Empowering Voters. Defending Democracy. | | The official newsletter of the League of Women Voters of San Luis Obispo County.
Vol 65 | Issue 10 | Date: Dec 15, 2023 | | | |
LETTER FROM THE CO-PRESIDENTS
|  It has been a busy six months for the League, and we have focused on promoting democracy and ensuring our advocacy role is well-understood. The Opening Meeting of this year highlighted the role of the local press in strengthening democracy. Our Keynote Speaker, Stephanie Finucane, Opinion Editor for The Tribune, stressed the importance of the press in promoting good oversight of government and engaging the public in governance, and the challenges to a robust local press. For the Board’s annual Retreat we asked Gloria Chun Hoo, Second V.P. Advocacy/ Program and chair of the DEI Task Force for the League of Women Voters Board of California, to walk us through the role advocacy plays in League activities and the intense process the California League pursues to craft Statewide positions on which we can be asked to advocate.
Looking ahead to the New Year, we are getting ready for the challenges that the coming election year will bring and the steps that might be taken as the Board of Supervisors moves toward an Independent Redistricting Commission. And don’t forget the fundraiser for the League at the SLO REP performance of What the Constitution Means to Me on March 28 (highlighted below).
Thank you to all who attended our League Holiday Party at the Octagon Barn. We wish everyone a joyful and peaceful holiday season.
Ann and Elizabeth | |
INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING COMMISSION UPDATE
| Update: IRC Study Session Set for January 16, 2024, 6 pm
| The SLO County Board of Supervisors has scheduled a Study Session to discuss the composition and structure of an Independent Redistricting Commission for our county. The study session will take place on January 16, 2024 at 6 p.m. in the Board Chambers. This session will be in the form of a workshop. There will be no formal public comment but audience members will be able to ask questions.
No agenda, staff report, or background information on the session has been published yet. We will provide whatever information is issued as soon as it is available.
We urge all League members and other members of the public to attend the study session to observe the process and learn what will happen next.
The League has taken a position in support of an IRC. See our letter to the Board of Supervisors dated September 10, 2023 here . Subsequent to this letter the Board voted to direct staff to draft an ordinance to create an IRC that would be put on the November 2024 ballot for voter approval. They also agreed that the draft structure of the IRC will follow that of recent special legislation that has created IRCs in other counties, with refinements to make it workable for SLO County.
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PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY ELECTION: MARCH 5
| The March 5 Primary Election is Coming Up.
Be Ready to Vote.
Check Your Voter Registration Now.
|  The Presidential Primary Election is less than 3 months away. Now is the time for all voters to check their voter registration status. There are two things you should check:
- Make sure your address is correct. Every registered voter will be sent a vote by mail ballot in early February. County Elections is now in the process of updating voter files. To ensure that you receive your ballot in time and to save the county time and money check your registration address now.
- Make sure you are registered with the political party of your choice.
Check your registration status here
| Why Does a Voter’s Party Preference Make a Difference in this Election?
Top-Two Primary and Presidential Primary System Explained
In California we have 3 types of offices.
1. Non-Partisan: State Superintendent of Schools and all county, city, school board and special district offices are non-partisan. These contests are on all ballots for voters in a given area. In the March primary, the 1st, 3rd and 5th district county supervisor contests will be on the ballot. If one candidate wins a majority of the vote, that person will be declared the winner. If no one candidate wins a majority the top two candidates will move to a runoff in November.
2. Voter Nominated: All statewide offices (except State Superintendent of Schools), are voter nominated offices. This includes contests for U.S. Senate, U.S. House of Representatives, State Senate and State Assembly. All candidates, regardless of party preference, will be on the ballot and all voters in a given area, regardless of party preference, can vote in these contests. The top two candidates, regardless of party preference, will be on the ballot in November. The contests in the March primary, include U.S. Senate, U.S. Representative, State Senate and State Assembly.
3. Party Nominated/Partisan: The election of President of the United States and the political parties’ central committees or county councils are partisan contests. Candidates for these offices are on the ballot only for voters registered in the same party. In simple terms, if you are a registered Republican, you will vote only for Republican party candidates for President or central committee. If you are a registered Democrat, you will vote only for Democratic party candidates for President or central committee, and so on for all six political parties.
