THE VOTER. The League of Women Voters of Kansas City/Jackson/Clay/Platte Counties

Transcription

1 THE VOTER The League of Women Voters of Kansas City/Jackson/Clay/Platte Counties Annual Holiday Lunch Saturday, Dec 16 $15 per person, RSVP by Dec 8 9:30 A.M. Social 10:00 A.M. Lynn Horsley, Speaker 11: 00 A.M. Lunch RSVP online at lwvkc.org, or, mail check to 1912A NW Cherry, Lee s Summit, MO 64081, by Dec 8. Sheryl Eufinger, Hospitality Chair, and other LWV volunteers are already planning a festive Holiday Lunch to be served in the Centennial Room, at Community Christian Church on Dec 16. Make your reservation now to enjoy a traditional holiday lunch with friends. Community Christian Church 4601 Main; Kansas City MO Enter on south side of church; take steps to lower level Centennial Room. Park free in multi-level garage south of church Handicapped entrance and parking is on north side of church with elevator access to lower level. Dec 16, 2017, Saturday: LWV KCJCP Annual Holiday Lunch; Lynn Horsley, Speaker Jan 20, 2018, Saturday: LWV KCJCP Member Meeting; Annual Program Planning LWV/KC/J/C/P P. O. Box 10416, KCMO lwvkcjcp@gmail.com 1

2 LWV/KC/J/C/P BOARD OFFICERS Co-Presidents Donna Hoch Evelyn Maddox Vice President Linda Smith Secretary Anitra Steele Treasurer Caroline Arnold DIRECTORS Becky Yockey Cheryl Barnes Dixie Brown Pat Goodwin Paula Zaiss Pauli Kendrick Pauline Testerman Co-PRESIDENTS MESSAGE Voter registration, voter protection, candidate forums, poll monitoring, and web-based voter education were all underway this past month. There is much to do to make democracy work and we are doing it! Voter advocacy by LWV KCJCP and LWV US has recently taken the form of voter protection due to ongoing state and federal actions that threaten to suppress the vote-- either during the registration process or at the polls. We are not alone, however, in efforts to protect the vote in Missouri by asking the Circuit Court to stop implementation of the photo ID. ACLU and NAACP are active partners in the suit filed against MO Secretary of State Ashcroft. for which a hearing was held in Jefferson City on November 9. Your Co-Presidents were there. Other LWV observers were Linda McDaniel and Kathleen Farrell of (long time Voter Protection Advocates) and Louise Wilkerson (Metro St Louis/LWVMO Board). The purpose of the hearing was to get a court ruling on SOS motion to dismiss. We plaintiffs have alleged the MO General Assembly failed to sufficiently fund SOS efforts to educate voters about the photo ID law which became effective June 1, The judge s decision on whether we may proceed to trial is due by December 1. Attorney Denise Lieberman of the Advancement Project is assisted by attorneys from ACLU, NAACP, Demos, and the Covington and Burling law firm where former Attorney General Eric Holder is a senior partner. Attending LWV MO Fall Conference in Sedalia with a contingent of 13 Kansas City members was a rewarding experience for all. Presentation of our $1570 check to LWV MO President Kathy Boswell which satisified our pledge to double our Per Member Pledge payment. for was possible only because of our recent successful fundraisers. Kathleen Boswell, LWVMO, accepts LWV KC JCP pledge. 1 November Meeting 6 8 LWV KCJCP In Action 2 Co-Presidents Message 9 FYI 3 Candidates Forum 10 Spring Conference Speakers 4 Voter Registration at St. Teresa Academy 11 MO LWV Board Works for Community 5 Medicare/Medicaid Forums; Let Us Know 2

