LWV-Wake Update 4/14/2025
*There will not be an update on April 28. We’ll see you in May!* | Welcome back to your exclusive, bi-monthly newsletter of the League of Women Voters of Wake County. If someone forwarded this to you and you'd like to become a member, just click here.
|  | Dear ~~first_name~~,
The United States recognizes April as National Volunteer Month
National Volunteer Month celebrates and draws attention to the millions of Americans volunteering to make their communities stronger. In fact, according to AmeriCorps. more than 75.7M people volunteered in America in 2023. This is a growth rate of more than 22 percent in just two years, the largest expansion of formal volunteering ever recorded.
Highlight – G. Dale Cousins - LWV-Wake Volunteer
Dale Cousins loves Libraries – in 2023 Dale created the NC State Dale Cousins Scholarship Fund on Behalf of Libraries and Librarians for scholarships to outstanding students.
Lucky for LWV-Wake, Dale loves LWV-Wake too.
Dale Joined LWV-Wake in 2017. Dale has been a very active member since, serving on the DEI Committee, Voter Services Committee, Membership Co-Chair, Committee Co-Chairs Roundtable, Chair Timely Topics, and Women’s Equality Day. Anything happening in LWV-Wake, Dale is there taking part and, in many cases, taking a leadership role. Dale has been an invaluable LWV-Wake Board of Directors member for the past 4 years. Thank you so much, Dale, for your volunteer service, and we look forward to many more shared experiences with you.
"THE TIMES THEY ARE a-CHANGIN" is a song written by Bob Dylan and released as the title track of his 1964 album of the same name. For those of you who are too young to know Bob Dylan please see the film A Complete Unknown. Just look around, we are in those times again.
CHANGES ARE HAPPENING RIGHT HERE AT LWV-WAKE.
COMMUNICATIONS TEAM: We have a very small Communications staff which handles Social Media, the Newsletter and all other Communications for special events. People change, people move, people need to experience other volunteer opportunities. RIGHT NOW WE NEED MORE VOLUNTEERS for the Communications Team. In particular, we need to produce the newsletter we all come to rely on every two weeks. Please scroll down to read more about the communications description of work and how to volunteer.
DONATIONS TO LWV-WAKE: We all knew the new Membership Portal system would significantly change. We are all hoping for increased membership, leading to increased volunteerism and donations for LWV-Wake. At this point, it has become very clear that the new membership system of joining at the LWVUS level, with LWV-Wake only receiving the local amount of the membership fee, has completely changed the cash flow process, which will cause cutbacks in the budget. LWV-Wake has two major fundraising events: Women’s Equality Day in August and Giving Tuesday at the end of the year. We will continue to emphasize both. However, we need to supplement these events with continued fundraising throughout the year.
If you can, please consider a donation of $50, $75, or $100 to help us continue to EMPOWER VOTERS AND DEFEND DEMOCRACY. It’s easy - just go to LWVWake.org and click on DONATE. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE A MEMBER TO DONATE TO LWVWAKE. Please scroll down to read the Fundraising Appeal in this newsletter and learn more about WHY we need additional support.
LWVUS & other Voting Rights Groups File Challenge to Trump’s Recent Anti-Voter Executive Order
On April 1, 2025, Voting Rights organizations, including LWVUS, filed a lawsuit in the District of Columbia challenging President Trump’s unlawful executive order on voting. Key provisions of Trump’s order could disenfranchise millions of eligible voters, particularly voters of color, women voters, naturalized citizens, voters with disabilities, voters with low incomes, and first-time voters. The order requires burdensome submission of documents to prove citizenship, which many Americans do not have or cannot readily acquire. Under existing law, registrants already have to swear to their citizenship under penalty of perjury, and there is no evidence that non-citizens are registering to vote at significant rates.
THANK YOU TO ALL THE LWV-WAKE VOLUNTEERS AND CONTRIBUTORS !!!!!
We need you and we appreciate you.