What if you are registered with no party preference?
No-Party Preference (NPP) Voters: No party preference voters will receive a vote by mail ballot with no presidential contest. However, these voters can vote in the presidential primary of a party if the party allows them to “cross-over” into the party’s nomination process. The following parties allow “cross-over” voters: American Independent, Democratic, and Libertarian. To receive one of these ballots, the voter must either notify the elections office prior to election day (the earlier the better so you get your ballot of choice early in the process) or request a party ballot from the poll workers at the polling place on election day. NPP voters can request a party ballot by completing the request form for a party ballot here. If a NPP voter wishes to vote in any of the other party’s nomination process (Green, Peace & Freedom, Republican) they must re-register and change their party preference to receive a ballot with that party’s presidential candidates.
You can change your party preference at the polls on Election Day – but why wait? Check your voter registration status and take any necessary action now to help the County Elections Office save time and money, and ensure you get the ballot of your choice. | Can California State Policy Fix the Crisis in Housing?
The Housing & Homelessness Committee is holding a Lunch with the League webinar on Monday, January 8, to learn about California’s intense effort to increase the supply of housing through public policy.
The housing crisis in California triggered State legislation in the past few years intended to stimulate more housing development, including more affordable housing. Frustrated by the slow pace of building new housing in local areas, the Legislature passed bills intended to remove barriers and encourage housing construction. These new policies challenge state-local power sharing in an area that had long been primarily a local concern. Our guest speaker, Ben Christopher, Housing Reporter for CalMatters, will review this housing policy revolution and share some of the main outcomes before looking ahead to next steps for both state and local jurisdictions.
This free Zoom webinar will be held at noon on January 8. Registration is required. Register here.
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What: Can California State Policy Fix the Crisis in Housing?
When: Monday, January 8 at noon
Where: on Zoom | Registration required
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LEAGUE FUNDRAISER ON MARCH 28 AT SLO REP
| A preview performance of What the Constitution Means to Me
at San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre
| San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre presents | | What the Constitution Means to Me
A preview performance on March 28
including a social hour
exclusively for League members!
| | | San Luis Obispo Repertory Theatre kicks off their presentation of What the Constitution Means to Me with a preview showing on March 28, 2024 exclusively for League members and a guest. The doors for this fundraiser will open at 6 p.m. for a social hour with wine and snacks, followed by the play at 7 p.m. This is a great opportunity to meet and mingle with other League members. Please join us for this special evening with the League.
About the play:
Playwright Heidi Schreck’s boundary-breaking play breathes new life into our Constitution and imagines how it will shape the next generation of Americans. Fifteen-year-old Heidi earned her college tuition by winning Constitutional debate competitions across the United States. In this hilarious, hopeful and achingly human play, she resurrects her teenage self in order to trace the profound relationship between four generations of women and the founding document that shaped their lives.
League members can register here. Tickets are $50 per person, limited to League members and a guest.
If you are unable to attend on March 28, or are not a League member, you may purchase tickets directly from SLO REP here for another performance during its run March 29 – April 14, 2024. Tickets are available for performances Thu - Sat @ 7 p.m., Sat & Sun @ 2 p.m.
| LWV SLOCO Members & Guests Celebrate the Holidays
Dec. 6 at the Historic Octagon Barn Milking Parlor
|  After a multi-year hiatus from our annual holiday party, the League pulled out the stops on December 6 with an early evening of merry making with old friends and new acquaintances at the SLO Octagon Barn Milking Parlor. Ninety-five partygoers attended, with guests enjoying delicious food from SLO Provisions and local wine donated by Niner Wine Estates, Talley Vineyards and League volunteers.
|  We were honored to host 6 county elected officials or their representatives as our guests, as well as several key members of the SLO County Citizens for Good Government (SLOCCGG). Co-President Ann Havlik recognized and thanked our special guests, and announced that on March 28, 2024, the League will be holding a fundraiser at SLO REP’s performance of the play “What the Constitution Means to Me”. Co-President Elizabeth Manak expressed appreciation to event planners Cindy Marie Absey, Dianne Draze, Landy Fike and Janice Langley for their team effort coordinating the gathering.
