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Serving the people of San Jose, Santa Clara, Milpitas, Morgan Hill & Gilroy
October 2020
The VOTER
President's Message from Carol Watts
Can we talk? No, really, can we?
At a summer strategic planning session with League leaders, I asked via a Zoom poll what issue they thought is the most important one facing people in the U.S. The question was: What issue would you love to see get ‘solved’? What would most improve the life of people in our country or community?

Participants were provided with multiple choices and asked to pick one of the following:
  • Affordable, effective health care for all
  • Stop the partisan divide so we can work together
  • Solve the root cause of the homeless problem
  • Reduce carbon emissions
  • Other

Eight of the 13 people (62%) chose “Stop the partisan divide….” over the other options. This seems to be a clear choice of identifying a big problem, but how do we approach finding a solution? READ MORE HERE
Virtual Lunch With League
"Human Dimensions of Wildfire Management"
Thursday, Oct. 15, 2020, 12:00 noon
A Zoom Online Event

Amanda Staciewicz, Ph.D. Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Studies at San Jose State University and a human dimensions specialist with SJSU's Wildfire Interdisciplinary Research Center, will talk about this timely and critically important issue. She will compare different approaches to wildfire risk management across the fire-prone communities in the western U.S. and the world. She will also touch on changing wildfire conditions, local preparation for and response to wildfire events, and citizen-agency partnerships for addressing landscape-level wildfire resilience issues.

Register for Virtual Lunch With League HERE.
Candidates Forums Live and Recorded
The next two League-sponsored Virtual Candidates Forums will take place on Monday, Oct. 5, with candidates for two Santa Clara City Council district seats. At 6 p.m. District 5 candidates Suds Jain and Bob O'Keefe will be interviewed, followed at 7:30 p.m. with District 6 candidates Gautum "Gary" Barve, Anthony J. Becker and Robert L. Mezzetti, II. You must register for each individual forum on the League website HERE.

Videos of previously-held Candidates Forums and information about any additional events can also be found on the League website HERE.
Watch recorded PROS & CONS sessions on state propositions
The League worked with public television station CreaTV to produce two 30-minute videos providing an impartial overview of state propositions that will be on your November ballot. To view these programs or to request a PROS & CONS presentation for your group, click HERE.
Ballots are soon on their way!
In just a few days, the first ballots will be received by California voters. Everyone has an opinion -- but will everyone vote? Democracy needs participation to thrive and survive. Take action now.

Click HERE to register to vote. Every registered voter will receive a Vote by Mail ballot. It does not have to be requested.

Click HERE to find drop off locations and Vote Centers (for drop off or in person voting) in Santa Clara County. (They will be posted by Registrar of Voters soon.) You can use any location no matter where you live.

Click HERE to track your ballot -- has it been received and has it been counted.

Click HERE to read the California Voter Bill of Rights
Preview your ballot
The Voter's Edge free service allows anyone in California to enter an address and see what is on the ballot for registered voters at that location. It also provides background information on candidates and measures and is a valuable resource in deciding how you are going to vote. To give it a try click HERE
Help support Measure T
The League of Women Voters San Jose / Santa Clara has officially endorsed Measure T, the parcel tax renewal for the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority. The Friends of Santa Clara Valley Open Space is running the Measure T campaign. If you have time to support this campaign, there are various options including remote phone / text-banking and friend-to-friend contacts. Click HERE for additional information about Measure T or to sign up to volunteer.
League positions on ballot measures
The League of Women Voters does take positions on some ballot measures. It never supports an individual candidate or political party. Information on which statewide and local measures will receive League support in the November election -- and why -- is posted HERE.
Key dates to remember in election season
Oct. 19
Last day to register to vote on Nov. 3*

Oct. 31-Nov. 3
Vote Centers open

Nov. 3  
Election Day

*If you miss the voter registration deadline, you have the option to do a Conditional Voter Registration at any Vote Center.
Seeking volunteers for local governance study
The League of Women Voters San Jose / Santa Clara will conduct a study to look at best practices for local government structure in San Jose, in particular the roles of the city manager and mayor. We will conduct this study at the same time that the City of San José Charter Review Commission will examine possible government structure changes. We’re currently assembling a working committee to research this issue over the course of the next seven or eight months. Please contact Vicki Alexander at vicki.alexander@lwvsjsc.org if you’re interested in participating.
The League needs you!
The League's work relies on members like you who volunteer to put our goals and plans into action. Please volunteer now for these important activities:
More new members to welcome!
Heightened awareness of serious local and national issues, plus nervous anticipation of Election Day along with other motivations are bringing more new members to League of Women Voters San Jose/Santa Clara in the past month. Welcome Julie Cecilio, Clorinda Hite, Judith McCann, Anita Romero, Sandra Simpkins and Marcia & John Truswell.
If you are not yet a member of the League and would like to join, it's easy to do online at JOIN
Quick Links
Join the League of Women Voters of San Jose/Santa Clara HERE
Donate to the League of Women Voters of San Jose/Santa Clara HERE