| January 2025 Volume 52 No.6 | | Empowering Voters. Defending Democracy. | | | _________________________________________ |
- LWV Cupertino-Sunnyvale extends warmest wishes for a happy, healthy and hopeful 2025!
| _________________________________________ | |
2025: Moving into the New Year
We hope you enjoyed your holidays. It’s such a wonderful time of the year to be with people you love and do special activities.
As we welcome the new year, we have a valuable opportunity to reflect on our shared goals and to recommit ourselves to the League’s mission of empowering voters and defending democracy. In Cupertino and Sunnyvale, we’ve seen how engaged citizens can influence local policies and help shape the future. | | |
-
As a member or friend of our League, your engagement has real impact — from registering new voters, to hosting educational forums, or promoting transparency in local government. These critical efforts underscore the League’s goal of inclusive democracy and remind us that each voice and vote counts.
Looking forward, let’s build on our recent successes and approach the coming months with renewed energy and collaboration. Together, we can heighten civic participation by fostering stronger connections with local leaders, providing opportunities for community members to engage with the issues that matter, and helping new citizens get registered to vote. Through thoughtful discourse and commitment, we can ensure that Cupertino and Sunnyvale continue to thrive.
Upcoming Events
LWVCS has several activities planned for January 2025, coinciding with the inauguration of new administrations at various government levels. Here are some notable events:
Swearing-In of Sunnyvale Mayor and City Council
Scheduled for January 7, 2025, this ceremony will inaugurate the re-elected Mayor Klein and city council members Alyssa Cisneros (incumbent) for District 2, Charlsie Chang for District 4, and Eileen Le for District 6. Local residents are encouraged to participate and engage with their leaders.
Swearing-In of Cupertino Mayor and City Council
This was completed on Dec 12, 2024 with Liang Chao as Mayor, Kitty Moore as Vice Mayor (re-elected to Council in 2024). New to the council is Ray Wang. Residents are encouraged to participate in meetings and provide your input to Council.
LWV Cupertino-Sunnyvale Coffee Hour
An informal gathering is set for January 16, 2025, at 11:00 AM on Zoom, providing an opportunity for community and League members to discuss current issues and learn more about the League's activities. We would greatly appreciate if members that have been with us for less than 24 months, would attend this meeting.
Voter Registration at Heritage Theater
The LWV of Cupertino-Sunnyvale is organizing a voter registration drive for new U.S. citizens at the Heritage Theater in Campbell on January 22, 2025, starting at 8:45 AM. Volunteers are encouraged and most welcome to assist in this civic engagement effort.
These events reflect the League's commitment to promoting informed and active participation in government during this period of administrative transitions.
New Membership System
We will also be transitioning how our Memberships renew during January and February. Please see this link (need link) for more information.
We look forward to seeing you at one of our events.
Elaine & Tracey
Your Co-Presidents
| _______________________________________ |  |
LWV National
Every day, Leagues across the country work tirelessly to empower voters and defend democracy — and this year was no exception! While there have been tough moments, as I look back and reflect on 2024, there is so much to celebrate. From unprecedented voter outreach and the launch of our moonshot campaign, One Person One Vote, to the return of LWV of Nevada, together we accomplished powerful wins, both for our democracy and the League. This is just a fraction of all of our achievements this year. Celebrate your success and learn more about the League’s 2024 impact in our recent blog at www.lwv.org.
Dianna Wynn
- Volunteer Opportunity! New Citizen Voter Registration on Jan 22
On Wednesday, January 22, LWVCS will partner with the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters to register new voters after their Naturalization Ceremonies. This will take place at the Heritage Theater in Campbell. It is a very rewarding experience to help new citizens register to vote.
We need volunteers to help cover two shifts:
Please email Pam at voterservice@lwvcs.org to sign up and indicate if you have a shift preference. (FYI, we will most likely be sitting outside, under a canopy.)
Also, if you want to help, but cannot make it on January 22, mark your calendar; LWVCS will have similar opportunities again on June 25 and November 19.
LWV CA – Advocacy/Program Update - 2024 Advocacy Wrap-Up
If you haven’t already seen it, our 2024 Advocacy Wrap-Up is now available on our website. We encourage you to check it out to learn what this past year entailed from our advocacy operations and to begin looking ahead to the new legislative session in 2025. Through that same link, you can also access our legislative archive to view bills we’ve taken actions on and tracked in previous years. As always, if you have any questions related to our advocacy work, please email advocacy@lwvc.org.
Program Planning
The Program Planning Kit is available now on the Members Only site. We hope your League will take on this project as it provides an opportunity to refocus, engage new and old members alike, and to prepare for the future.
You can download the Program Planning Kit and read our highlights here. Program Planning responses are due on February 24, though earlier is better. Please note that a new process for considering “not recommended” items is outlined on pages 8-9 of the kit.