3 CANDIDATES FORUM MO SENATE DISTRICT 8 Approximately 200 people attended a standing room only forum on October 25 at John Knox Village for District 8 candidates, Mike Cierpiot (R), Hillary Shields (D), and Jacob Turk (I). The forum, moderated by Brian Ellison of KCUR, was recorded in its entirety and played on Ellison s State House Blend Podcast. An excerpt was used on Steve Kraske s UP to Date on KCUR. Channel 9 was there and recorded the entire forum. The League was contacted by KCUR with a request to co-sponsor it, have Brian Ellison moderate it and record it for broadcast. Negotiations ensued to ensure that the forum would be conducted in accordance with the League s process and that the League s standards would be adhered to. This collaboration resulted in the League s name being mentioned on KCUR each time the forum was promoted which was frequently during the period prior to the forum. As a result of this successful collaboration, we have established a relationship with KCUR that may result in further cosponsorships in the busy 2018 election season. The forum was organized by Anitra Steel and Caroline Arnold Their able assistants during the forum included Cheryl Barnes, Pat Goodwin, Donna Hoch, Symie Menitove, and Sue Scholl. Caroline Arnold Donna Vestal and Brian Ellison (far left) of KCUR hosted a debriefing, at the KCUR offices, of the District 8 Forum which was held at Lee s Summit Cheryl Barnes, Donna Hoch, Anitra Steele, and Caroline Arnold, (pictured left to right) had coordinated efforts to work with KCUR for a first-ever podcast of a forum. More collaboration is expected for the 2018 candidate forums. 3

4 LWV REGISTRATION EVENT EXCITES ST. TERESA STUDENTS Seniors at St. Teresa Academy were excited to register to vote after hearing an LWV presentation during the monthly "seniors" meeting on campus Nov. 10. Alison Arendt, a new member this year, gave a PowerPoint presentation emphasizing how US women have held the franchise for less than 100 years and things we take for granted (like having credit) required laws being changed less than 50 years ago. She also emphasized that 'news' everywhere, particularly on social media, should be double-checked for accuracy so that a vote reflects opinion based on facts. Seniors who were at least 17 1/2 then lined up enthusiastically and registered to vote; those who are 18 by the April 3 municipal election can participate. LWV registrars (pictured below) Peg Marland, Sue Scholl, Becky Yockey, Pat Goodwin, Evelyn Maddox, and Jan Cohen helped register more than 50 new voters. Many thanks to Paula Zaiss, organizer, and Alison Arendt of the League; and Susan Stanz and Peg Marland of the Academy who helped organize and coordinate this very inspiring event. Becky Yockey 4

5 MEDICARE AND MEDICAID FORUMS SCHEDULED Why should the public care about MEDICARE and Medicaid? Surely, our elected officials know that voters will rebel if they "touch our MEDICARE"! Not so fast; we can't count on that. In order to educate citizens of our area on the myths about and challenges to MEDICARE and on related issues, our League has joined with UMKC (Gerontology Programs & UMKC Consortium for Aging in Community) and other organizations (AARP. Missouri Budget Project, Center for MEDICARE Services) to plan and host a series of public forums on MEDICARE, Medicaid and the price of pharmaceuticals. They will be held at UMKC in January, February and March. Our League participant in this initiative is Linda Vogel Smith, our League's Vice President and a former Regional Health Administrator, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. LET US KNOW WHAT YOU RE DOING FOR THE LEAGUE Have you registered voters as an LWV registrar since June 1? Have you represented the League in the community since June 1? Or maybe you ve helped at a special event such as our recent performance of The Life and Times of Barbara Jordan. If you ve spent time on behalf of the Leagues mission to educate and energize voters, please report what you have done for our records. When you participate in a League activity or work to support League, please send details to Pat Goodwin at patgoodwin6@gmail.com. Include the following. your name what you did (e.g., registered voters, poll monitor, staffed a League table) date you did it how many hours you contributed event name (if applicable) event location, name of the site and/or the address of the site How will this information be used? Your information will be aggregated with other members information to demonstrate how active our members are, and. how the League engages in the community to support our mission of creating an educated and engaged electorate. Specifically, this data could be used when applying for a grant, when working with other organizations to show the commitment and energy of League members, or as background information for news articles and press releases. Our membership has grown by almost 50% in the last year, and our members are doing more than ever. Please take a few minutes to pass on this important information to us, so we can use it to promote the League and make it an even larger force in our community. Contact Pat Goodwin at if you have questions 5

