eVOTER
Newsletter of the League of Women Voters of Williamsburg Area
October 1, 2024 - Vol. 6, No.04
|  | Early voting for the 2024 general election has begun in our area and across Virginia. The first few days of early voting have been very strong in the City of Williamsburg, James City County, and York County. In many places we are breaking previous records for turnout!
About Voter Registration
Remember register to vote or change your voting information before October 15 to avoid casting a provisional ballot. Same day registration is available after October 15, but your vote will be considered provisional and will only count if approved by the very end of the voting process. Provisional ballots must be vetted by the local registrar and accepted by the local electoral boards.
Early In Person Voting
Vote early in person at your city or county early voting center:
City of Williamsburg
401 Lafayette St
James City County
4095 Ironbound Rd
York County (2 locations)
5322 George Washington Hwy, Yorktown
6614 Mooretown Rd Suite A, Williamsburg
- Hours: vote centers are open now Monday-Friday through November 1 and the last two Saturdays before the election, October 26 and November 2.
- Remember you only can vote early at the center in the county or city where you are registered to vote.
- All the early voting centers are up and running and ready for voters. They have gone to great lengths to make voting clear, secure and efficient.
Vote by Mail (Absentee)
Applications for absentee voting are available and must be requested by 5pm October 25. A mail in ballot must be postmarked on or before 7pm on Election day and received by noon Friday, November 8. They can also be hand delivered to your local polling place on Election Day.
Before Election Day, your mail in ballot can also be dropped off at your registrar’s office or early voting center or in an official ballot drop box. Remember absentee ballots do not need a witness signature.
Vote on Election Day November 5
On Tuesday November 5, polls are open 6am to 7pm.
Just Do It !
However you choose to vote, early in person, by mail, or in person on Election Day, make a plan and carry it out! Every vote counts! | All members are welcome to attend!
- 07 Oct 2024, Mon, 4-6pm | On Zoom
- 06 Nov 2024, Wed 4–6pm | Williamsburg Reg. Library/Schell Rm - 515 Scotland St
- No Board Meeting in December
| REGISTER FOR BACK TO LEAGUE
|  | Members! Join us for Back to League. See old friends, make new ones! There will be refreshments!
Register Now!
We will host a panel of three experts and advocates on voting who will address the Right to Vote - with some time for Q&A.
Our Panel
Chris Kaiser. Chris Kaiser is the Policy Director at the ACLU of Virginia, where he is responsible for advancing the organization’s public policy priorities. He has spent 15 years advocating on voting rights and other civil rights issues in Southern state legislatures and local governments. Previously, Chris was the Advocacy Director for the ACLU of Louisiana, where he led the organization’s redistricting advocacy during the most recent Census cycle. He holds a law degree from the University of Cincinnati College of Law. Chris will address felony disenfranchisement issues.
Rachel Loria. Rachel Loria is an attorney and a Senior Disability Rights Advocate at disAbility Law Center (dLCV) of Virginia where she uses her own experiences and knowledge daily to help others who encounter obstacles with voting and/or Vocational Rehabilitation.
She has worked at dLCV for 10 years and spent over 15 working in the disability system throughout the state including Partnership for People with Disabilities and Virginia Board for People with Disabilities.
It has been her honor to work with people who have disabilities throughout Virginia and try to create a better Virginia, one self-advocate at a time.
Rachel will speak about the voting challenges faced by those with disabilities.
Matthew Russett. Matthew Russett is a second-year William & Mary Law School law student and is currently co-president of the Election Law Society and an Election Law Program Research Fellow. Last year, Matthew was a lead organizer of William & Mary’s Election Law Symposium on voting rights for former felons. Before law school, Matthew was a congressional aide to Congressman Richard Neal (MA-01) and worked in the state and Washington D.C. offices and on various United States House and Senate campaigns.
Matthew will look at the issues that motivate younger voters.
Our Moderator: Thomas (Tommy ) K. Norment, Jr. We are pleased to have as our moderator Attorney Thomas (Tommy) K. Norment, Jr., former Republican Majority Leader of the Virginia Senate. A graduate of James Blair High School in Williamsburg, Tommy attended Virginia Military Institute and the Marshall-Wythe School of Law at the College of William & Mary. In 1987, Tommy was elected to the James City County Board of Supervisors. He served as Chairman of the Board in 1991 before being elected to the Senate of Virginia. Tommy maintains an active role in the community. During his 30 years in the Senate of Virginia, Tommy has been elected by his colleagues to serve as both Majority and Minority Leader of the Senate Republicans.
| |
Cheering Berliners greet Adolf Hitler in front of the chancellery (1933 March 23, Berlin) [courtesy of NARA, College Park]
| OCT 17 | 6:30 PM | WRL Theatre (515 Scotland St)
Harry Chancey, League member and our social media leader, will present a talk on October 17 entitled Quiet Coups.