In Service
Helen Zimmerman
|  | LWV-WAKE FUNDRAISING APPEAL |  | Please Support LWV of Wake County
Please take a few minutes to read our Fundraising Appeal. We hope you will support LWV-Wake through a donation today.
During our 2023-2024 fiscal year, LWV-Wake received a $12k ARPA pass-through grant to hire a communications contractor. Our goal was to increase our social media presence, recruit new members and engage our existing members.
We retained this contractor in 2024-2025 through a one-time use of reserve funds because the board realized her value and the importance of social media during an election year to amplify our voice and provide voter education.
Next year, we must raise money to continue this type of community engagement. We do not have volunteer engagement to provide this type of ongoing support, and we rely on the expertise of a communications professional to ensure effective messaging.
We have additional financial concerns that stem from our new membership model. Please take a moment to read and understand them here.. Please note: You will be asked to log in first, then redirected to the document.
We hope you understand our need for support at this time and head to our General Fund Donation Page to make a tax-deductible donation to LWV of Wake County.
Thank you for your continued support of LWV of Wake County! | April Timely Topics: The Effects of Plastics on Human Health
Join us as our Environment Committee host's Timely Topics on Tuesday, April 22 from Noon -1:30 p.m. at Highland United Methodist Church.
Guest speakers will present, "Plasticized! The Plastics in Our Bodies and Their Effect on Our Health." This event is open to the public.
Mindful Merchant will also be there and have plastic alternative wares available for purchase.
Please bring your own lunch. Light refreshments will be served.
|  | Timely Topics 2025-2026 Planning Meeting
All Committee Co-Chairs, League Leaders, and interested League members are invited to register for the first planning meeting for the new year’s monthly Timely Topics sessions. The meeting will be in the League office Tuesday, July 15 10:00 a.m. - noon.
Annette Green will be leading the charge for the year as TT Chair and asks that everyone register for the session. Bring ideas to the session for topics and speakers that would be of interest to League members and their guests.
Next year is just around the calendar’s corner so let’s begin planning!
|  | Annual Meeting Tuesday, June 17 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. at NCSU University Club
All LWV-Wake members are encouraged to attend the annual meeting to learn election results for our LWV-Wake Board of Directors and 2025-2026 LWV-Wake Annual Budget, as well as recognize outgoing board members. This is also a time to socialize with other League members and discuss League priorities for the coming year. As a reminder, our organization's fiscal year runs from July 1st to June 30th.
PLEASE NOTE: Election materials, including the nominating committee report, 2025-2026 LWV-Wake Proposed Budget, and electronic ballot link will be sent via email to EVERY member on May 17th. We encourage members to read the materials and vote electronically prior to the annual meeting.
There will be a cash bar, dinner and program. This year's cost is $45 per person and spouses/guests are invited! To view the menu and to register, please click on the link below:
|  | | VOTE411 Signs - Help Needed
For the upcoming election cycle, we would like to expand our reach with VOTE411 signage during Early Voting. Eleven municipalities will have elections this year.
We want to identify three highly visible and legal locations for VOTE411 signs in each of these Wake County towns - Apex, Cary, Fuquay Varina, Garner, Holly Springs, Knightdale, Morrisville, Rolesville, Wake Forest, Wendell, and Zebulon. Our committee members have familiarity with Apex, Cary, and Morrisville, so the other municipalities are of higher importance.
Please review political sign regulations for Wake County here.
If you, or someone you know, has familiarity with one of these towns, and would be willing to assist in how to get the powerful tools within VOTE411.org to the voting public before they actually go to vote - please contact Sandy Hutchinson, LWV.shutchinson@gmail.com as soon as possible.
If we do this now, we will have a much more meaningful reach into smaller Wake County towns in the 2026 midterms! |  | Empowering NC Voters: Citizen Initiative on the Agenda for LWVNC Convention
Exciting news! The LWVNC Citizen Initiative (CI) Study Team has recommended that we concur with LWV-Alabama’s position on Citizen Initiative (CI). The LWVNC Program Committee and Board have approved adding it to the agenda for the LWVNC Convention Friday, May 2 - Sunday, May 4 in Durham.