6 LWV KCJCP IN ACTION VOTER PROTECTION, VOTER REGISTRATION, CANDIDATE FORUM, COALITIONS VOTE411.ORG, POLL MONITORING, FUNDRAISING, AND MORE! Oct 9 - LWV exhibited at Keep Our Children Safe, the annual forum of Grandparents Against Gun Violence. Jean Ann Kouns and Evelyn Maddox promoted LWV s work to prospective members. Oct 9 - I ve Got a Crush on You, a 50-ticket fundraiser at Quality Hill Playhouse benefiting LWV KCJCP was sold out. Oct 12 - The Life and Times of Barbara Jordan, a performance by Jacqueline Gafford benefiting LWV KCJCP, was attended by 124 attendees. Fundraiser workers were Caroline Arnold, Marianne Watson, Anitra Steele, Pauline Testerman, Allison Arendt, Becky Yockey, Pat Goodwin, Paula Zaiss, Carol Jacobson, Diana Stuart, Jean Ann Kouns, Joyce Fulps, Peg Marland, Sheryl Eufinger, Sue Scholl, Evelyn Maddox and Donna Hoch Oct 14 - Max Skidmore, PhD, Curator's Professor of Political Science and Thomas Jefferson Fellow, UMKC spoke to LWV members and guests at LWV KCJCP s general meeting. Oct 20 Donna Hoch appeared on the Alex Thomas Radio show on KPRT Gospel Radio Station, along with Micah Kubic (far right) of ACLU, to discuss Let People Vote, an ACLU grass roots initiative. KPRT has hosted LWV on several occasions. Oct 21 Evelyn Maddox appeared on KKFI 90.1 s Guess Who s Coming to Kansas City, to share more about LWV plans and efforts to protect voters rights. Oct 24 Rosemary Durkin and Sue Scholl represented LWV KCJCP at the ACLU People Power/Let People Vote Organizing Meeting. Oct 25 - A Candidates Forum for Senate Race District 8, at John Knox Village, was a collaborative event with KCUR s Statehouse Blend Missouri. Brian Ellison moderated using LWV s forum format. Over 200 people attended. Forum workers were Caroline Arnold, Anitra and Charles Steele, Symie Menitove, Sue Scholl, Cheryl Barnes, Pat Goodwin and Donna Hoch. See details in this Voter. Continued - 6

7 Oct 28 Missouri LWV held its Fall Conference in Sedalia. Kansas City members who attended, and pictured, were Evelyn Maddox, Marli KLumb, Pat Goodwin, Pauline Testerman, Caroline Arnold, Peg Marland, Carolyn Weeks, Paula Zaiss, Rosemary Durkin, Linda Smith and Donna Hoch. Attendees Sheryl Eufinger and Jack Smith are not pictured. Oct 28 Pat Good win and Donna Hoch returned to KC from the Sedalia Fall Conference in time to appear on Guess Who s Coming to Kansas City (KKFI 90.1), to promote voting in the Nov 7 election. Nov 6 Sherry Templeton and Dave, Karen Brown, Margie Richcreek, M. J. McCall, Rosemary Durkin, Carol Jacobson (pictured), Rudena Mallory, Donna Hoch, and Evelyn Maddox attended Advancement Project training for poll monitors for the Nov 7 election, and worked the following day at poll sites. Carol is pictured in the Advancement Project vest that identifies the monitors who stand 15 feet from the poll entrance. Nov 7 League members Dixie Brown, Ann Johnson and Susan Moon worked as election judges while LWV members who attended poll monitor training on Nov 6 worked at poll sites. Nov 7 Vote411.org displayed Nov 7 ballots for local election boards; had been live since Oct 15.. Nov 9 Donna Hoch and Evelyn Maddox attended a court hearing in Jefferson City, and heard arguments for ending implementation of the photo ID requirement (HB 1631) due to insufficient funding for notice to voters. Josh Williams, a People Power volunteer, accompanied them. The judge said he d issue a ruling in five to 10 days. See the President s Message for details about the hearing. Nov 9 - Training for LWV Forum Moderators was conducted by Anitra Steele, Margie Richcreek, and Delores Blaser (pictured far right); Sandy Eeds and Paula Zaiss (pictured, right) Tommye Sexton, Sheryl Eufinger, and Evelyn Maddox attended. The date of another training session will be announced. Nov 10 Marli Klumb, Evelyn Maddox, and Donna Hoch started formulation of how LWV KCJCP could support ACLU s People Power s initiative to improve Missouri Motor Vehicle Office s compliance with Section 5 of the National Voter Registration Act (Motor Voter Act). Marli is a former contract DMV agent. Nov 10 Paula Zaiss, Becky Yockey, Alison Arendt, and Peg Marland organized a Membership Committee event at St. Teresa s Academy with voter registration for seniors. Sue Scholl (top left)l, Jan Cohen, Pat Goodwin, Peg Marland (bottom left), Becky Yockey, and Evelyn Maddox, registered 55 students following Alison s presentation emphasizing how women s rights have progressed since More details in this Voter. 7