There’s a common perception that democracy ends with a battle, a military coup, or violence in the street. That is false. Quiet coups lurk, some in plain sight, others hidden from public view. We are past worrying that authoritarianism could happen here. It’s already happening. This presentation examines the historic roots of autocracy, anti-democratic tactics, and some of the unelected groups attempting a quiet coup here at home. Proponents of autocracy are waiting for the right time to spring their traps. Can they be stopped?
~Harry Chancey
Come to Both!
After our Back to League event at Legacy Hall (4pm), take a breath, be sure to have some refreshments, and come over to the WRL library for Harry's presentation. It's just 2.7 miles away!
Harry's Background
Harry Chancey is an active League member and writes Musing, a weekly substack at https://harrychancey.substack.com/. He also manages and authors our League's daily social media postings. Harry is an Emmy-award winning producer and former executive in charge of programming at the New York Public Television Station, WNET/13. He currently teaches at the William & Mary Osher Lifelong Learning Institute and lectures on the arts at the Muscarelle Museum.
Parking
Please come early to get a good parking spot. Parking outside the library is always at a premium, consider using parking deck across from Stryker Center. | The League and the York-James City-Williamsburg NAACP sponsored a forum for candidates for Williamsburg City Council on September 18 at the Williamsburg Regional Library. Over 130 residents filled the library auditorium and heard the candidates discuss issues including housing, relations with the college, and the possible creation of a new school division.
Candidates Lindsay Barna, Pat Dent, Fraser Hudgins, Barbara Ramsey, and Ayanna Williams fielded questions presented by moderator Michael Fox and those posed by the audience. The League and NAACP believe these events are crucial to informing voters and are pleased that all candidates accepted and attended the event.
Three seats are up for election with candidates running without party affiliation.
| Nov 07 | 4:30pm | Member's Home
Discuss with us The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It by Corey Brettschneider.
| Our Intrepid Team
Our local League Voter Services leaders, Maryann Simpson and Denise Koch, organize numerous voter registration events and candidate forums. Many voting services events are scheduled for this fall!
| Like many other states, Virginia needs Election/Poll Workers as we head into the November 5th Presidential Election. Being a poll worker, also known as an Officer of Election, is a way to serve your community, your state, and your country.
Apply
The application process is the first step. An Officer of Election/Poll Worker must be a competent citizen and a qualified voter of the Commonwealth and complete an application.
| There are two requirements for helping register voters with the League:
- You must be a member of our local League. Join or Renew
- You must take the Virginia state third party registration training. All members of our Voting Services team take this training annually.
State Training
It’s easy, thorough, and can be done from home on your computer. Go to Training | VA Dept. of Elections and complete the online training course and sign the online Third Party Voter Registration Drive Sworn Affidavit and Application Request. Virginia Dept. of Elections will send you an email confirming your certification with our League of Women Voters-Williamsburg Area as your sponsoring organization. Contact Us for help with this process. Let us know when you receive your certification! | Volunteer with us to observe meetings of the York County School Board. We currently observe and take notes for the WJCC School Board, and we want to cover York County. You can observe the monthly meetings online (live or rebroadcast) and then write up your report which we will post on our website to share with membership.
Take a look at a typical report here
| LOCAL GOVERNMENT & BOARDS
| Thank you renewing members! And a Special Welcome to new members! Names with asterisks gave an extra amount above basic dues!
New Members
Anne Schone (*),Karen Stiansen
Renewing Members
Virginia Dopp (*), Joan Keith (*), Mary Kenney (*), Elaine McBeth (*), Karen Rose (*), Anne Schone (*), Sandra Stephan, Karen Stiansen, Jill Whitten (*)
Student Members Joining in 2024
Meredie Cohen, Nina Duarte, Maya Littman, Fiona Morris, Christianna Pagano, Jack Rifkin, Jeremy Swack, Kylie Totten
[as of 9/28/24] | |