Blog

Featured

Join Us for the LWVGO & LWVNE Annual Meeting on April 27

Posted on by

LWVGO’s 2019 annual meeting will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, April 27 at the AIM Exchange Trading Floor, 7th Floor, 1905 Harney Street.

Annual Meeting Schedule of Events

Immediately following the LWVGO annual meeting will be a taco-bar luncheon, featuring a talk by LWV national board member Melissa Currence. Following the luncheon, LWVNE will have its annual meeting in the same space.

  • 8:30 a.m.: Check-in
  • 9 a.m.: LWVGO annual meeting begins
  • 11 a.m.: Lunch begins
  • 11:30 a.m.: Speaker begins
  • 1 p.m.: LWVNE annual meeting begins
  • 3 p.m.: Day concludes

Register for the LWVGO annual meeting (and pay for the lunch) by no later than 5 p.m. on April 19 to guarantee entry. Register using the form below or by sending a note and check to LWVGO.

To attend the afternoon LWVNE meeting, send a check for $10 to LWVNE at 4600 Valley Road, Suite 306, Lincoln, NE 68510. (This additional fee covers the cost of workbook printing.)

Please send any questions to vicepresident@lwvgo.org.

Featured Speaker: Melissa Currence

Melissa Currence has served as a Ruth S. Shur Fellow for the League of Women Voters of the United States (LWVUS) since 2015, serving the states of Illinois and New York. She also co-Chaired the Young People Task Force for two years. Melissa joined LWV when she was 18 and has served on LWV Cincinnati Area board in several capacities including president, vice president of voter service, and is currently vice president of development.

She served on the LWV Ohio for two years on membership engagement committee and starting the state’s social media presence.  In addition, she serves as vice president of the Cincinnatus Association, a membership organization providing civic leadership and improving the long-term vitality of the Cincinnati region.  Melissa has a B.A. in Political Science from Xavier University (2001) and a Master’s of Arts in Journalism from The Ohio State University (2004). She has worked in the nonprofit public relations/marketing field for 14 years, and is the Community Impact Marketing Director at The Greater Cincinnati Foundation. She has several writing projects at melissacurrence.com and stubbycurrence.com. 

Parking at Our New Office in the AIM Institute Building

Parking is available on the garage roof, leading into a second-floor entrance to the building. Overflow parking is available across the street at the Omaha-Douglas Civic Center garage.

Register for the Annual Meeting

Register for the annual meeting, and pay for taco lunch, by filling out and submitting the form below. Once you submit, you’ll see our PayPal gateway appear in your browser. Use this to pay for your lunch(es). (You do not need to have a PayPal account to complete payment.)

Featured

Join LWVNE for Legislative Day on Feb. 19

Posted on by

The League of Women Voters of Greater Omaha participates in the yearly League of Women Voters of Nebraska legislative/lobby day and encourages all interested folks — members and nonmembers — to join as well.

The goal of LWVNE Legislative Day is to learn about how to effectively lobby state legislators as well as to put theory into practice. The day finishes with a “lunch and learn” presentation.

Read more about the 2019 priority bills that LWVNE members will lobby for.

This year’s Legislative Day takes place from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 19, in Lincoln. The full schedule is listed below.

The featured luncheon speaker is Danielle Conrad, former state senator and current executive director of the ACLU of Nebraska, speaking on the topic of Criminal Justice Reform.

For more info and to register (registration is required and the deadline to register is Feb. 8), go to lwv-ne.org.

8:30 to 9 — Nebraska State Education Association Meeting Room

Registration and Refreshments. Note that parking is NOT available.

9 to 10:15 — Nebraska State Education Association Meeting Room

The Legislative process; LWVNE Priorities presented by LWVNE Action Directors: Lynne Elwood, Government; Phyllis Salyards, Health Care; John Else, Social Policy.

10:15 to 11:50 — State Capitol

Visit with senators, observe Unicameral in session, tour Capitol.

11:50 to 1 — Governor’s Mansion

Luncheon (Salmon with a Quinoa & Asparagus Salad) + speaker.