| Special thanks to event day volunteers Mike Draze, John Forsberg, and Julie Rodewald, as well as greeters Mary Bianchi and Mary Donnelly, photographer Dennis Young, and the many others who helped set up and break down. Octagon Barn Venue Manager Madison Giger was an outstanding partner and went out of her way to be helpful and ensure event success. And most of all, we thank YOU, our valued members and guests, for taking the time during this busy season to celebrate with the League!
| | Finally, we invite you to send comments and remarks to events@lwvslo.org. | |
AAUW CALIFORNIA ANNOUNCES GOV TREK | AAUW California announces GOV TREK:
A Virtual Program for High School Junior and Senior Girls
|  Gov Trek is designed to address the paucity of women in the halls of power and help young women consider careers in public service and elected office. One of the priorities of AAUW’s core mission is to inform and empower girls in an effort to close the gender gap in traditionally male-dominated fields.
This virtual program for high school junior and senior girls is designed to elevate the next generation to pursue careers in public service and elected office. Over seven two-hour sessions, students will engage in interactive and inspiring activities with exposure to women legislators, career options, and the inner workings of a political campaign. The program will culminate in a group competition to create a realistic campaign simulation.
The program is free for students and is designed, delivered, and administered by AAUW California. Student recruitment is managed by the 100+ local AAUW branches across California.
All sessions will be via Zoom and will begin in February 2024. An information session will be held January 8, 2024. Find more information on GOV TREK and register for the information sessions here.
| Empowering Young Voters
Ensuring the Future of our Democracy
| A shared goal of the Membership and Voter Service Committees is to expand our outreach to young voters. We seek to empower them by ensuring they are registered to vote and providing them with the information they need to make sound choices. Three recent activities have helped us toward this goal.
Arroyo Grande High School
Ethan Barnes, the student leader of the Young Progressives Club at Arroyo Grande High, a non-partisan student group, reached out to the League to ask for help in organizing a campus registration drive. His club was familiar with the League and wanted to enlist our assistance in training their volunteers. We visited the school on October 16. Interestingly enough, because every student at the high school is issued a laptop computer, the registration drive was held exclusively online. Using this new approach, the training resulted in trainers and trainees alike learning new ways to conduct a voter registration drive. With their well-organized effort, the club managed to register more than 100 new voters among their classmates.
|  | Cal Poly
A League team was invited to address the Society of Women Engineers at their regularly scheduled evening meeting on October 22. President Payton Porter welcomed our representatives on behalf of the large group of attentive female engineers in attendance. The group’s leadership had requested information on a variety of subjects such as how to talk politics in a polarized environment, an overview of county politics, and the importance and power of voting. The evening also raised our hope that the League will be able to make further connections at Cal Poly in the future.
| New Tech High School of Nipomo
A number of League volunteers participated in a rambunctious example of civic engagement hosted by students at New Tech High School on December 7. The students were challenged to create their own political parties, complete with party platforms, and recruit new members for their parties. They used colorful displays and personal arguments to enroll the strangers who attended their annual Salon Night at the Regional Community Center in Arroyo Grande. It was a powerful and creative way to involve students in the political process. As with all our activities involving students, League volunteers found that they learned a lot from the students -- the politicians and activists of tomorrow.
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FINANCIAL REVIEW COMMITTEE REPORT | Financial Review Committee Submits Annual Report
For Fiscal Year 2022 – 2023 | | The Financial Review Committee submitted the bylaws-mandated review of League finances for FY 2022 – 2023 to the LWV SLOCO Board of Directors at the November 16, 2023, Board meeting. The committee, Janice Carr (Co-chair), Straith Smith-Zanartu (Co-chair), Marlys McPherson, and Glenn Silloway, with League Treasurer Janice Langley serving as a consultant, determined that the financial statements are in order and no material modifications need to be made. The Board accepted the report as presented. | |
NEWS FROM THE CIVIL DISCOURSE COMMITTEE
| Civil Discourse Committee Update
| The 16 members of the Civil Discourse Committee participated in meetings on November 10, 2023 with Co-chairs Anne Quinn and Jean Burns Slater. Members reviewed general discourse topics and strategies, identifying those they would like to learn more about. Several members volunteered to update the Civil Discourse brochure, developed in 2015, and to refocus on a Code of Civility for the committee to share with the public and appointed/elected boards.
