LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ® OF JUNEAU Juneau VOTER FROM THE PRESIDENT It’s an exciting election year and a growing number From left, Juneau of League members League members 2014 ELECTION are getting involved. We Geny DelRosario, DATES have attracted several Marianne Mills, carolyn and new members who are George Brown, AUGUST 19: PRIMARY interested in helping with Hetty Barthel (State and national) voter registration. and Judy Andree Register by July 20 Marjorie Menzi, Cheryl enjoy the Early Voting begins Aug. 4 Jebe and Geny Del Rosario Fountainhead participated in the recent Antique Auto OCTOBER 7: LOCAL Naturalization Service, Museum in (Assembly/School Board) registering several new Fairbanks during Register by Sept. 7 citizens. League registrars, the LWVAK State Early voting begins Sept. 22 Convention. including Kim Andree Pat Watt was and Michele Thompson, NOVEMBER 4: GENERAL busy networking (State and national) helped out at the Maritime and missed the Register by Oct. 5 Festival on May 10. The photo op. Youth Voter Registration Early voting begins Oct. 20 Program, with Bridget STATE CONVENTION Smith at the helm, is NEWS NOTES: actively engaging new and The Juneau delegates to the State Convention in April soon-to-be new voters with were treated to a wonderful event in Fairbanks thanks to • Juneau League member the help of fellow League the amazing work of the Tanana Valley League of Women Margo Waring has been members. Voters. We met for Friday and Saturday meetings at the appointed to the LWVUS League leader carolyn I.B.E.W. Hall where we were welcomed by Jennifer Schmidt, Task Force on Redistricting. Brown has been working Tanana Valley President, and were treated to a social media • Join the LWVJ Board at with Robert Barr, director presentation by Meadow Bailey of the Alaska DOT. In the 9:30 a.m. June 21 in the of Juneau Public Library, evening, Charlie Dexter of U.A.F. reminded us how wonderful KTOO Conference Room for to form the Juneau Votes the League was, is, and will continue to be. a discussion with Robert coalition of diverse Saturday we heard from Susan Wilson, LWVUS Regional Barr, director of the Juneau community groups toward Liaison, and LWVAK Legislative Liaison Caren Robinson Public Libraries, about the goal of active and via teleconference. Sarah Obed, Vice President of External Juneau Votes! informed voting in the Affairs for Doyon Ltd, described Doyon’s efforts to get upcoming elections. out the Native vote. On Saturday night we attended the • Join the LWVJ for the June 6-10, League 50th Anniversary of the Tanana Valley League at the Fourth of July Parade! Communications Chair Fountainhead Antique Automobile Museum where we heard We will be handing out an address from Alice Rogoff, publisher of Alaska Dispatch Continued on next page ... voter information along the and recent purchaser of the Anchorage Daily News. Rogoff parade route! Continued on next page ... JUNEAU VOTER JUNE 2014 LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ® OF JUNEAU LEFT: League BOOK CLUB members REPORT: Kim Andree The LWVJ Nonfiction Book and Geny Discussion Group will meet at DelRosario 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 12, at register voters the Mendenhall Valley Library at the Maritime to discuss “THE FOX IN THE Festival on HENHOUSE: How Privatization May 10. Threatens Democracy by Si Kahn and Elizabeth Minnich. JULY: “IT’S EVEN WORSE THAN IT LOOKS: How the American STATE CONVENTION (cont.) ... Constitutional System Collided With the Politics of Extremism,” has great enthusiasm for the future of the co-authored by Thomas Mann of printed newspaper industry! In between these the liberal Brookings Institution; talented speakers, the delegates managed to and Norman Ornstein a resident accomplish the business of the LWVAK. scholar at the conservative American Enterprise Institute. New state board members include Directors Gail July’s discussion will be 6:30 to Knopf, of Kenai, and Judy Andree, of Juneau, 8 p.m. Thursday, July 10, at the new state President Pat Redmond, of Anchorage, Downtown Library. Past President Linda Witt, Vice-President Carol Aug. 14 (Valley location Dickason, and re-elected state Secretary Hetty TBD): “GROWING UP NATIVE Barthel, of Juneau. Marianne Mills, of Juneau, was IN ALASKA” by Alexandria appointed to the Board at the post-convention McClanahan. A generation of meeting, and continuing Board members include Alaska Natives is finding its Shari George, of Tanana Valley, as state Treasurer, Bridget Smith, chair of the Youth Voter Registration place in Alaska Native history Project, works at the LWVJ registration table during and Directors Diane Mathisen, of Anchorage, and by defining what it means the Maritime Festival. Thanks to Bridget’s efforts, Lois Pillifant, of Kenai. to be Alaska Native