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THE VOTER
A Publication of
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May Voter Services Skills Training
CAP- Due Process, Sen Van Hollen
VOTER LAGNIAPPE
Videos, Links, Stuff (Non Partisan of course ;-)
Mildred Ella Didrikson Zaharias
Harvard Online FREE Government Classes
Kermit
Origin of the Rainbow Flag
The Stonewall Riots
Diana Ross Sings It
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NOTE FROM
THE EDITOR
On the Occasion of Pride Month
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I am proud that I belong to the League of Women Voters, an organization that 1) does the hard and principled work of protecting access to the ballot, 2) calls out and fights voter suppression in any form - and 3) possesses an unqualified belief in the value of diversity, equity and inclusion.
In 1989, I marched in the first Gay Pride March in Birmingham. So much has changed in the 36 years since that march. I never could have imagined the level of acceptance that would occur. I mean, it's now a complete non-event to come out to someone! Progress is wonderful but there will always be plenty of young people who can't appreciate the arc of that history. I actually hope that’s true, that they never experience an America where ‘closets’ are commonplace and our society and government can ignore an ‘out of control’ epidemic because its primary victims were gay men.
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Did you know, in 1995, there were 31,500,000 people diagnosed with AIDS?
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This didn’t happen because medicine and science were inadequate. It happened because of attitudes toward the LGBTQ+ community. We need to think about this because the evidence is building that the country is taking steps backward with respect to marginalized communities, that some people are again trying to demonize the ‘other’ in society, to push certain groups of people further out to the margins of community.
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The League of Alabama is a proud ally of ‘Alabama Equality’, a statewide organization dedicated to educating the public and advocating for equal rights for LGBTQ+ people in Alabama.
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Alabama Equality will have events in Birmingham later this month to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of marriage equality. In Birmingham, Central Alabama Pride has a whole month of events to celebrate our LGBTQ+ community.
What’s happening in your communities? Get out, get loud, get proud with your neighbors this month. (and check out the history in the HIV.gov web site before it’s scrubbed away!)
Judy Jones
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IMPORTANT AND
TIME SENSITIVE
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June 16, 2025
LWVAL Voter Services Skills Training
2 pm CDT; Offered Virtually Via Zoom
Topics to be covered:
Tips for using AlabamaVotes.gov
Get Your Voter Identification Ready To Roll
How to Get a Free Voter ID
How to Avoid Wasting Your Absentee Ballot
Click below to register to receive a zoom link for the June 2025 LWV Alabama Voter Skills Training
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June 19, 2025
LWVAL Voter Education Series
6:30 pm CDT; Offered Virtually Via Zoom
Topics to be Covered
Types of City Governments in Alabama
How Local Elected leaders Serve Their Citizens
Interrelationships of Elected Leaders at All Levels
Challenges of Being a Local Elected Leader in Alabama
Civic Engagement at the Local Government Level
Click below to register to receive a zoom link for this
Voter Education Series Event
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This month's Voter Education forum presenter is Mr. Sandy Kirkindall. Sandy is the son of two World War II Navy veterans. A native of Orange, Texas, he graduated from Georgia Tech with a Bachelor of Aerospace Engineering and a Master of Science in Industrial Management. He served in the U. S. Army as an active duty Air Defense Artillery officer in 1970 and 1971 and served in the Army Reserve until 1976. After completing his active military service, he worked as a structures and propulsion engineer with the Army Missile Command for 9 years. He transferred to NASA in 1980 and worked as a structures and propulsion engineer for 8 more years before transitioning into project and program management where he served for 16 more years before retiring in 2004 to assume the position of Mayor of the City of Madison. He completed his term in 2008.
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Big Bad Bill Alert
Congress is currently considering a budget package that would slash Medicaid funding, putting millions of American’s health care coverage at risk.
Medicaid is the single largest source of health coverage in the country. Nearly 72 million Americans (0ver 1 million Alabamians), including children, pregnant people, seniors, families with limited income, and people with disabilities, rely on Medicaid for essential care including doctor visits, hospitalizations, long-term care, maternity care, mental health care, and rural clinic services.
We must protect Medicaid for the millions who rely on it.
Click the link below to tell your representatives not to endanger the health of our country.
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Best practice - Personalize your messages for Alabama and your community; Click below to see Alabama specific statistics related to Medicare from KFF (formerly known as the Kaiser Family Foundation).
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Convention 2025
a Grand SUCCESS
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The League of Women Voters of Alabama held their 2025 Convention in Auburn, Alabama May 31 - June 1. By all measures the Convention was a great success. The Leagues of Greater Montgomery and East Alabama did a wonderful job hosting the event in Auburn, Alabama. Leaguers from throughout Alabama attended, executed on League business and enjoyed the events that were part of the weekend.