8 Continued - Nov 10 - Caroline Arnold, Donna Hoch, and Evelyn Maddox provided League records to accountant Greg Gregg Gehrig who is providing pro bono services for an accounting review of the last three years. Nov 14 - Rosemary Durkin spoke to senior voters at River Stone Apartments in north Kansas City, about absentee voting requirements and the new photo ID law. It was the first of a series of presentations being scheduled by Northland Progress for seniors living in north Kansas City. Nov 14 Donna Hoch, Evelyn Maddox, and Rosemary Durkin spoke to 21 attendees at a meeting of ACLU s People Power group about Section 5 of the National Voter Registration Act of Nov 15 Cheryl Barnes, Anitra Steele, Caroline Arnold, and Donna Hoch were guests of Brian Ellison and Donna Vestal at KCUR to discuss opportunities for KCUR and LWV KCJCP to work together to benefit the community. Nov 16 Alice Kitchen (right), Sue Scholl, and Evelyn Maddox attended a presentation hosted by GKCWPC about local efforts to conduct a gender study in KCMO government. The study would conform to the principles of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) applying to cities., LWV US has endorsed efforts to get the U.S. Senate to ratify CEDAW but the U.S. remains the only democracy and is among only seven countries that have not ratified the principles of CEDAW. Alice has been working with Women s Equality Week for several years on CEDAW efforts. Dec 16 Annual Holiday Lunch for LWV KCJCP with a presentation by journalist Lynn Horsley. Make reservation online at lwvkcjcp.org or mail check to 1912A NW Cherry, Lee s Summit, MO Like us on Facebook! LWV KCJCP facebook.com/lwvkcmo Like us on Facebook! LWV Missouri facebook.com/lwvmo CALENDAR FOR STATE AND NATIONAL EVENTS May 5, 2018 June 28, 2018 Missouri LWV Spring Conference, Kansas City U.S. LWV Convention, Chicago 8