Featured

Election Facts at a Glance: Get Ready for the 2018 Primary

Posted on by

Election Day for the 2018 primary is May 15 and the deadline to register or change your registration (if you’ve moved, changed your name, want to change your political party affiliation, etc.) is coming up fast. In Douglas and Sarpy counties, the deadline to register by mail, through an agent (like one of our voter-registration volunteers) or online is April 30. Douglas County residents can also register in-person at the election commission office any time before 6 p.m. on May 4.

As part of our mission to empower voters, LWVGO has put together a two-page printable factsheet about the election: ElectFacts: 2018 Primary. Below, we’ve collected some more extensive information about the primary and how to be a voter. We also have a Google Calendar available with the deadlines and will be collecting candidate forums and other resources on our website under the heading “2018 ELECTIONS.”

We encourage you to distribute this information with your friends, families and community members.

Get out there and go vote, Omaha!

About This Election

Nebraska primary basics

In this election, voters will narrow the field — candidates that “win” their primary elections will go on to compete in the 2018 general election in November.

Many of Nebraska’s state and local offices are nonpartisan (including the state legislature and public utility races), so, in these races, the top two candidates — regardless of their political party affiliation — will move on the general election.

For example, Nebraska legislative district 8 has three candidates on the ballot, all of whom are registered Democrats. The primary election next month will determine which two will appear on the general election ballot in November.

Other offices have partisan primary races. This means that the primary election determines which candidate represents a given party in the general election.

For example, the Nebraska governor’s race has two Republicans and three Democrats in the primary. There will be two winners — one for each party, and those two will go on to appear on the general election ballot.

Some races, both nonpartisan and partisan ones, won’t be on the primary ballot because the number of candidates is small enough that they all advance to the general election.

For example, there’s only one Democratic candidate for secretary of state (a statewide, partisan race) but there are two Republican candidates, so voters who vote the Democratic ballot won’t see secretary of state as an option but those who vote the Republican ballot will.

Omaha Public Schools’ bond issue

Residents in the Omaha Public School District will have an issue on their ballots, in addition to the primary candidates running for representation of their districts. OPS voters will decide to grant or not grant a bond to fund the school district. You can find out more about this issue from Go Vote, Omaha.

Who Can Vote

You are eligible to vote in Nebraska if you are:

  1. A Nebraska resident; and
  2. A US citizen; and
  3. At least 18 years old OR 17 years old but you’ll be 18 by Nov. 6, 2018; and
  4. Have never been convicted of a felony OR have been convicted of a felony but have completed your entire sentence (including probation/parole and incarceration), plus 2 years of wait-time. (Citizens with misdemeanor convictions or citizens who have spent time in jail, including while awaiting trial, do not lose their right to vote.)

What about political parties?

Voters must select a political party when they register. There are four recognized parties: Republican, Democratic, Libertarian and Nonpartisan.

Registered voters of all parties (including nonpartisans) can vote in the primary election. Republican, Democratic and Libertarian voters will receive ballots specific to their respective parties. Nonpartisan voters will receive Nonpartisan ballots and can also choose to vote an additional ballot. If they elect to, Nonpartisans can choose to also vote the Nonpartisan Republican ballot, Nonpartisan Democratic ballot or Nonpartisan Libertarian ballot. These additional ballots include only the respective party’s Congressional race. View this graphic from the Douglas County Election Commission for a visual explanation.

What if I don’t have an address or are registered at my parents’ address but go to school out-of-state?

If you are registered at your parent’s home, you will need to request an early ballot to vote by mail.

If you live in a shelter, you can register to vote using the address of the shelter. You can vote early or on Election Day.

If you do not have an address at all, you can register to vote using the address of your county election commission office as your address. You can then vote early, in-person at the election commission office between April 16 and May 14. You cannot vote on Election Day.

If you are in a county jail, you can register to vote using your home address. You will need to request an early ballot to vote by mail.

How to Register to Vote

The deadline to register to vote in this election is April 30.

Nebraska residents can register online via the Nebraska Secretary of State’s website.

You can also register to by paper: You can fill out and print the form and mail it to your election commission or bring it in. (Mailed registrations must be postmarked by April 30.)