Early bird Leaguers, arriving on Friday, May 30, were treated to an afternoon tour of the LWV archives at Ralph Draughton Library in Auburn. Oh the treasures they found.
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After the Archive tour, League members attended a Welcome Reception at the Collegiate Hotel Front Porch. A good time was had by all.
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Saturday morning, convention goers attended the first plenary sessions for both the League of Women Voters of Alabama and the League of Women Voters of Alabama Education Fund.
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At lunch, attendees were treated to a keynote speech by the League of Women Voters of the Unitied States President, Ms. Dianna Wynn. After lunch, Ms Wynn graciously posed for photos with Alabama Leaguers.
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Following lunch, attendees, both in-person and virtual, convened into groups to discuss strategic planning for different components of the LWVAL work and mission.
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After the strategic planning session, attendees attended a panel discussion, 'Civics Starts Here: Educate, Engage, Empower, Act' at the Harris Center. Kim Bailey (LWVGT) moderated. Panelists were:
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Dianna Wynn, President, League of Women Voters of the United States
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Tyra Robinson, Founder, Good People Vote
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Muaath Al-Khattab, Community Organizer for the Montgomery Hub of Faith In Action Alabama
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Dr Mark Wilson, Director of the Caroline Marshall Draughon Center for the Arts and Humanities, Auburn University
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After the panel, league members enjoyed an Awards and Social Reception at the Well Red Bookstore and Coffeeshop.
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During the reception, the following LWVAL 2025 Convention Awards were presented:
Phyllis Rea Membership Awards
Under 50 Members
Greater Montgomery League of Women Voters
Over 50 Members
Baldwin County League of Women Voters
Joyce Woodworth Award for Promoting LWVAL Program
Kim Bailey, LWVGT
Jane Katz Public Service Award
Campaign Legal Center
LWVAL Transparency Award
Brian Lyman, Editor, Alabama Reflector
Wright/Sylvester Citizen Advocacy Award
Leonette Slay, LWVGB
Permaloff/Ward Citizen Education Award
Roger Ellis, LWVTNV
Byrd Membership and Leadership Development Award
Kathy Jones, LWVTNV
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2025 LWVAL Convention ended Sunday morning with the close of the second plenary sessions. Convention attendees headed home after a great weekend of comradery and purpose.
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2025-2027
LWVAL/LWVAL-EF Officers and Directors
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LWVAL & LWVAL-EF Officers
President Kim Bailey
1st Vice President Judy Jones
2nd Vice President Donna Reynolds
Secretary Pam Caruso
Treasurer Stephanie Butler
LWVAL Board of Directors
Robin Buckelew
Catherine Davies
Amy Hastings
Elizabeth Laney
Elsa Roberts
LWVAL-EF Board of Directors
Robin Buckelew
Roger Ellis
Myra Evans
Kathy Jones
Jenella Lymon
Julie Reese
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Alabama Municipal Elections August 2025
Candidate Qualifying Period
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Most of Alabama municipalities, cities and towns, will hold elections in 2025. The Tuscaloosa mucipal election was held Tuesday, March 4, 2025. The Dothan municipal election will be held Tuesday August 5. The majority of the remaining Alabama municipal elections will be held on Tuesday, August 26.
The candidate qualifying period for the Dothan municipal election started on Thursday, June 5 and ends at 5 pm on Tuesday June 24. The candidate qualifying starts Tuesday June 10, for municipal races being held on Tuesday August 26, and ends at 5 pm on Tuesday, June 24.
Qualifying forms will be available at the City Clerk's office in that respective municipality. Potential candidates for municipal elections should contact their city clerk's office for more information.
You can peruse an alphabetic list of Alabama counties with city clerk contact information by clicking the button below. Big thanks to Roger Ellis (LWVTNV/LWVAL Board) for compiling this information.
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Immigrant Justice Events
Held in Huntsville and Tuscaloosa
Sponsored by LWVAL and Local Leagues
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The League continues to host “Immigrant Justice Meet-Up and Info Session" events across Alabama. The most recent events were in Huntsville May 20 and Tuscaloosa June 3. Events were previously held in Auburn and Birmingham. All the meetings have been well attended and host Leagues have received positive feedback from attendees and the community.
Against a backdrop of increasing enforcement activities in Alabama, these meetings have provided interested citizens and ally organizations with information on:
- the current state of affairs in the migrant community
- who the immigrant support organizations are and what they do
- how we can support and protect our immigrant community (including foreign students) who are being targeted by ICE and Homeland Security and denied their constitutionally guaranteed right of due process.
Stay tuned for announcements of similar events in other areas of the state.
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