What’s CI? It’s a powerful tool that allows citizens to collect voter signatures to place a law or amendment directly on the ballot—bypassing legislative gridlock. Nearly half the states already have CI, but North Carolina doesn’t… yet.
Why does this matter? When legislatures fail to act, voters step up. No state has ever repealed CI, and it's been used to:
✔️ Reform redistricting
✔️ Introduce ranked-choice voting
✔️ Protect abortion rights
✔️ Raise the minimum wage
The proposed CI position includes strong safeguards to ensure fairness and transparency, such as:
🔹One subject per proposal
🔹Limits on how many Initiatives can appear on a ballot
🔹A clear, public process for proposal submission
🔹Statewide petition collection—by voters, for voters
Our statewide study in 2024 showed overwhelming LWVNC member support for CI. Want to learn more before the convention? Join our virtual briefing:
Thursday, April 17, 7:00 p.m. -8:00 p.m. – Register
Can't make a briefing? Review study resources here and visit the Citizen Initiative webpage here.
Let’s bring the power of direct democracy to North Carolina!
– Submitted by Jennifer Bremer, Ellen Reckhow, and Gaye Williams, Citizen Initiative study team leaders
|  | New! LWV-Wake Civics Committee
Our new LWV-Wake Civics Committee, formed in January, results from our League’s strategic priority to provide civics education to the community.
In the past decade, we have seen a decline in the availability of civics education in our schools. To understand how high school students are responding to the lack of civics preparedness, please take a moment to read an excellent perspective about civic literacy, written by two NC high school students and published by EdNC during Civics Education Week last month.
Organizations like LWV are poised to fill this void by providing resources that educate and motivate citizens to support democratic principles.
During our committee meetings, we determined that webpages comprised of short 3-5 minute videos on various democracy-related topics would be the most effective way to provide civics education on demand. We are creating web pages with information about our Federal, state, county, and local municipalities. Videos focusing on democratic principles, such as free and fair elections, checking power, and citizens’ rights and responsibilities, will also be added.
We plan to release the first couple of pages on our website toward the end of May and promote them on social media. Committee members include Kathy Thompson (Chair), Helen Zimmerman, Eleanor Goodwin, Cheryl Tung, and Annette Green.
| Wake County Wants to Hear From You!
From April 2 to May 5, Wake County encourages any interested Wake County resident, business, farmer, and organization to complete a survey to gather input on water use, concerns, and strategies as part of its One Water Plan. Results will help shape the future of water in our community.
To learn more and complete the survey, click here. | | Tell NC Senators to Oppose Save Act
The SAVE Act, which requires proof of U.S. citizenship when registering to vote for federal elections and threatens to disfranchise millions of voters, passed the US House of Representatives on Thursday.
What Happens Next?
The SAVE Act will now move to the U.S. Senate for a debate and vote. The SAVE Act passed the House in 2024 but failed when it reached the Senate.
LWV, along with many voting rights organizations, strongly opposes this bill. We are asking all members to contact NC Senators Thom Tillis and Ted Budd and let them know you oppose this bill and ask them to vote NO.
For talking points, click here.
For contact information for Senators Tills and Budd, click here.
For direct links to Senators Tillis and Budd with auto-generated message, click here.
|  | Griffin Update: NC Supreme Court Ruling
On Friday April 11th, the North Carolina Supreme Court issued a ruling regarding the voter challenge for the 2024 NC Supreme Court race. Here's what we know so far from Katelin Kaiser/Democracy NC:
- Incomplete Voter Registration Category (~60,000 voters): The Court unanimously rejected Griffin’s protest and reversed the Court of Appeals decision, reasoning that these voters' ballots should not be discounted for an alleged administrative error by the State Board of Elections.