at the many League volunteers, and a grant from LWVUS, beginning of a new century. Issues of concern that came up in conversation the Project this spring has assisted 99 voters to Cultures clashed 30 years and discussions included voter participation, register or complete address changes. ago when Congress passed the Alaska Native Claims government transparency, voter education, of Alaska archive system, and Hetty Barthel is length of the Legislative session and dealing with Settlement Act of 1971, and investigating what the Juneau League might do the reverberations of that clash local League paperwork. The LWVAK Board voted to preserve local minutes, VOTER’s and other to authorize a new study on Election Processes are still being felt today. This important documents. Local LWVJ members book concerns itself with the and Procedures. In addition, the State Position who attended include Marianne Mills, Hetty human results of the act, the on School Finance will be updated. Barthel, George and carolyn Brown, Geny social implications stemming Several local Leagues are using the University Delrosario, Pat Watt, and Judy Andree. from an unprecedented decision by Congress that has been called an extraordinary national experiment. Twenty- PRESIDENT (cont.) ... Convention can be found have any questions about seven Alaska Natives born online at: forum.lwv.org/ League activities and your Pat Watt will represent us between 1957 and 1976 were member-resources/ involvement. We are compiling selected for interviews based on at the 51st LWVUS National sections/convention-2014. a list of members who are their potential as leaders and Convention to be held in In July, the League will once interested in helping to because they have struggled in Dallas, Texas, accompanied again have a presence in register voters. I would be glad one way or another with what it by the Browns (carolyn and the parade on the Fourth, so to add your name to the list! means to be an Alaska Native George) and two Anchorage please join us. Thank you! today. (Eight copies of this book League members. More Don’t hesitate to give me Marianne Mills are being borrowed from the Anchorage Public Library for information on the LWVUS LWVJ President a call (723-0226) if you distribution at the July meeting.) JUNEAU VOTER JUNE 2014 LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS ® OF JUNEAU RIGHT and BELOW: League member Larae Jones helps register young voters JUNEAU VOTES at Yaakoosge Daakahidi REPORT High School. At the last LWVJ board meeting, board members voted to join the Juneau Votes Coalition. This coalition currently includes the Juneau Public Libraries and the Juneau LWV. The purpose of the Coalition, which we hope will grow COMMUNICATION COMMITTEE with the joining of other local organizations, is to AND SURVEY RESULTS increase Juneau voter The newly established LWVJ Communications participation in all elections. Committee conducted an online survey of members For example, during the last in April 2014, to learn how members obtained midterm primary election in information from and about the League. 2010, 33.7 percent of local registered voters turned A total of 111 members were contacted and 31 out to vote. We are facing members responded. The survey found that members another midterm primary rely most heavily for information on newspapers, email, radio and Google searches. Approximately half election this August and hope the respondents are active Facebook participants. to improve that percentage. Members felt that Legislative Action Alerts were In addition, we hope to important, with the majority of respondents often or improve turnout for municipal Smith, also a League member, spoke on behalf of sometimes taking action on the Alerts. The preferred Alaska’s congressional delegation. elections. Juneau Votes, method of response is signing a petition or sending an in collaboration with the email. All respondents were likely to participate in social Smith’s inspirational message in part: “Citizenship League, will be sponsoring and fund raising events as well as issue discussions. isn’t just reciting the oath, its living the oath and ballot measure forums to One action the Committee has taken is to make the registering and voting. It’s sharing your ideas, sharing educate the public. There LWVJ Facebook page more active and informative. your story and infusing your culture into our culture. are four ballot measures to Together, we are the United States of America.” Pat Watt is the go-to person for Facebook consider: the oil tax issue submissions. The Committee would like to thanks Seven of the nine individuals registered that day and on the primary and the all of those who responded to the survey; we hope two, unable to wait, took the form with them. minimum wage, legalization to use the information to create better