Douglas County Election Commission
225 North 115th Street
Omaha, NE 68154

Sarpy County Election Commission
501 Olson Dr. Suite 4
Papillion, NE 68046

Verify your registration and that all your information is correct by going to the Nebraska Voter Check website and entering your information under “Registration Information.”

How, When & Where to Vote

Nebraska voters can: vote early by going to their county election office (early in-person voting), vote early by mailing their ballot to their county election office (vote by mail), vote early by dropping off a ballot in a dropbox, or vote in-person at their polling place.

Early Voting

You can go to your county election commission office and vote early in-person any time between 8 a.m. Monday, April 16 and 6 p.m. Monday, May 14. Here are the office addresses:

Douglas County Election Commission
225 North 115th Street
Omaha, NE 68154

Sarpy County Election Commission
501 Olson Dr. Suite 4
Papillion, NE 68046

Vote By Mail (VBM)

In Douglas and Sarpy counties, you have to request a ballot to get it mailed to you. If you request a ballot, you cannot vote on Election Day. In Douglas County, you can also drop your ballot off at a dropbox instead of putting it in the mail.

To get a ballot mailed to you, fill out the form for your county and then email it in, mail it in or deliver it to your county election commission office. The deadline is 6 p.m. on Friday, May 4.

Douglas County Application
Email: earlyvoting@votedouglascounty.com
Dropbox Locations
Office Location:
225 North 115th Street
Omaha, NE 68154

Sarpy County Application
Email: earlyvote@sarpy.com
Office Location:
501 Olson Dr. Suite 4
Papillion, NE 68046

Verifying Your Ballot Was Received

After voting, it’s a good idea to check that your early/vote-by-mail ballot was received and accepted. To do this, go to the Nebraska Voter Check website, click on “Absentee Ballot” and enter your information.

At-Poll (Election Day) Voting

If you did not request an early/absentee/VBM ballot, you’ll vote on Election Day, which is Tuesday, May 15. You’ll go to your polling place any time between 8 a.m. and 8 p.m.

Your election commission office should have sent you a card with your polling place information and district information when you registered or changed your registration. But you can find your polling place online if you need to: Go to the Nebraska Voter Check website and enter your address.

How to Find Out Who & What Will Be On Your Ballot

Your election commission office should have sent you a card with your polling place information and district information when you registered or changed your registration.

If you live in Douglas or Sarpy County, you can also find out your districts online. You can then match up your districts with voting guides to find out more about the candidates running to be your representative in those districts.

You can find out who is running in each race/district on the Douglas County Election Commission website (this includes statewide races and U.S. House of Representatives District 2 but not races specific to only Sarpy County).

Because this is a primary and there’s a mix of partisan and nonpartisan races, there are different ballots for the different political parties. Every ballot has the nonpartisan races that you’re eligible to vote for plus the bond-issue question, if you live in the Omaha Public School District. Libertarian, Republican and Democratic ballots have all the nonpartisan races, the bond-issue question (if you live in the OPS District), plus the party candidates for the partisan races.

Find Your Districts: Douglas County

If you’re registered, you can use the Nebraska Voter Check website to find both your polling place information and your districts.

If you’re not registered (or just recently registered), go to the Douglas County Election Commission website and enter your address under “Finding Your Voting Information.” (Tip: Use the advanced search for better results.)

Find Your Districts: Sarpy County

Go to the Polling Place Locator website and enter your address. Under the Voting Info tab, you’ll see your polling place address and can even click on links to view sample ballots. Click on the Districts tab to see all of your representatives and the districts they represent.

Featured

Join Observer Corps

Posted on by

Want to get to know your local government and help make democracy work? Join Observer Corps!

Observer Corps are a structured way for individuals to exercise their right to know. They provide a valuable service to the community. They help ensure that citizens are aware of the decisions that impact their lives and they promote government transparency and accountability.

An observer is an individual who attends a governmental meeting, notes what happens at the meeting, and reports back to the League and through the League to the community. By attending public meetings of local governmental bodies/agencies, observers learn more about what their government is doing. They learn about the issues facing their community and are empowered to take action, if warranted. They also learn how issues are being addressed.

