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League of Women Voters
of Jacksonville First Coast
Email: lwvjaxfc@gmail.com
(904) 355-8683
PO Box 330353
Atlantic Beach, FL 32233
Copyright © 2020 • All Rights Reserved • Terms of Use Privacy Policy • Powered by ClubExpress
Date: 10/30/2022
Subject: LWVJFC Newsletter November 2022
From: League of Women Voters of Jacksonville/First Coast



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 The Voter
November 2022

President’s Message

I'm tired too but excited!

Like many of you, I am receiving emails, texts and calls from motivated volunteers.  Some are nonpartisan organizations like the League who are focused on turning out voters, educating the public on marking and returning their vote by mail ballots, and others are political party or candidate volunteers working to inform voters and turn out the vote.  Each time I get a call or text, I thank them for reaching out and assure them I will be casting a vote in the general election.  Many of our members are serving as election poll workers, poll watchers, election protection monitors, candidate or political party volunteers and I just want to say thank you.  It takes a huge amount of time and effort to engage, inform and motivate our community to cast an informed vote and the work you do matters.


The general election is expected to have 65% or more voter turnout and while many voters will be mailing or dropping off their vote by mail ballots at the SOE or early voting sites, a good portion of voters will cast their vote on November 8th.  While this can be exciting for voters, it can also lead to long lines and waiting times, frustration, and can cause some voters to walk away without casting their vote. 


I cannot stress enough the importance of your vote in every election and am asking you to not only develop a plan to vote for yourself but to speak with others about their plan to vote.  If you are able to use your vote by mail ballot, I would encourage you to drop it off at the Supervisor of Elections office or early voting site during early voting or at the SOE office on election day.  If you must return it via mail, do so early so it does not get delayed in the postal service.  If you are going to vote early, make sure you take proper identification with you.  And if you are going to vote on election day, make sure you verify your precinct address, have correct identification and, if at all possible, consider going during times when there is often less of a waiting period.  

 

If you are seeking information on candidates, look no further than the League’s nonpartisan voter guide Vote411.org.  You can also use it to make a plan to vote, verify voter registration, and see all the items on your ballot including the three amendments. 
 
Familiarize yourself with your county’s Supervisor of Elections Website and phone them to clarify information, especially if you see or hear information that doesn’t sound correct:

Clay County Supervisor of Elections
www.clayelections.gov
904 269-6350

Duval County Supervisor of Elections
www.duvalelections.com
904-255-8683

Nassau County Supervisor of Elections
www.votenassaufl.gov
904-491-7500

St Johns County Supervisor of Elections
www.votesjc.gov
904 823-2238

Election Day Problems?

Report an election issue by calling:
1-866-OUR-VOTE (866-687-8683)
1-888-VE-Y-VOTA (en Español)
1-888-API-VOTE (Asian multilingual assistance)
1-844-YALLA-US (Arabic)
There are trained election protection staff and volunteers waiting to assist you!
Consider saving these numbers in your phone so they will be at your fingertips if needed.

We look forward to seeing voter turnout exceed the 65% estimation and celebrating ALL voters turning out to cast their vote.



News & Events

The Shifting Sands of Redistricting in Duval County

 

Wednesday, November 2, 2022

— 10:30 am —

 

Registration required: Register Here

 

Just before the City Council's meeting to discuss redistricting at noon, Andrew Pantazi from the Tributary will address the topic with the LWVJFC. Andrew Pantazi edits and reports for The Tributary. He previously worked as a reporter at The Florida Times-Union where he helped organize the newsroom’s union with the NewsGuild-CWA. He covers prosecutors, judges, and public defenders, in addition to politics and elections. He and his wife are Jacksonville natives, raising their two sons in the city.  


What’s on The Ballot?

Our local, nonpartisan election guide for the November 8, 2022, General Election is live at VOTE411.org with federal and state races, judicial retention races, and local races and ballot measures for Clay, Duval, Nassau, and St. Johns counties. 
 
You can also download PDF versions of these guides on our website or using these links:

• Federal and State Races

• Judicial Retention

• Local Races


Please share these valuable resources with your friends and contacts!
 



