. This is a sensitive time for many people; longtime members should feel their work is valued even when that work changes. Newer members should feel comfortable suggesting and implementing something new. The purpose is to figure out what works—for all—and to be open to ideas about how things are done. That’s the long and the short of it. 

By Mary Coltrane, Voter Services Portfolio Director, LWV of Washington 

The Nov. 2 election is fast approaching and the 18-day voting period begins today, Oct. 15. Now is the time to log on to VOTE411 and see what your candidates have to say about important issues that affect your community. No candidate response? Go to the candidate’s website and let them know you are looking for their answers. The League strives to ask questions that are important to our communities, not just League members, which makes VOTE411 a universal tool. Contacting unresponsive candidates is an important way to maximize VOTE411 as a voter education tool. If you can help with candidate compliance, many thanks! 

What else can you do to help GOTV? Check your local League website. You may be surprised to see how much local Leagues are doing and how many candidate forums are scheduled. Local Leagues include many communities; forums for three or four positions in three or four cities in a local League area isn’t unusual. And they are all recorded, so voters can view or listen at their leisure.  

Local Leagues are also creative in calling voters’ attention to these important sources of information. The Whidbey Island League posted one of the questions on its Facebook page so potential viewers would know what’s up. Very clever! Knowing one of the questions could be just the tipping point to get someone to take a look. Let your family and friends know about forums specific to their community. 

I hope you’ve had a chance to take a look at Your Vote, which the LWVWA published in partnership with The Spokesman-Review. A lot of questions have come up lately about election administration processes. Your Vote takes a look at those questions and helps voters understand this process. Vancouver’s The Columbian wrote two great articles about Your Vote in September, one in the Cheers & Jeers column and one in its From the Newsroom column by Editor Craig Brown. 

Check the LWVWA website to access Your Vote. Please also notice the selected Your Vote stories in Spanish and English. If there’s someone in your circle who fits into one of the story categories, you can send that story alone. Maybe you know a future voter. Click on that story and send it to them! 

We are working to get this information out across the state. The Skagit Daily Herald also printed Your Vote. And our partner, The Spokesman-Review, began this outreach process by sending Your Vote to their subscribers on Sept. 5. We are continuing outreach to other news outlets, with likely prospects at The Daily Peninsula, the Sequim Gazette, and the Daily Herald (Everett). 

Schools are another place for Your Vote. Several Leagues have had good success getting Your Vote into the hands of students: Clallam, Spokane, and Mason Counties have all reached out to schools, with good responses. 

Thurston County League members are calling schools to find out who teaches civics classes and then delivering tabloids and “Be a Voter” bookmarks to those teachers. If your League would like tips on getting Your Vote into schools, contact Beth Pelliocciotti, LWVWA Civics Education Portfolio Director. You can also reach Beth at 219-688-7263. 

You can also find the Be a Voter bookmarks on the LWVWA website, on the For Members menu along with other Be a Voter tools, including voter checklists in Spanish and English, messages highlighting the voting facts that are in Your Vote, and whimsical messages with pets. Serious and fun. Look for these on social media. Be sure to “like” when you see them. 

Thanks go to many League members for these great GOTV tools. Local League members came together to take on a coordinated outreach strategy to create tools to reach voters and, this year, emphasize how elections work. What League volunteers who do this work have in common is a commitment to democracy that focuses on getting out the vote. This can be a tough sell in the best of times. It’s needed now more than ever. Let your local voter services and civics education folks know how much you appreciate their efforts. Let your friends and family know how important it is to vote by Nov. 2! 

By Judith Davis, Former 1st VP and Director of Development, LWV of Washington 

Anita Lynne Gibbs

My beloved niece Anita Lynne Gibbs transplanted herself from Atlanta, Georgia, to Olympia, Washington, in 2019, and instantly fell in love with her new state and its lovely people. She joined the LWV of Thurston County, and “Coffee With the League” every Tuesday was her entry into the life of her new community and state. She loved writing action postcards and attending Action Workshops, Lobby Day, and community meetings. She told me that “her League ladies” knew everything and they taught her so much. They called her “Junior” and were so sweet and welcoming. When the pandemic hit, she missed her Tuesday jolt of java and the League but she attended Zoom meetings and helped me with Zoom workshops for the convention and council. I just want to say thank you, from our family, to all of the wonderful League members, local and state, and Marvelous Amy Peloff, who welcomed her and helped make her last two years lovely and meaningful.