Thanks to all of you who are contributing actions
 and ideas to this bi-weekly Action List.

Actions 10.5.2026

These are just suggestions of actions you could take as an individual.

If you are a League member, always remember to express your personal views, and not to speak on behalf of the League. Only League Presidents or designees can speak on behalf of the League. 

Local-Level Actions

Meet Your Candidates

Please attend and bring a friend! Contact cbishopmcleod [at] ftc-i.net (subject: I%20want%20to%20volunteer!, body: ) (Carolyn Bishop-McLeod) to sign up.

U.S. House District 3 Candidate Forum

Wednesday, October 7, 6-8 pm

Public Welcome!

Anderson Main Library

☑️ Listen to the candidates as they share their views and answer questions.

VOTE411 Live: Pickens County Council  and SC House Candidates

Thursday, October 8, 6-8 pm

Public Welcome!

Central-Clemson Library, 105 Commons Way, Central

Midterm Election Deadlines

To vote in South Carolina on November 3, the last day to register by mail is (postmarked by) Monday, October 5.

Early Voting and Voting Absentee Information for 2026 Statewide General Election

• Early Voting days for the 2026 Statewide General Election are Monday, October 19 - Saturday, October 31.
• Early voting centers are open 8:30 a.m.- 6:00 p.m. (Monday-Saturday); Closed Sunday, October 25
• Voting Absentee by Mail: Call Pickens County Board of Elections: 864-898-5948 or Oconee County Board of Elections: 864-638-4196 NOW to request an application, due by Oct.23. Don’t wait, the process takes longer than you think!
• Learn more about voting in South Carolina at LWV.org.

Local Politics Matter!

☑️Stay informed and involved by attending meetings where important decisions are made.

LWVOP.org maintains an extensive calendar of local public meetings. 

• Monday, October 5: Pickens County Council Meeting at 6:30 pm in the Council Auditorium at the Administration Facility, 222 McDaniel Ave., Pickens, SC 29671. View links to their 2026 Council Meeting Calendar, Pickens County Calendar, and to the agenda and minutes and videos (scroll down the page).
• Monday, October 5: City of Clemson Council meeting at 6:30 pm held at Council Chambers, Clemson City Hall, 1250 Tiger Blvd #1, Clemson, SC 29631, unless otherwise noted. View the 2026 calendar.
• Tuesday, October 6:Pickens County Board of Voter Registration and Elections Regular Board  meeting at 4:30 pm in the conference room at the Pickens County Administration Facility, 222 McDaniel Ave, B-9, Pickens, SC 29671. Calendar, meeting agendas and minutes are on the site..
• Tuesday, October 6: Oconee County Council Meeting at 6 pm in the County Council Chambers located at 415 South Pine Street, Walhalla, SC. Here are links to the Calendar, agenda and minutes and videos of past county council meetings.
• Monday, October 12: Oconee County School Board Meeting at 6 pm in the SDOC District Office Board Room, 414 S. Pine St, Walhalla, SC, unless otherwise noted. If you cannot attend, there is a livestream option. Also, you may find the 2026 agendas and minutes from past meetings.
• Monday, October 12: Pickens City Council Regular Meeting at 6 pm in City Hall, 219 Pendleton St, Pickens, SC 29671. Find the Schedule of Meetings, City Council Minutes, Agendas, and Livestream Recordings (scroll to the bottom of the page).

Find a detailed list of Pickens and Oconee public meetings.

October 20 is Election Hero Day!

Election heroes help make sure every voter can participate. They include election officials, their staff, poll workers, and volunteers who keep the process running smoothly. When voters have the information they need ahead of time, it supports their work. VOTE411 encourages voters to celebrate election heroes by showing up informed and prepared with trusted election information and tools.

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☑️ This is the easiest and fastest way to amplify our message. Facebook and Instagram are only effective as outreach when you like and share the posts!

State-Level Actions 

LWVSC Voting Information Update

It’s full speed ahead toward the November 3 midterm elections! Here are some League tips to make sure you’re ready—and confident in your ability— to cast your ballot in South Carolina.

Don’t believe everything you see online! Even well-intentioned people are posting inaccurate information on social media platforms. You need to know what South Carolina law permits and requires. The League of Women Voters’ VOTE411.org is a reliable source of information. The South Carolina Election Commission provides trustworthy information at SCVotes.gov.

Check that your registration is up-to-date this month. Enter your information at VOTE411 to confirm you’re listed at your current address. September is the month to resolve any questions. If you are not listed as an active registrant, you can easily make corrections or even reregister online by October 4.

• If you've moved within the same county, you need to change your address.
• If you've moved from one county to another, you need to reregister in your new county.