Member Appreciation Dinner

Join the League of Women Voters Jacksonville / First Coast to celebrate our members and volunteers! This event will be a wonderful opportunity to reconnect. Join us for a delicious dinner and fun activities. Lifetime members and local volunteers will be recognized
 
The celebration will take place at the Adam W. Herbert Center at the University of North Florida. Masking is optional and will be respected. Members are welcome to bring guests. Meal selection (chicken, fish, vegetarian) available when you purchase your ticket ($30) and a cash bar will be available.
 

Ticket sales will end soon. Don't miss out on this opportunity.

 

We are still in need of a few members to assist with our photo booth and check-in table for the dinner.  If you are willing to volunteer, please email Lanelle at lwvjaxfc@gmail.com.

Want to meet in person? We do, too!

 

We are seeking out locations where we might be able to meet in person again but are having a difficult time finding a location that can accommodate 30 to 40 people for lunch or afternoons that provide reasonable prices.  If you’d like to help us, please contact Lanelle at lwvjaxfcc@gmail.com by Saturday, November 12.

 

We will form a short-term committee focused on identifying several options to choose from so we can get back to being together as we learn each month.




Ready to lobby our newly elected representatives?

 

Once the general election races are decided, we will begin our work of reaching out to congratulate the elected on their win but to also let them know what our League program and priorities are.  While we do this on behalf of the League, we need for our members to correspond with your specific Florida House and Senate representatives about things that matter to YOU and suggestions you have for addressing issues.

 

I hope you will join us Saturday, December 3, at 2:00 pm for our first lobbying action.  We will write letters to representatives. We will provide writing materials, envelops, stamps, and addresses but we need YOU to provide the issues, solutions and commitment to helping our elected representatives understand community needs.  Too often we wait until legislative begins to communicate with those who can create legislation that helps or harms our communities. We want to support our members by helping you form a relationship with our representatives that will last throughout their term.

 

We will meet at the Southeast Regional Library (10599 Deerwood Park Blvd Jacksonville, FL 32256) meeting rooms A&B at 2:00 pm.  A separate email with a sign-up link will be coming soon.

 


Candidate Forums

 

We are often asked by members of the League and our community why we have not held a candidate forum.  While we would love to host or cohost candidate forums, we must have members willing to coordinate and support the forums and we must have candidates from more than just one political party in attendance.  The League of Women Voters does not hold “empty chair” forums where all candidates are invited but only one political party candidate participates.  We must also have the support of members willing to help secure locations, develop questions that are nonpartisan and race appropriate, serve as greeters, timekeepers, and help promote events.

 

If putting on candidate forums for the upcoming Duval Unitary elections in early 2023 is of interest to you, contact Lanelle at lwvjaxfc@gmail.com and she will gladly put you in touch with other members willing to do this much needed work in our community.  In the meantime, the League will continue to create awareness for other organizations who are hosting forums and debates so voters can get access to candidate information and positions.




Leading the League Opportunity

 

As many of you are aware, we are without a Vice President.  Our former Vice President resigned after her consulting business became quite successful and took up more of her time.  While we were excited for her success, we were sad to see her leave the board.  As President, I do my best to attend all community events and make presentations on behalf of the League of Women Voters. But, there have been times when I was not able to do so due to work and family obligations.

 

We are seeking members to step forward to fulfill the remaining 8 months of the current Vice President term (June 2023).  If you’d like to learn more about the role and duties of the Vice President, please feel free to contact me at lwvjaxfc@gmail.com or any of our board members so we can connect you with our nominating committee members. 




Interested in working with others to address the local housing crisis?

A number of nonpartisan groups and individuals have been meeting to research the local housing issue.  They have invited us to join in their work to engage our elected representatives and appropriate resource providers to help develop solutions. 
 
If you would be interested in attending these meetings on the behalf of our League, email us at lwvjaxfc@gmail.com so we can connect you with the organizers and provide you with the meeting dates/times. 

In Case You Missed It

Arc of Voter Justice Tour in Jacksonville

Jacksonville welcomed the Arc of Voter Justice Tour to our city on October 21 as their last stop on their 14-state, 23-city tour focused on connecting with Black voters and celebrating their right to vote.  We were fortunate to have beautiful weather, gracious host at the St. Stephens AME Church and community support to help us make the last stop on the tour a successful stop.

