By Daniel Lishansky, Chair- National Popular Vote Committee
(From L to R) Danny Lishansky (LWV PBC), Valerie Schulz ( LWV Seminole) Cecile Scoon (Co-President LWVFL), Sarah Peacock (LWV Pinellas), Deb Mazzaferro (LWV Pinellas), Kathleen Crampton (LWV PBC).
Representative Mike Gottlieb (Broward) is the sponsor of the NPV Bill in the House and Cecile Scoon is Co-President of LWVFL.
House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell (Hillsborough) hosted a special briefing on “Voting Issues in Florida” and invited Floridians for National Popular Vote to organize the briefing and to provide the speakers. It was held October 18, 2023, in Tallahassee for members of the Democratic Caucus, and our line-up was:
a. Patrick Rosenthiel, a consultant for National Popular Vote, whom some of you saw at the LWVFL convention in Orlando.
b. Cecile Scoon, Co-President of LWVFL, who made a presentation about Amendment 4, Returning Citizens.
c. Brad Ashwell, Florida Director of All Voting is Local Action, who discussed voter suppression bills.
The presentations were excellent and well received by the legislators and staff in attendance. It created a buzz throughout the Capital that helped open many doors as we met with 35 legislators over three days to urge them to cosponsor the National Popular Vote bills in the House and the Senate. We are hopeful that we will have several dozen cosponsors this session.
Closer to home, Tom St. Onge has been my Vice-Chair since I began as Chair over a year ago.
Before moving to Palm Beach County, Tom was active with the Miami-Dade LWV in Voter Services and National Popular Vote. He has been an invaluable partner and a workhorse for our National Popular Vote Committee. Tom will be stepping away from this role and doing other fun things, including extensive traveling with his wife, Susan, and spending more time with his kids and grandkids. He will be missed by everyone at National Popular Vote, most of all me. We wish him a continued long and healthy retirement, good golf scores, and lots of great family activities.
Our next meeting will be Tuesday, November 28, 2023 (4 4th Tuesday of each month) at 5:30 pm on Zoom. Everyone is invited, even those who don’t want to join but want to hear more about National Popular Vote.
Please think of us when considering presentations for your community and business groups, and even for other LWV PBC committees. Anyone interested in a presentation for their group, inside or outside the League, please contact me, Danny Lishansky, at npv@lwvpbc.org.