Observers generally do not “act” on issues in these meetings as a representative of the League (observers should not provide commentary or testimony on issues on behalf of the League). Instead, observers attend meetings to gather information. Through the process, their presence encourages better, more transparent government.

Anyone is welcome to become an observer. Non-members are welcome to join and all participants are encouraged to bring a friend!

How much time does it take?

Observers can choose when they are available and how much time they are able to spend observing. They can choose to observe bodies that meet during the day, in the evenings and that are held weekly, twice per month, monthly or every other month. Observers can also choose to “virtually attend” meetings at any time they like by watching/listening to recordings available online. If there is a large enough response, we may be able to “double up” observers and even have rotating schedules (one meeting on, one meeting off), if desired.

To become an observer:

  1. Fill out the interest survey here: http://bit.ly/ObsSignup.
  2. Attend a brief training session with one or both of the observer corps leaders. (This can be done in person or online.)
  3. Attend your first meeting! We can provide outlines for taking notes if you like.

Any questions?

Contact Alex Garrison at alexcgarrison@gmail.com or Linda Duckworth at lindabduckworth@gmail.com.

Job Licensing Reform in Nebraska

Posted on by

In this episode of Go Vote, Omaha!, LWVGO Vice President MaryLee Moulton discusses job licensing reform in Nebraska with Laura Ebke, Platte Institute’s Senior Fellow for Job Licensing Reform.

Go Vote Omaha! is our locally produced informational television program. Watch Go Vote Omaha at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday nights on Cox channel 22 or CenturyLink channel 89 or anytime on YouTube. You can also listen to these episodes as podcasts on Podbean.

Join Us for Dine & Discuss on June 24, Now in a New Location!

Posted on by

The next Dine & Discuss, LWVGO’s monthly membership event, will be held at 5:30 p.m. Monday, June 24 in the Exchange Room on the 7th floor of the AIM Institute building, 1905 Harney St.

A pizza dinner will be provided to celebrate our new location.

Free parking is available on the first and second floor behind the building.

Our features speaker is LWVNE Co-President Linda Duckworth, who will be sharing her experience visiting the El Paso, Texas, border region while volunteering for Annunciation House.  Annunciation House is accepting 400-700 refugees per day that have been released from ICE and helping them to reach relatives and support communities while they wait for their judicial hearings. Linda will relate her up-close-and-personal experience with an issue most of us only read about in the newspapers.
For more information visit: Annunciation House.

Learn More About Election Equipment and Processes in Douglas & Sarpy Counties

Posted on by

In this episode of Go Vote, Omaha!, host Geri Simon speaks with Douglas County Election Commissioner Brian Kruse and Sarpy County Election Commissioner Michelle Andahl about voting equipment, updates, and general voter information.

Go Vote Omaha! is our locally produced informational television program. Watch Go Vote Omaha at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday nights on Cox channel 22 or CenturyLink channel 89 or anytime on YouTube.

Next Doc Club Meeting June 22: American Revolutionary

Posted on by

Join us at 11 a.m. Saturday, June 22 at Big Mama’s Cafe, 3223 North 45th Street, Turning Point Campus, Bldg A, for the next meeting of the LWVGO Doc Club.

We’ll be discussing the documentary American Revolutionary: The Evolution of Grace Lee Boggs. Please watch the film ahead of time; it is available on Netflix.

Please send any questions to krystal@lwvgo.org.

Next Voter Registrar Training Saturday June 29

Posted on by

The voter registrar training scheduled for June 11 is now full, but a new training session has opened up for enrollment. The next training session will be 11:30 a.m. Saturday, June 29 at the Jesuit Academy, 2311 N. 22nd St.

LWVGO volunteers who help to register voters must have a current (the training remains valid for three years) certification as a Nebraska Deputy Registrar. From the Douglas County website:

Deputy registrars work as agents of the Election Commission to register voters throughout the county. In order to become an official deputy registrar, you must complete a training class conducted by the Election Commission. After completion, you will be certified by the Election Commission to conduct voter registration drives anywhere in Nebraska.

The next deputy registrar training will be held at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, June 29 at the Jesuit Academy, 2311 N. 22nd St. To participate in this free training, you must register beforehand on the county website.