The committee discussed a public forum on Civil Discourse topics such as how to participate in meetings, correspond with board members, address public officials, and engage in conversations while respecting differences of opinion, which may take place in March.
The Civil Discourse Committee will meet again on January 12 with exact time and location to be determined. Contact Anne and Jean at civildiscourse@lwvslo.org for information about the committee.
| Get to Know Your City Clerk
| The Civil Discourse Committee is developing relationships with city and county clerks to advance our partnerships with local government agencies. As part of this effort, Co-chairs Anne Quinn and Jean Burns Slater, and committee member Pam Dassenko, met with Lee Price, a former city clerk , who will serve as a resource for the Civil Discourse Committee.
Price, now retired, served as City Clerk for the cities of Atascadero, San Luis Obispo, and San Jose. As one who has achieved the rare and coveted title of Master Municipal Clerk, she has trained City Clerks throughout California. She explained the critical role they play as intermediaries between elected officials and the public.
“City clerks are your partners in democracy,” Price said. They may be elected or appointed, depending on the city, but either way the position of City Clerk exists to ensure that the public has access to government. Joining elected officials on the dais at public meetings, City Clerks are there to “make sure that the meetings are an open process,” Price explained. They are thoroughly trained in the Brown Act, open government and sunshine laws (Price wrote the sunshine laws for the City of San Jose.) City Clerks, or Municipal Clerks as they are sometimes called, serve as campaign finance officers and conduct candidate orientations, instructing those seeking public office in ethics codes, conflict of interest principles, and engagement tools. They take official minutes at public meetings and fulfill public information requests.
The role of municipal clerk is an ancient one, according to the website of the City Clerks Association of California (CCAC). The tradition was brought over from England when the colonists first settled here. But the tradition of having a public advocate in local government is even older than that. The CCAC website tells the story of a city secretary in Ancient Greece who would read documents aloud at the beginning of a meeting. According to the story as described on the website, his duties also included a curse on anyone who would deceive the people.
Perhaps that ancient tradition needs reviving!
| HumanKind Give Back Days Benefit Artisans and the SLO League
|  The League of Women Voters led off HumanKind’s annual give back days on November 1. For 10 days, local non-profits are given 10% of the day’s sales, both on-line and in the store. Thanks to our members and other shoppers, LWV SLOCO had the second highest day of sales and received a check for $436. Several members including Glenn Silloway, Elizabeth Manak, Ann Havlik and Julie Rodewald were present in the store to answer League-related questions and encourage shoppers to support our mission to defend democracy. The League is thankful to HumanKind and its Board of Directors for offering this opportunity to local non-profits and hope our members will continue to support the non-profit store throughout the year. A great start on holiday shopping and our fundraising efforts!
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ADOPT-A-POLL VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
| Adopt-A-Poll Members Needed
for North County for March 5 Primary Election
| The SLO County Adopt-a-Poll program has been a successful tool for recruiting poll workers as well as providing funds to local organizations. For each precinct adopted, the League receives approximately $600. In the last 4 elections, LWV SLOCO has staffed 4 adopt-a-polls: 2 in San Luis Obispo, 1 in Morro Bay and 1 in South County. In 2024, the League hopes to expand these efforts into North County but we need more members to participate. Jordan Blaquera will be the inspector and 4 other members have expressed an interest in working the polls. We need an additional 4-6 members to fully staff this new precinct. On March 5 each volunteer will work either a half day (6 am to 2 pm or 1:30 to 9 pm) or a full day (6 am to 9 pm). In addition, poll workers are asked to attend a 2 hour training session in February. This election day work is a rewarding experience and a great opportunity to work alongside your fellow league members and serve the voters of San Luis Obispo County. If you are interested in joining this effort, contact Patti Dale at pollworker@lwvslo.org.
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League of Women Voters of San Luis Obispo County
The League of Women Voters of San Luis Obispo County is a nonpartisan, grassroots civic organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy. Membership in the League is open to people 16 years and older, of all gender identities. With over 100 years of experience, the League is one of America’s oldest and most trusted civic nonprofit organizations.
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