Voter Services Update

Aimée Bedard

February was a quiet month for Voter Education and Registration events. We are in the process of developing our spring and summer calendars for High School and Community events. Thank you to league members who showed interest in these areas during Founders’ Day. In preparation for Voter Education and Registration volunteering, I encourage all League members to become familiar with the League’s Vote411.org site which has a lot of useful voting information for new and established voters. Upcoming volunteer opportunities will be shared via email alerts. Please let us know if you are not receiving League emails.

Founders’ Day

Maria Gagnon-Markucki

2026 Founders’ Day was a wonderful success! We had 76 attendees, including 30 guests.

Following a delicious brunch, catered by Off the Cuff, Susan Rosas, CEO of the YWCA Kalamazoo, delivered a compelling speech about how the “democratic” process has fallen short throughout the years for women and minorities. Following her speech (and standing ovation), many people asked for the text, and we hope to be able to share it with League members.



Participants were able to learn more about the different functions of the League and how they can get involved by visiting the various committee tables. MUCH THANKS to all who volunteered to prepare meeting materials and help with set-up and tear down—many hands made light work.

No Kings, March 28

Along with the League of Women Voters across the United States, we plan to participate in the big No KIngs action on Saturday, March 28. This will take place on Drake Rd., extending south of West Main St. 

We are planning to make signs in advance, so that there will be no need to feel shy about participating if you did not have time to make a sign. 

Please join us to make this rally for democracy so big that it cannot be ignored!

Please sign up for the No Kings event here. 

Sign-Making and March LWVKA Meeting 

We will have a special meeting devoted to making signs for the No Kings action, and planning for our League’s participation in the event. This will be held at First Congregational Church, 345 West Michigan Avenue, on Saturday, March 21, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Please come prepared to cut, paint, write or draw, and if you have cardboard, posterboard, markers or other supplies to contribute, these would be most welcome. If you would like to contribute supplies but cannot be there, please let us know.

The First Congregational Church is just north of Bronson Park, by Park Street, and there is ample parking along the north side of Bronson Park.

No Red Tape!

Denise Hartsough, VP for Program & Advocacy

Red tape will entangle Michigan voters if a requirement for documentary proof of citizenship (DPOC) is added to the Michigan Constitution. Backers of a DPOC requirement have announced that they have enough petition signatures to put this on the November ballot.

But backers of the red tape requirement have switched to calling it a voter ID measure. They say this because voter ID is more acceptable to the public than a red tape DPOC requirement. Don’t let anyone be misled!  

Americans for Citizen Voting is still collecting signatures. If you see a signature gatherer, let people know that the measure would wrap voters in so much red tape that many would be prevented from voting. Does the name on your birth certificate match your name as a voter? If not, you will need more documentation. 

For a highly informative panel on the dangers of DPOC, you can watch this recording.

To let our U.S. Senators know that you oppose DPOC bills at the federal level, use this opportunity at LWVUS to Take Action. 

Tip: Countering Mis- and Disinformation

The simplest way to tamp down mis- and disinformation online—don’t respond to it at all. You can post accurate information separately but don’t share, tag, or comment on the bad information. It can be hard not to tell them they are wrong, but they win—money, attention, chaos — when we interact. 

Hyperscale Data Centers

LWVMI’s Environmental Network and the Michigan Climate Action Network (MICAN) invite you to learn about hyperscale data centers at a webinar on Thursday, March 5 at 6:30pm on Zoom.

• Impact on clean energy goals
• Information about tech and economic impact
• How other states are responding
• Policy and community benefit recommendations

Panelists:

• Lee Shaver, Senior Energy Analyst, Union of Concerned Scientists
• Prescott Balch, Retired Technology Executive
• Boratha Tan, Senior Regulatory Manager, Midwest at Vote Solar
• Chris Gilmer-Hall, Policy Associate, Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition

Register here and please share with anyone who would like to learn more. Questions? Contact advocacy@LWVMI.org

Photo Credit: chaddavis.photography

Observer Corps Training

Regena Nelson

Thank you to everyone who showed interest in observing local government meetings during Founders’ Day! Observer Corps guidelines have been sent to those who requested more details.

Our Observer Corps training will take place online on Tuesday, March 31, at 3pm.

Join the meeting here: https://wmich.webex.com/meet/regena.fails.nelson. For more information, please contact Regena Nelson at nelsonR@wmich.edu.

LWV National Convention Update

Registration for our National Convention 2026: Women Unite & Rise is now open. Convention will be held June 25-28. in Columbus, Ohio. Visit the event website to learn more about the program. If you are interested in attending in-person or virtually as a voting league delegate, please contact Aimée and Aedín as soon as possible.

LWVUS Update

Paula Manley



MARCH

Women’s History Month

Deaf History Month

National Foreign Language Month

N7 Anniversary of Bloody Sunday

N8 International Women’s Day

9-13 Civic Learning Week

26 Anniversary of SCOTUS Rucho arguments

31 International Transgender Day of Visibility

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

LWVUS continues to monitor and take action on the Make Elections Great (MEGA) act and SAVE America Act. The SAVE America Act requires all voters to show a photo ID and every state to run its voter database through the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) system. The MEGA Act would require documentary proof of citizenship to register to vote, mandate voter photo ID to cast a ballot, repeal universal vote by mail, and direct states to conduct voter roll purges every 30 days, among other things. These bills have passed the House and will be taken up soon in the Senate.

What can you do? Read the latest League information on Facebook or at lwv.org.;

respond to League Action Alerts; contact your Senators.

From the Membership Chair

By Terri McDonald (terrilzmcdonald@gmail.com)

Welcome to the following new members.

Margo Amrine (Kalamazoo)

Misti Mahon (Portage)

Brídín Clements Cotton (Kalamazoo)

Nicole Weber (Kalamazoo)

Sara Ware (Kalamazoo)

Pam Herrington (Battle Creek)

As always, reach out if you have any questions.

April LWVKA Meeting

Thanks to all those who responded to the survey on meetings. Many respondents like Saturdays, either late morning or early afternoon. Following our sign-painting meeting in March, we are planning a meeting on Saturday, April 11, from 1-2 pm. This meeting will be held in Oshtemo Public Library. Please watch the April Voter for more information.

ANNUAL MEETING

Our Annual Meeting will be held on May 11th or 18th. The date will be confirmed and details provided once a location has been secured.

LWVKA/Calhoun County Geographical unit

Susan Stuart

Calhoun County board members are proud to commemorate 106 years of voter education and voter rights protection with the League of Women Voters. We continue in 2026 with those goals in mind by bringing voter suppression efforts to the forefront at our next table event at Kellogg Arena for the Senior Expo on May 8. We will need volunteers that day for voter education. 

We encourage members to contact Michigan Senators Elissa Slotkin and Gary Peters to vote NO on the SAVE Act which is meant to create obstacles to voting.

We are working to recruit student interns to help voters rectify discrepancies between their voter registration and their name or mailing address. A second intern may help voters find their birth certificate, marriage license or divorce decree necessary to prove their last name, and update their Michigan address, which may become necessary if the SAVE Act passes.

We encourage our members to UNITE and RISE on Saturday, March 28 12-2 at the NO KINGS rallies in both Battle Creek on Beckley and Albion at the Post Office. Wear your LWV t-shirt and stand up to protect the right to vote, the basis for democracy. We will designate the areas where we will meet and let you know.

LWVKA Officers and Board Members