To be eligible to be a deputy registrar, you must:

  • Must be a registered voter in the State of Nebraska (you may register to vote at the deputy registrar training session, if not already registered to vote in Nebraska).
  • Must sign up for the deputy registrar training session on or before the business day prior to the training date.
  • Must attend a deputy registrar training session conducted by the Election Commission.

Again, this training is free and open to anyone eligible to vote in Nebraska. You must register on or before Monday, June 10 to be allowed in the class, and you can register at votedouglascounty.com.

Please note that the website does not send a confirmation message or email following your sign-up.

Please send any questions to the Election Commission at 402-444-VOTE (8683) or to LWVGO Voter Services at gotv@lwvgo.org.

Give Today! Consider Giving to LWVGO During Omaha Gives

Posted on by

We hope that you include LWVGO in your Omaha Gives donations. Give now at omahagives.org/lwvgo.

Check out our Omaha Gives page for more on all the work we do. Thank you for your support!

The League of Women Voters serves our community as a trusted nonpartisan resource for voter education and voter rights. We empower residents in our community to vote wisely and confidently, learn how the political system works, obtain accurate nonpartisan voting information, and understand the importance and impact of voting. Voting is the great equalizer and every vote serves to strengthen our community.

Want to Register Voters? Become a Trained Deputy Registrar June 11

Posted on by

LWVGO volunteers who help to register voters must have a current (the training remains valid for three years) certification as a Nebraska Deputy Registrar. From the Douglas County website:

Deputy registrars work as agents of the Election Commission to register voters throughout the county. In order to become an official deputy registrar, you must complete a training class conducted by the Election Commission. After completion, you will be certified by the Election Commission to conduct voter registration drives anywhere in Nebraska.

The next deputy registrar training will be held from 12 to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, June 11 at the Douglas County Election Commission Conference Room, 225 N. 115th St. To participate in this free training, you must register beforehand on the county website.

To be eligible to be a deputy registrar, you must:

  • Must be a registered voter in the State of Nebraska (you may register to vote at the deputy registrar training session, if not already registered to vote in Nebraska).
  • Must sign up for the deputy registrar training session on or before the business day prior to the training date.
  • Must attend a deputy registrar training session conducted by the Election Commission.

Again, this training is free and open to anyone eligible to vote in Nebraska. You must register on or before Monday, June 10 to be allowed in the class, and you can register at votedouglascounty.com.

Please send any questions to the Election Commission at 402-444-VOTE (8683) or to LWVGO Voter Services at gotv@lwvgo.org.

Dine & Discuss: Women’s Fund Get Out the Vote Efforts on May 20

Posted on by

The next Dine & Discuss is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Monday, May 20 at Valentino’s, 5022 S 108th St. Tiffany Seibert Joekel, Woman’s Fund Research and Policy Director will be talking about their 2018 Get Out the Vote Campaign.

Dinner is $14.14, but not required to participate. Contact marylee@lwvgo.org with any questions.

Tiffany Seibert will be talking to us about the Women’s Fund 2018 Get Out the Vote Campaign that focused on young women. The campaign’s digital focus will be featured in the talk. 

Tiffany Seibert is the Research and Policy Director of the Omaha Women’s Fund.  Tiffany works with Women’s Fund staff and partners to advance public policy to ensure that every woman and girl in our community has the opportunity to reach her full potential.

Tiffany is a self-described policy wonk and is passionate about helping people get involved in public policy. Most of her career has been spent working in and around the state legislature, with some local and federal policy work intermingled throughout. Prior to joining the Women’s Fund in March 2018, Tiffany served as Policy Director at OpenSky Policy Institute, a nonpartisan think tank focused on tax, budget, and education finance policy in Nebraska. Her past experience also includes serving as Director of the Coalition for a Strong Nebraska, bringing together advocates, researchers, funders, and community leaders who advocate for policies to alleviate poverty. Tiffany has also worked as a legislative aide for a state senator in the Nebraska Legislature and as a policy coordinator and researcher at Voices for Children in Nebraska.

Tiffany has undergraduate degrees in Political Science and Justice and Peace Studies and a master’s degree in International Relations from Creighton University. She and her family currently reside in the Minne Lusa neighborhood of Omaha.