Women Power the Vote: 100 Years of What We Do Best

Martha Goralka, LWVDV Voters Service Chair

Our September 21st General Meeting kicked off the 2020 election cycle with all things Voters Service.  Guest Speaker Paul Burgarino from the Contra Costa Elections Department gave an overview of the election process with special emphasis on the Vote by Mail program being advanced for all voters – and especially for commuters and new voters wanting to spend extra time with their ballots to research issues and candidates for more informed voting.

Chairs of each Diablo Valley League Voters Service subcommittee explained what they do and how volunteers can help over the next 14 months. 

• Marian Shostrom, the League’s Contra Costa Coordinator for Voter’s Edge, described volunteer opportunities to help candidates list their information on this website at no charge.  Voter’s Edge partners with MapLight to report financial information, so voters can follow the money and learn more about a candidate's priorities and support. 
• Kay James, Diablo Valley League’s longtime Pros & Cons Chair, talked about opportunities to present both sides of ballot issues, giving voters a better understanding of these often confusing measures.  Scripts are provided along with sources of extensive background information.
• Martha Goralka talked about the need for timers and moderators for the Diablo Valley League’s live candidate forums, plus the need for timers for the CCTV taped candidate and issue roundtables.
• Shawn Gilbert talked about the Diablo Valley League’s efforts to register or pre-register high school students.  Suzan Requa pointed out that the earlier in their lives people cast a ballot, the more likely they are to be lifelong voters.
• Renee Zeimer gave a lively voter registration overview with useful hints for a successful registration event.

By partnering with the NAACP, NETO and AKA sorority, everyone attending left with the confidence to participate in the National Voter Registration Day the following Tuesday.  Nearly 30 members and nonmembers attended this vital Voters Service meeting as “Women (and men) Power the Vote” in our next 100 years.

Want to be part of this? Just contact us at info [at] lwvdv.org and tell us what you'd like to know more about. We'd love to include you in our activities.