9 FYI #GOV101 is back for an updated Season 2 with new panelists and a new audience interaction, You Be The Legislator. The Missouri Legislature goes back into session on January 3 and 2018 is an election year. Space is limited so Rep Stacey Newman recommends an early RSVP; contact her office to RSVP. (Donna Hoch.) The Lake City Army Ammunition Plant located in northeastern Independence, MO, has an ongoing clean-up operation in the Northwest Lagoon. The plant is contractor-operated. The EPA and State of Missouri have environmental oversight, including injection wells and solar powered equipment to treat groundwater contamination. Treatment and disposal include incineration and land disposal. Residents in Independence have reason to be concerned that the operation of the plant and cleanup of the site are correctly done. (Pauline Testerman.) There is a 40 page Citizen's Guide to Transportation Funding in MO available online at The web site has a wealth of information about MO DOT operations. (Rosemary Durkin.) Reflections of the Spring Conference I always enjoy attending the fall conference in Sedalia and I always feel I learn something. I especially enjoyed the presentation on Clean Missouri by Sean Nicholson. This was a subject I did not understand and now I am more informed. - Pauline Testerman I had a very good time...listened carefully to the speakers and learned a great deal. I met the Membership Chairs from St. Louis and Springfield and the Facebook Manager for St. Louis. My favorite speaker was Ann Anderson. I learned so much about the struggle of D.C. to become a state and I understand more fully the importance of their statehood being ratified. I loved Donna's exuberant description of what our League has accomplished this past year. It made me proud but sad because there weren t more of us there to feel the excitement. Paula Zaiss I enjoyed the conference, beginning with the ride down, to the learning about the accomplishments of the other leagues, and the speaker from DC. It was a great time to meet new people. Rosemary Durkin It was good for our KC League to give away a visitors' package that shows attractions in Independence, MO. It will help attract people to our Spring Conference. Sheryl Eufinger I always appreciate the speakers at our conferences, but the connection to other League members that gets renewed is very special to me. - Donna Hoch 9

10 CONFERENCE SPEAKERS RAISE AWARENESS ANNE ANDERSON DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA Anne Anderson, a resident of Washington, D.C., spoke at the Conference about D.C. s need for statehood. LWV US has been a long supporter for statehood. Anne is traveling to local leagues to raise awareness of how D.C. residents are disadvantaged by Congressional oversight of many of its local issues, including gun laws. Although residents may vote for President, they have only a delegate to represent their interests in Congress. DC residents annually submit proposals for geographically separating DC into a federal area for government facilities and a statehood area for the rest but have had no success. Grassroots lobbying of Congressional representatives is needed to overcome resistance to statehood. SEAN NICHOLSON, Senior Content Strategist and Research Director at GPS Impact discussed the development of the Clean Missouri initiative and details regarding its major provisions. He clarified that if the initiative is on the ballot, it will be as a single question, so either all of the provisions would be enacted or none would be enacted. LWV MO is supporting the petition. The Official Ballot Title as Certified by Secretary of State follows. Shall the Missouri Constitution be amended to: change process and criteria for redrawing state legislative districts during reapportionment; change limits on campaign contributions that candidates for state legislature can accept from individuals or entities; establish a limit on gifts that state legislators, and their employees, can accept from paid lobbyists; prohibit state legislators, and their employees, from serving as paid lobbyists for a period of time; prohibit political fundraising by candidates for or members of the state legislature on State property; and require legislative records and proceedings to be open to the public? NICK LASTRADA, Pettis County Clerk, described an uneventful implementation of the photo ID law,and gave credit to personal support of Secretary of State Ashcroft. NANCY MILLER, Metro St. Louis member, previewed Power Point presentations developed by Metro St. Louis LWV. The PP files were distributed on a flash drive to all attending leagues. MARY MERRITT, Sedalia, described changes to LWV merchandise available for purchase. 10

11 MO LWV BOARD MEMBERS WORK FOR COMMUNITY Kathleen Boswell, LWV MO Board President, arranged for MO Board Members to serve supper to patrons of a local community center, the day prior to Fall Conference. Board members are shown having a good time preparing chili, salad, and dessert for 55 Sedalia residents of all ages. As shown below, Kathleen was on the run all the time to keep things moving! Board members returned to their business meeting after leaving the Center s facilities spotless. Linda Smith, KC/JCP Marge Bramer, SW MO Kathleen Boswell, President Sedalia/Pettis County Carol Schreiber Columbia/Boone County Not Becky Clausen, Treasurer Metro St. Louis Kathleen Boswell and Marilyn McLeod, Vice President Columbia/Boone County Kathleen Boswell, Pres Marilyn McLeod, VP Columbia/Boone County Sharon Swon Mexico/Audrain County Not pictured: Debby Waite-Howard Louise Wilkerson Nancy Copenhaver Evelyn Maddox Metro St. Louis Metro St. Louis Moberly/Randolph County Kansas City /JCP 11