What does this mean? The ballots of the voters challenged for alleged "incomplete voter registrations" will count! There is no cure process for these voters.
- Military and overseas voters who did not provide voter photo ID Category (~5,500 voters): The Court orders that these voters must show voter photo ID and expands the cure period from 15 business days to 30 calendar days after the mailing of notice.
What does this mean? This applies only to Guilford, Durham, Buncombe, and Forsyth military and overseas voters. The cure process, fixing an alleged problem, does not start immediately. Are you, a family member, or a neighbor in this category? TEXT or CALL the voter assistance hotline 888-OUR-VOTE (888-687-8683) to speak with an election expert who can help.
- "Never Residents" Category (~200 voters): The Court of Appeals ruling stays, meaning these voters are not allowed to vote, and their vote for the NC Supreme Court Seat 6 contest is discounted.
Justice Anita Earls wrote in her partial dissent, "It threatens to make courts, not voters, the arbiter of which candidate wins an election in North Carolina. It betrays public trust in our elections process and our courts. From the majority's disrespect for the will of the people, its blatant legislating from the bench, and its deliberate effort to substitute its choice for that of the voters regarding who sits on our Court, I dissent."
Justice Richard Dietz wrote in his partial dissent, “The door is open for losing candidates to try this sort of post-election meddling in state court in the future. We should not allow that."
What’s Next?
The Court of Appeals must issue a revised order that follows the Supreme Court’s directive. Meanwhile, Riggs indicated immediately after the ruling that she would file a federal appeal to intervene on behalf of the 267 voters at risk of being removed from the count and the potentially several thousand additional voters who would need to cure ballots within 30 days to ensure their vote is counted.
The NC State Board of Elections will have to await further instructions from the Court of Appeals, subject to possible federal court intervention. For an in-depth report on this ruling, please read the Assembly article here.
ICYMI: On April 4, 2025, the NC Court of Appeals issued a decision on the election protest brought by state supreme court candidate Jefferson Griffin. The court’s decision, which has been appealed by Justice Allison Riggs and the State Board of Elections, may have required the county boards of elections to contact voters whose voter registration forms did not include a driver’s license number or last four digits of a Social Security number (and didn’t check the box indicating they lacked these numbers), and to allow those voters to provide that information to their county board of elections, to ensure their votes for the supreme court contest count in the 2024 general election.
Judge Riggs immediately appealed this decision, and the NC Supreme Court provided a ruling on April 11th, as stated above.
| LWV-WAKE COMMUNICATIONS
HELP WANTED |  | Comms Help Wanted
Are you passionate about civic engagement, voter rights, and making a real difference in our community? We are seeking dynamic volunteers to help spread our message of empowerment and democratic participation!
We are looking for volunteers to help with social media, creating and publishing our bi-weekly newsletter, and updating our website. Help spread the word to LWV members about what’s going on in the League! Writing and editing skills are very helpful.
What You'll Do:
For Social Media:
Help create graphics, write posts, and share information.
Craft engaging content that inspires civic awareness, voter engagement, and other community matters.
Assist in managing our social media platforms to further our reach.
For Newsletter:
Help write short intro and event descriptions.
Edit President’s Letter.
Create and upload graphics.
Send ‘test’ emails to the comms team for further editing and
Schedule newsletter emailing.
For Website:
Update pages as requested, including the Home Page.
You do not need to be a communications whiz to help! We will train volunteers on how to use our website platform Club Express, and social media scheduling apps. If you are interested in spreading our message of active citizens and making democracy work for everyone, we can help you take it from there!
Interested? Email communications@lwvwake.org to join our team and make an impact!
| Looking for information from a past newsletter? Previous League Updates can now be viewed on our website's home page. Look for the "League Updates" blue tab on the top menu.
Thank you for continuing to support the League of Women Voters of Wake County.
Sincerely,
Helen Zimmerman
President | | The League of Women Voters of Wake County is a designated 501(c)3 nonprofit charitable organization by the IRS. Donations and membership dues are fully tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. | |