 

We heard from a number of speakers to include Barbara Arnwine, Esq, President & Founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition, Daryl Jones, Esq., Board Chair at the Transformative Justice Coalition, Cliff Albright, Executive Director, Black Voters Matter Fund, Marcus Arbery, father of Ahmaud Arbery, and many more to include our very own Cecile Scoon, President, League of Women Voters of Florida. We heard stories of the loss of voting rights, the fight to win the right to vote, and the value of the vote and the impact of election outcomes in our local community, our state and across the nation.  When the day ended, we heard one very clear message:  YOUR VOTE MATTERS.

 

Kimberle Crenshaw, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the African American Policy Forum brought with her thousands of books which were given away to children and adult attendees and was kind enough to gift books to our local library and Edward Waters University’s library.  The books that were chosen for the book giveaway are 19 titles that have been banned to include, The Color Purple, Their Eyes Were Watching God, and the 1619 Project.  For a complete list of books that are being distributed, go to http://booksunbanned.org/book-giveaway/.   AAFP is working to educate the public on the importance of the content of these books but also the need to learn instead of fearing the experiences and stories of Black and African American authors and story tellers.

 

Local nonpartisan community organizations joined us to include National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Jacksonville Branch, Harriett Tubman Freedom Fighters, Jacksonville National Organization for Women, Florida Rising Together, Northside Coalition of Jacksonville, and Beaches Activist Movement. Each group focused on connecting with attendees to verify voter registration status, request vote by mail ballots, receive a list of early voting sites, learn about voter identification, and more about their work and issues of focus.  The League was proud to partner with the national organizers and local grassroots community leaders, and former Florida Senator Tony Hill on bringing this tour to a close in our community.

 

Photo of community members with Arc of Voter Justice Tour organizers at Edward Waters University.


Replay of Last Month’s Speaker Event

Replays of many past speaker events are available on our YouTube channel.

Membership Update

We can't do it without you! Please join in recognizing our new and returning members from last month.


New Members—Welcome aboard!
 
• Maude Keniston

Returning Members—Thank you so much for choosing to renew!
• Nancy Staats
• Emily Ray
• Nancy Geary
• Dale Clifford
• Bernadette Miron
• David Miron
 
Please email Membership Director Karen Parish at lwvjfc.membership@gmail.com if your name was missed. 
 

Be sure to check out our new website, lwvjaxfc.org, with an easy way to join or renew online, even if you prefer to pay by check. Click on the blue “Join Today” button at the top of the Homepage.

 
Members who wish to renew must log in. If you are using a Mobile device, you will need to select Desktop at the bottom of your screen to receive the Login prompt.

Donors

We wish to acknowledge and thank those who have made donations this month:
 
• Deb Miller 
• Lucy Maness Warner
• Linda Mann
• JoAnn Jacobs
• Julia K. Theodore
• The Unitarian Universalist Church honorarium to Lanelle Phillmon
 
Our website, lwvjaxfc.org, offers an easy way to make donations to LWVJFC, even if you prefer to pay by check. Click on the red "Donate" button at the top of the Homepage.
thank you


Volunteers
Volunteers Always Needed 

Quite often, our League needs volunteers to help with small tasks that are not time consuming but vital to our leadership and membership.

If you are willing to help make phone calls, be trained to send text messages, or assist in other ways, please contact us and let us help you figure out how to invest your time in our League and our democracy.

Contact Lanelle at lwvjaxfc@gmail.com to discuss topics and abilities.  
 
For more specific volunteer tasks, click HERE.

Stay Connected

Local

Stay up-to-date on all local upcoming events on the LWV of Jacksonville / First Coast: 

 

• Website 

• Facebook

• LinkedIn


Regional
The Regional Facebook Group, LWV Florida North Region Leagues, includes Alachua, Bay, Jacksonville/First Coast, Okaloosa & Walton, Pensacola Bay Area, and Tallahassee.

 

State
For statewide news and action items, visit the LWV of Florida

  

National

The League of Women Voters of the United States


Contact Us

We look forward to hearing from you!

Phone: 904-355-8683

EmailLWVJAXFC@gmail.com

Postal Address:
Please use the address below even if a form or document you have received from the League gives a different one.

League of Women Voters Jacksonville First Coast
PO Box 330353
Atlantic Beach, FL 32233

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization encouraging informed and active participation in government. We influence public policy through education and advocacy.
Copyright © 2021 League of Women Voters Jacksonville/First Coast, All rights reserved.
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PO Box 330353, Atlantic Beach, FL 32233

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