Gail Wallace

                             President's Year End Message

Thank you for showing your commitment to democracy through your support of the LWVO, next year celebrating 100 years of  service to our community!  Your memberships, generous donations and committed volunteer work make it possible for us to imagine a future where every voter is equipped with the knowledge and resources to participate meaningfully in our democracy. You enable us to provide Oakland with unbiased, nonpartisan information and thoughtful advocacy for positive change. Here are some highlights of 2023: 

• We hosted a lively Women Lead Oakland panel, a well attended discussion of how our government works.

• We distributed  voter registration and election materials at venues and events around the city. 

• We advocated for funds to implement Oakland's Fair Elections Act (passed by more than 70% in 2022), including "Democracy Dollars".

• We facilitated and encouraged public comment in City Council meetings, consistent with our focus on transparency,  accountability and public access.

• We advocated for changes to our City Charter to account for lessons learned during the 2021-22 redistricting process.

• Our YOUth Decide team registered students and provided Oakland high schools with colorful student-designed posters to encourage civic participation.

We are preparing for the 2024 primary and general elections.  With your support we’ll expand our community outreach, offering additional translation services. We'll sponsor non-partisan candidate forums, produce and distribute hard copy and digital plain language voter guides, create engaging videos, informative social media posts and newsletters, make in person presentations untangling ballot measures, update our go-to website, and more. 

We can’t do this without you. Your support is critical for achieving our 2024 goals.