Letter from the President
The League is in it for the long haul!
Dear LWVIL Member,
This past Sunday, October 13 th , Brigid Kosgei of Kenya won her second Chicago Marathon. Running through Chicago at a blistering pace, Kosgei covered 26.2 miles in just 2 hours, 14 minutes and 4 seconds. Kosgei shattered the women’s marathon world record by an astounding 1 minute and 21 seconds. The previous record had stood, unapproachable, for 16 years. Brigid Kosgei ‘s journey to that particular finish line has been a marathon in and of itself, a goal pursued for years. 
 
“It’s a marathon not a sprint”. “We are in it for the long haul”. These are phrases we use to characterize challenges, efforts that do not bring instant gratification. We are in it for the long haul. A way of sustaining our energy, feeding our determination, maintaining our focus. We focus on an outcome, set stepwise goals, devise a plan. We anticipate that conditions are not always perfect and plan adjustments for predicted rough spots; we dig deep to improvise as surprises pop up. 

It’s a marathon not a sprint. In the long haul of the LWV work to empower voters and defend democracy meaningful accomplishments are accumulating as well. Our near neighbor, the state of Ohio is home to significant voter suppression including strict voter ID requirements and the “use-it-or-lose-it” provision that allows the state to drop voters labeled as inactive. This past summer, the LWV Ohio, led by Executive Director Jen Miller, joined other advocacy organizations in a marathon of research, examining a list of 235,000 voters slated to be purged from the Ohio rolls. As reported by the New York Times , the Ohio Secretary of State addressed concerns about the integrity of the to-be-purged list by, in his words, “crowdsourcing” assistance in scouring the list for errors. The combined efforts of the many advocacy groups identified 40,000 persons mistakenly placed on the purge list including one Jen Miller, Executive Director of the LWV. 

Hats off the LWV Ohio and our peer advocacy organizations. This crowdsourcing effort in Ohio means that 40,000 people who choose to exercise their right to vote in the next election, will arrive at their polling places and be able to use their voice via their vote – no surprises on election day. The finding that so many were on the brink of being dropped in error is frightening. However, that surprise and this state level turn toward transparency are a burst of motivation for individuals and groups involved in the marathon of preservation of voting rights in our country. The LWV has new areas for attention and we have new strategies and new partners to tackle the work. 

It’s a marathon not a sprint. Pace yourself. Sometimes it’s two steps forward, one step back. But our mission goals are being advanced by creative, bright leaguers every day. Whether we are devising new strategies to tackle gerrymandering and create fair maps; reducing the prevalence of single use plastics, addressing nutrient pollution or checking state voter rolls, the League of Women Voters is positioned to achieve these goals. 

Brigid Koegsie of Kenya and Jen Miller of Ohio and the members of the League of Women Voters of Illinois, we all know it’s a marathon. Set lofty goals, plan thoughtfully, adjust as needed. And might as well hydrate too, because we're in it for the long haul. 

As always, I am looking forward to your ideas, stories, comments and concerns.
Board President
League of Women Voters of Illinois
Suffragist Markers in Illinois
Let's honor and celebrate the places that history was made.
The 100th Anniversary Committee of the League of Women Voters of Illinois is seeking your help in identifying Suffrage sites in your areas, and a particularly important site for placement of a marker to commemorate women's suffrage movement.

Your nominations should include the location (street address) and a short description as to why the site should be on the map and/or should be considered for a marker. More information for the application will be needed once the selection has been made. You can r ead more about the map and markers here. Deadline for nominations: November 1, 2019.  

Questions? Contact  Lori Osborne, 100th Anniversary Committee member
Hundreds of New Voters Registered by League
National Voter Registration Day a great success for LWVIL local Leagues.
The League of Women Voters of Illinois' 41 local Leagues were out in FORCE for National Voter Registration Day on September 24! We are still counting all of the numbers, but so far, we are happy to announce that LWVIL registered close to 5,000 new voters throughout the state. We would like to highlight the outstanding work of the some of our local Leagues, including:

  • DuPage County Leagues of LWV Naperville, LWV Glen Ellyn, LWV Roselle/Bloomingdale, LWV Wheaton, LWV Elmhurst, and LWV Downers Grove/Woodridge/Lisle, were able to register close to 2,500 voters in their area. Their achievement was noted by the DuPage County Clerk, Jean Kaczmarek, who noted that the League of Women Voters in our county deserve the most credit for this outstanding success. We value your ongoing commitment to voter registration, education and participation."
  • LWV Chicago, who in partnership with the City Colleges of Chicago, registered 238 new voters on National Voter Registration Day and an additional 619 voters during the first few days of school.
  • LWV Wilmette set up shop at New Trier High School in their community and registered more than 500 new voters.
  • LWV Champaign County, who had two registration events at the Ubana Free Library and Champaign's Douglass Branch, and drew the attention and support of The News Gazette and the Champaign County Clerk.

and so many more amazing events hosted by other local Leagues.