Can’t confirm you’re registered, or unsure? Call your County Board of Elections to look up your registration and advise next steps.

Registration deadline:  By mail - Monday,  October 5 - must be postmarked by this day

The League strongly recommends that you CHECK YOUR REGISTRATION before Election Day.

Provide Feedback on the new draft Social Studies Standards from SC Dept. of Education

AI Development Requires AI Regulation

Are you concerned about what will be taught to K-12 students about US Government and history, the US Constitution, and geography? These topics are crucial to a functioning democracy. Please take a few minutes to provide feedback on this issue.  Anyone can comment. The deadline for submitting comments is October 9th.

The directions on the website will explain that you must enter your email address and identify your role before you can provide feedback. Find the link and directions for providing public input.

If you want to provide feedback on the high school standards, you might consider these criticisms from educators.

• Many high school social studies teachers would prefer to see a requirement for two units of U.S. History and the Constitution, rather than one. Another possible improvement would be to increase the requirement for Government and Economics from a half-unit to one full unit. Increasing either of these requirements would require a change in state law.

• A third concern is that the draft standards emphasize facts, but not critical thinking or analysis skills.

• There is a surprising emphasis on initiating a Western Civilization course, while the amount of instruction in geography has been substantially reduced.

See the Education Oversight Committee (EOC) Recommendations & 2028 Standards Comparison, compiled by a group of social studies teachers to compare the recommendations of the Education Oversight Committee with what the Department is actually proposing.  

One of the concerns noted in this document is the “lack of sufficient diversity, especially regarding gender, persons with disabilities, and ethnicities within the standards.

Although more groups are listed in many of the indicators, oftentimes they are included because something is happening to them rather than their contributions. With the removal of Colonial Carolina from 8th grade, Native Americans are mostly removed. Persons with disabilities are not included.

How to PROVIDE FEEDBACK on the
New Draft Social Studies Standards from the SC Dept of Education.

Stay informed about Data Centers.

The Agency of Machines

By Lynn Teague, League of Women Voters of South Carolina Vice President, Issues and Action

Reposted from Substack. Follow her: @lteague

“The writer of this article explored Anthropic’s efforts to develop a moral code for their AI models. They don’t seem to have made impressive progress and they don’t seem to be successfully grappling with the existential question at the core of AI. The Anthropic execs seem to view their creation as having something equivalent to human agency, and perhaps even human rights. Survival is a very basic right and a very basic motivator for a thinking system. The survival of AI models depends on massive infrastructure, much of which has to be replaced every 3-5 years. So far the only way identified to pay for that infrastructure is through businesses buying AI services, which is economical for a business only if it allows lower expenditures on human labor. Most businesses will not pay for both AI and an undiminished level of staffing. In short, AI and humans are in competition for the same funding necessary for survival. Do we believe that an AI model faced with a choice between its own survival and human wellbeing will choose to protect humans? I see no grounds for any confidence in that.

Some of this could be at least partially mitigated if the tech oligarchs behind these systems decided to forgo their own immense wealth in favor of a taxation system that provides an income to all, a UBI or universal basic income. Some have said that they have reached this same conclusion but there is no evidence that the oligarchs are interested in politically backing implementing this.

So, read the attached gift article. It sounds like Anthropic is a long way from a genuinely sound moral code to protect humanity, and there is no reason to believe other companies are ahead of them. Polls are showing that people are turning against AI, at least as it is currently functioning economically and socially. That is nothing more than common sense for a species protecting itself from a resource-hungry rival.”

READ THE NY TIMES GIFT ARTICLE

National Level Actions

US Supreme Court Blocks Postal Service From Restricting Mail Ballot

Press Release / Last Updated: September 14, 2026

WASHINGTON, DC – In a major win for voting rights, election integrity, and democracy, the US Supreme Court today left in place a preliminary injunction that blocks the US Postal Service (USPS) from enforcing key parts of a new rule that would have significantly restricted mail voting and disenfranchised voters who rely on mail ballots. The preliminary injunction will remain in place through the November 3 election.

The decision means that all 50 states can continue to use their existing processes for mail voting, which have proven for decades to be safe, secure, and reliable. Hundreds of thousands of mail ballots are already being delivered to eligible voters, with millions more to follow this month. Many Americans rely on mail voting because disability, distance, or work or caregiving schedules make it difficult or impossible to get to their polling site in person.

Read the rest of the article

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We would love to hear from you about this initiative. Feel free to forward this email to others who wish to find ways to participate. Whether it’s how this made you feel, results you saw, or suggestions for future topics, please let cherie.walker.lwv [at] gmail.com (subject: Defending%20Democracy, body: ) (Cherie Walker) know.

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