Inform. Educate. Empower. MAKING DEMOCRACY WORK FOR 101 YEARS Our Mission and Legacy

The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages informed and active participation in government, by working to increase the understanding of major public policy issues and to influence public policy through education and advocacy.

Creation of Neighborhood Council system: The League was the leading organization that advocated for and publicly called for the importance of creating a representative system of neighborhood councils made of community leadership that would work and hold LA City Council accountable.

The League helped revamp the civil service system in , which had been in place since 1913, and worked in support of numerous reforms to the state constitution. Our Mission and Legacy, cont.

Creation of a City Ethics Commission: Thanks to the continuous work of the League, who lobbied for the item to be included in the ballot, the city charter was amended for the creation of an Ethics Committee. The Ethics Commission was established by Los Angeles voters in 1990 to help preserve the public trust and foster public confidence in city government and elections.

Money in Politics reform: In April 2019, the League secured a landmark reform that will be a model for matching funds programs across the nation. Beginning with the 2020 election: The lower qualifying threshold of $11,400 for city council elections means that candidates will more easily be able to access matching funds; reducing the maximum match for donations empowers small donors; increasing the match from 2:1 to 6:1 gives candidates more money to run expensive campaigns; and candidates will be required to participate in a candidate forum in order to qualify for public funds.

Structure of A City: Published in January 2006 by the Los Angeles League and written by Raphe Sonenshein, funded by the Haynes Foundation, this 208-page book has become a holy grail for students of LA city government, city employees, college professors and elected officials. The book details how the Los Angeles city government evolved and how it works. Membership & Volunteer Engagement

▪ Current League membership is 406 with 48 members who have been in League for over 50 years.

▪ Our League has new committees that respond to the critical issues that are affecting the communities we serve, including homelessness, criminal justice reform and DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion).

▪ Active volunteer engagement throughout our programs is on average about 20% with most members active in voter education outreach Voter Services: Unbiased Civil Discourse and Resources

▪ Year-round voter registration: registered over 9,000 in the last two presidential Elections

▪ Speakers Bureau on ballot measures: reached over 12,000 voters in over 230 presentations to nonprofits, community-based, religious and corporate groups with almost 100 trained volunteers

▪ Voter Guides and Publications: distributed over 400,000 hardcopies and received 700,000 downloads

▪ Votersedge.org: provided candidate nonpartisan information for over 80% of the elections in the last four state and local elections.

▪ Candidate Forums: Managed and sponsored 42 candidate forums for municipal, county and state elections with community partners and media outlets. Youth Empowerment

Trained volunteers educate, excite, empower and engage the youth in civic life while helping them develop leadership skills

▪ Have partnered with over 15 grassroots organizations to register and pre-register youth, including United Way, Power CA, Inner City Struggle and more.

▪ Since 2015, we have pre/registered over 5,000 students throughout LAUSD

▪ Conducted 75 in-class presentations in Los Angeles, Compton and Santa Monica in the last two presidential elections.

▪ Internship program: established in 2007 and have hosted 120 interns, whose service-learning experience involves them learning nonprofit and volunteer management, grant research, fundraising and event planning, and participating in program/project development. Youth Empowerment, cont.

Community College and University Campus Outreach: continuous outreach across different campuses at election events, issue forums, internship fairs and associated student body councils.

Since the last two presidential elections, the League has hosted a total of 33 events at:

▪ University of Los Angeles ▪ California State University Los Angeles ▪ California State University Northridge ▪ Occidental College ▪ University of ▪ Los Angeles Valley Community College ▪ Los Angeles City Community College ▪ Pierce Community College ▪ Compton Community College ▪ Mount Saint Mary’s University ▪ Loyola Law School Civic Education and Outreach

In the last six years, our issue forums have attracted over 1,700 individuals and we have partnered with over a dozen organizations.

▪ Notable issue forums that been hosted include panels on affordable housing, homelessness (measure H and HHH), community policing, redistricting, transportation, and more. ▪ Media Outreach: Executive Director and President spoke at about 54 engagements/interviews in the last two presidential elections, including:

▪ Television: Fox11, ABC7, NBC4, KCAL5, CNN, MSNBC, Univision34, Telemundo52, USC Trojan Channel, SpectrumOne ▪ Newspaper: LA Times, Huffington Post, Washington Post, La Opinion, HOY Los Angeles, New York Times ▪ Radio and Podcasts: KPCC, KPFK, The Pundette’s Podcast Advocacy

The League takes positions on issues, after much study and consensus, and advocates for them on behalf of communities in Los Angeles with the goal of improving equity and resources, and creating change in that policy area.

Issues that we are currently active in include: ▪ Affordable Housing (lack of) ▪ Carbon Reduction and Climate Change ▪ Criminal Justice Reform ▪ Homelessness ▪ Money in Politics Reform ▪ Transportation (equitable) ▪ Redistricting (city and LAUSD) ▪ Fair Work Wages and COVID-19 safety Our Civic Partners

Abode Communities CORO LA Free the Vote Courage California LAUSD Sponsor a Family ACLU-SoCal Criminal Justice Program, UCLA Law Long Beach Coalition for Safety and Justice Advancing Justice LA School Loyola Law School Project for the Innocent American Constitution Society LA Dignity and Power Now MALDEF Asian Americans Advancing Justice Drop LWOP (Life Without Opportunity for NAACP-Hollywood Parole) NALEO Bail Project Empower LA National Lawyers Guild LA Black Lives Matter Los Angeles Esperanza Immigrant Rights Neighborhood Councils Black Women for Wellness FAIR chance project Pat Brown Institute CA Common Cause Fair Workweek PATH Housing Authority of Los Angeles Power CA California Coalition of Women Prisoners Immigrant Legal Resource Center PowerPac Foundation California Community Foundation Interfaith Communities United for Justice Public Counsel Carecen and Peace Regional Reentry Partnership CAUSE LA Ivy Terrace SELAH Jovenes, Inc. Smart Justice CA Chatsworth Project Justice Collaborative Step Up Residences CHIRLA Koreatown for All Turning Point Citizens Take Action LA Black Worker Center UCLA Labor Center Color of Change LA Coalition for Excellent Public Schools Unite LA - Everyone In LA County Registrar-Recorder’s Office United Way LA Communities in Schools of Los Angeles LA Forward Unrig LA Community Coalition LA Ground Game VICA Congress of Neighborhoods - Empowerment LA Voice Women's March Los Angeles Foundation Congress LAHSA - Homeless Count Youth Justice Coalition Latino Community Foundation We Appreciate Your Support

Citizenship is more than just something to hold. It’s a hands-on responsibility, one to be exercised that strengthens the individual and the democratic process. At the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles, we believe that our democracy and our institutions can only be as strong, vibrant and accountable as the people they represent and serve are informed and engaged.

Through the public policy studies we conduct, the unbiased voter information we distribute, the civic engagement education we provide and the advocacy work we do, we give the people of Los Angeles the knowledge and resources they need to be active, informed and effective participants in civic life.

213.368.1616 | [email protected] | LWVlosangeles.org