Such great energy around such an important day, but to the League, every day is Voter Registration Day! Questions? Reach out to LWVIL Voter Services Co-Chairs Jan Dorner and Kathy Kenny . And don't forget to report your voter registration numbers with LWVIL if you are a local League.
Inaugural Issues & Advocacy Report is here!
Where we Stood. Where We Stand. The Difference we are making!
At our  59th Biennial LWVIL State Convention  in June, attendees voted to focus on the following eight issues over the next two years:

2020 Census
Affordable Housing
Abolishing the Electoral College
Environment
Fair Tax/Graduated Rate Income Tax
Gun Violence Prevention
Immigration
Redistricting

To create any change in these issues, our efforts will need people power ! You can take part in many ways: join our TFA eblast list to stay up to date with advocacy, join a LWVIL team for any of the Priority Issues for 2019-2021 and/or please reach out to the Issues & Advocacy Committee.

Want to find out some of the impact of the LWVIL advocacy in Spring 2019? Take a look at the LWVIL Impact Matrix that is full of all of the legislative progress that YOU have helped us to accomplish. You wrote. You called. You made a difference. Democracy is not a spectator sport. We are glad that you are apart of our team.

Questions? Contact Issues & Advocacy Committee .
School Boards in Illinois to Again Consider Arming Teachers
LWVIL Issues & Advocacy team reignites the fight to keep guns out of Illinois schools.
The Illinois Association of School Boards (IASB) is once again slated to vote on whether to arm teachers and School Resource Officers (SRO). It's urgent that we all reach out to our local School Boards and let them know that we want them to vote "NO" on Resolutions 1 & Resolutions 3 . Last year, the Resolution on Arming Teachers was defeated by only 24 votes, so your input is ESSENTIAL . You can find more information about this call to action in our latest TFA eblast . Questions? Reach out to Issues & Advocacy Co-Chairs, Jean Pierce and Rosemary Heilemann .
Candidate Forum Training Session
November 2, 2019 from 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.at Plymouth Place
Are you ready for the 2020 Election? Local, state and national elections during this upcoming cycle will have many offices that will be contested and will need the League's help to offer space, opportunity and most importantly, nonpartisan precedent to help to educate the community on the issues that will effect them. In preparation, LWV La Grange will be hosting a LWVIL Candidate Forum Training Session that will provide invaluable tools to conduct successful candidate forums. LWVIL Candidate Forum Training Session will occur on November 2 from 9:30 - 11:30 a.m. at Plymouth Place (315 N. LaGrange Rd. LaGrange Park, IL 60526) If you would like to sign up or have any questions, please reach out to Melissa Lieb. Registrations are due by October 30th.
Moderator Training Session
November 2, 2019 from 12:30 - 3:30 p.m.at Plymouth Place
Moderators provide an invaluable service to the community by presiding over forums whose overarching goals are to provide a fair, informative, respectful, and inclusive platform for candidates and others to present their views to the public. Moderating a candidates or issues forum is a unique and significant skill and a most rewarding community service. Moderators facilitate a fundamental of democracy – reasoned and respectful discourse. In anticipation of the 2020 election cycle and increased number of forums, trained moderators are needed. We hope you will consider attending a training session.  LWVIL Moderator Training Session will occur on November 2 from 12:30 - 3:30 p.m. at Plymouth Place (315 N. LaGrange Rd. LaGrange Park, IL 60526) If you would like to sign up or have any questions, please reach out to Kathy Kenny . Registrations are due by October 30th.
Upcoming Observer Training
October 26th from 9 a.m. - Noon at Glenview Public Library
There is an upcoming LWVIL Observer Training on Saturday, October 26th from 9 am - Noon at the Glenview Public Library. During this training, Observers will learn what actions to take and what to report. Numerous units of government have few, if any, community members observing. This training will empower you to be the eyes and ears in the room! If you would like to sign up or have any questions, please  reach out to Jan Dorner .
Important Dates to Remember
Mark your calendars.
  • October 24: United Nations Day
  • October 26: Observer Training from 9 am to Noon at Glenview Public Library
  • October 28: Fall Veto Session begins
  • October 29: Lobby Day: Supporting the Clean Energy Jobs Act
  • November 2: Candidate Forum Training at Plymouth Place
  • November 2: Moderator Training at Plymouth Place

Please note that this list of important dates is not exhaustive.
Get Involved
Here are some ways to get involved in making democracy work at the LWVIL:
Take Action
Issues & Advocacy
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