by Rebecca Freeman As a result of the recent events in our country, the Young Leaguers’ felt it was necessary to participate. The most effective way for the organization to get involved is to register people to vote. Registering people to vote at these events allows us to reach many people at one time. Having a presence at these protests allows us to explain to those why voting is essential and how every vote counts. These protests have been occurring around Palm Beach County and have been centered around social justice and organized by high school students. The young people who have organized and attended these protests are hopeful for a positive change in our society.
Read more →Hello Members! Once again, our Palm Beach County League is excited to provide our community with another Voters’ Guide. These Guides have been providing important candidate and voting information since 2014. We will publish our Guide in mid-September in both The Palm Beach Post and The Sun Sentinel. Copies in Spanish will be provided by the State League for all Federal and State candidates. We will also print copies to be distributed to businesses, libraries, government agencies, and communities. It will be especially challenging with our volunteer distribution due to the Coronavirus, but we are working hard to meet this challenge. In addition to the print version, we plan to create a digital version of the 2020 Voters’ Guide, which will be available online. A special appreciation goes to the law firm of Searcy, Denney, Scarola, Barnhart & Shipley and to The Palm Beach Post for agreeing to support the
Read more →by Kathy Panko Another hurricane season has begun! Weather experts are predicting an above-average season, which started on June 1 and ends on November 30. A normal season brings around six Atlantic hurricanes, but forecasters are predicting eight this year. Risks are being compounded by the coronavirus pandemic, which has led to significant changes at hurricane shelters. All county emergency shelters will be following the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) guidelines on social distancing and health screenings. CDC is updating its website daily with the latest information and advice for the public. Information can be found on www.cdc.gov/ncov. Palm Beach County has 15 primary hurricane shelters, all of them located at public schools. There’s also a shelter at the South Florida Fairgrounds for people with special needs and a pet-friendly hurricane shelter at the West Boynton Park and Recreation Center. With over 11,000
Read more →We are delighted to introduce you to our newest intern Keyanna Diaz A National Honor Student in Spanish and Art, and an international baccalaureate diploma candidate, Keyanna is interested in architecture, environmental science, business and entrepreneurship. Keyanna is active in sports and is a filmmaker, cinematographer, photographer and environmental activist. She has over 500 community service hours. Her commitment to the community is amazing. She is a member of Peace Jam, Best Buddies, Future Educators of America, DECA, Blood Drive Committee, LWV Young Leaguers, Zero Hour. She was a co-organizer of the Palm Beach Climate Strike in 2019 and organizes a monthly beach cleanup. Welcome Keyanna, we look forward to working with you and to providing you with interesting and challenging volunteer opportunities.
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Our recently updated lwvpbc.org homepage and Voter Toolkit will help you be an educated voter and keep up with developments in this critical election year. We’ve streamlined our web layout but the two red menu bars will look familiar. They let you navigate the website, perform membership activities, register for events and learn about our League and its issues. If you are a member and are signed in, clicking on Member Directory gives you access to member’s contact information, contacts for our Board of Directors and Committee Chairs and access to material reserved for members, such as LWVPBC policies, Board meeting reports, financial reports, payment vouchers and manuals. Voting and election information now have assumed a more prominent location on our website. Information for Voters includes direct links to the PBC elections website: https://www.pbcelections.org. The site includes a wealth of information on voter registration, your voter status, early voting, voting
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Local League of Women Voters & ACLU To Host Online Candidate Forum for Palm Beach County Sheriff on July 27 Forum Will be Hosted on League’s Facebook Page (West Palm Beach, FL – June 29, 2020) The League of Women Voters of Palm Beach County (LWVPBC) and the ACLU of Palm Beach County (ACLUPBC) today announced they are hosting a candidate forum for the office of Palm Beach County Sheriff. The online forum will be held on Monday, July 27, at 7 pm, and will be carried live on the League’s Facebook page at https://facebook.com/LWVPBC. “We will depart somewhat from our normal forum protocol to allow the candidates extended time to outline any plans they have for the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office in response to widespread national calls for reform,” said Ken Thomas, president of LWVPBC. “While one candidate will not be opposed in the primary election, we have invited all three candidates to participate in advance of the
Read more →By Cynthia Archbold “It’s life or death for the young men we work with. It’s life or death even when we’re pulled over by the police,” said Ricky Aiken, founder of non-profit Inner City Innovators, speaking at the Juneteenth rally at the Palm Beach Courthouse on June 19, 2020. Young League Chair Ashley Cacicedo was invited to bring a team of volunteers to register voters to vote by mail. Speakers urged the protesters to sign up to vote by mail in time for the August state primary and the November 3, 2020 Presidential election. The peaceful Juneteenth demonstration was organized by Black Lives Matter, and included many civic groups, such as Inner City Innovators, Hope Dealer Mentor Program and Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church. A racially diverse group of two hundred prayed, spoke, listened and marched amidst claps of joy, sorrow and claps of thunder. The League of Women Voters “stands
Read more →Voting should be as easy and convenient as possible, and in many cases it is. But across the U.S., too many politicians are passing measures making it harder to cast a ballot. The goal is to manipulate political outcomes, and the result is a severely compromised democracy that doesn’t reflect the will of the people. Our democracy works best when all eligible voters can participate and have their voices heard. Read More…
Read more →Vote By Mail is the safe, smart and easy way to vote in 2020. We have built a strong working team to build confidence in Vote By Mail. Our League Voter Services, Civics Education, Communications, Speakers Bureau, Publications, and Voting Rights Coalition committees have joined forces with ACLU and the National Council of Jewish Women (NCJW) to educate and promote VBM in Palm Beach County. We are working closely with our “Supervisor of Elections Wendy Link” and her staff, and we offered our help. Supervisor Link spoke about VBM and did a Q&A via Zoom for us on May 7. 2020 Matters! Voting and elections are the core of our League. The League of Women Voters of the United States believes that voting is a fundamental citizen right that must be guaranteed. Voting and elections are critically important in this election year. We are developing and rolling out a
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By Kevin Baker Please call the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections now at 561-656-6200 (option 2) to sign up for Vote By Mail today. You can also submit your request by visiting www.pbcelections.org/Voters/Vote-By-Mail website. The deadline to have a Primary Election ballot sent to you is 5 p.m. on August 8, 2020. But, do it now! On the website, you can click on “TRACK YOUR VOTE-BY-MAIL REQUEST & RETURNED BALLOT.” Every one of us should click that link now to confirm our valid status as a PBC voter and confirm the status of our request to receive a mailed ballot. From there you can click on “UPCOMING ELECTIONS,” where you will be able to clearly see your ballot status as REQUESTED, SENT, RECEIVED, and then COUNTED. Along with that status, this shows you the address to where your ballot will be mailed. Check that the address is where you’ll
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