Heads Up—New Membership Dues System coming in February!
League of Women Voters US will be switching to ChapterSpot as our membership management system.
Watch out for an e-mail from noreply@notifications.chapterspot.com some time between February 2 and February 7. Sender’s name will be League of Women Voters. Do not delete! This e-mail includes an important link for you to access your account on the new system.
You will be renewing your membership with this account.
For more information about the change in the League's membership management system, check out the Frequently Asked Questions article at www.lwvcs.org/new-dues-faq
Nina Wong-Dobkin at Membership@lwvcs.org.
| _______________________________________ |
- Check our website for Event Details, Registration and Recording Links - It's all There!
- LWVCS Monthly Board Meeting, January 14th, 7pm, check website
- LWVCS Coffee Hour - January 16th, 11-12, join here to share your voting experiences
- LWVCS Communications Committee Meeting - January 16 at 2pm, join here
- LWV Santa Clara County Civil Discourse Committee Meeting - January 20th,1pm, join here
- LWVCS Program Planning , February 15th, register via website.
| _______________________________________ | |
LWVCS Coffee Hour -
Informal Conversations related to League stuff.
Join us at our regular third Thursday, January 16th Coffee Hour at 11am here
This month - share YOUR voting and election-related experiences!
You can view recordings from all our Coffee Hours here.
| | | _______________________________________ | | Membership Changes Reminder |
|
Heads Up—New Membership Dues System coming in February!
League of Women Voters US will be switching to ChapterSpot as our membership management system.
Watch out for an e-mail from noreply@notifications.chapterspot.com some time between February 2 and February 7. Sender’s name will be League of Women Voters. Do not delete! This e-mail includes an important link for you to access your account on the new system.
You will be renewing your membership with this account.
For more information about the change in the League's membership management system, check out the Frequently Asked Questions article at www.lwvcs.org/new-dues-faq
Nina Wong-Dobkin at Membership@lwvcs.org.
|
| _______________________________________ | | Voter Service Activities Update |
Volunteers Needed - New Citizen Voter Registration on Jan 22
Looking to start off the year with a Volunteer activity? On Wednesday, January 22, LWVCS will partner with the Santa Clara County Registrar of Voters to register new voters after their Naturalization Ceremonies. This will take place at the Heritage Theater in Campbell. It is a very rewarding experience to help new citizens register to vote.
We need volunteers to help cover two shifts:
8:45am-noon
1:15-4:00pm
Please email Pam at voterservice@lwvcs.org to sign up and indicate if you have a shift preference. (FYI, we will most likely be sitting outside, under a canopy.)
Also, if you want to help, but cannot make it on January 22, mark your calendar; LWVCS will have similar opportunities again on June 25 and November 19.
Pam Anderson
______________________________________________________________________________________________
Sign up for 2025 Legislative interviews
During January and February, LWVS members will participate in Legislative Interviews, our annual interviews with local state legislators. Small groups of fellow League members will meet directly with our State Senators and Assembly Member, either in-person or via Zoom. The meetings will pose prepared questions on issues that are of the most interest to our local League. We will also ask our legislators their personal priorities and about major issues the legislature will be dealing with in 2025.
We have new, and newly-reelected representatives so it’s a good time to get to know them and to let them know what is important to us. It’s also critical to let elected representatives at every level of government know that our League, and Leagues throughout the state, are paying attention.
The interview schedule is still in progress, but if you would like to participate, please email voterservice@lwvcs.org and we will get back to you with more information.
Pam Anderson | | AROUND THE COUNTY and STATE |
LWV Santa Clara County News:
- Santa Clara County Office of Education
Youth Voter Toolkit link here
Leagues Making a Difference: Coast to Coast
LWV of Greater Pittsburgh continues to impress with their creation of programs and resources regarding civic education and mis/disinformation. And speaking of Americans supporting the traditions of democracy, here’s a great new video the LWVGPH created about our history of the Peaceful Transfer of Power!
LWV of Illinois has established a Mis/Disinformation task force that has created a webpage and educational resources for local leagues to use in their communities to bring awareness to mis/disinformation. Email misdisinfotaskforce@lwvil.org
LWVUS has established the Democracy Truth Project which provides resources and weekly rumor reports of mis and disinformation. You can find social media graphics and guidance here For further information contact Chelsey Cartwright at ccartwright@lwv.org
LWV Diablo Valley website is filled with resources regarding fact checking, media literacy, lessons, curriculum and programming about mis and disinformation.
LWV Larimer County has multiple resources. podcasts and webinars devoted to news literacy to bring awareness to the necessity of being wise information consumers
LWV Alameda is ingenious in that they have created a game called Verfiy it
“Verify It is the game that will clarify your rights as a citizen, answer your voting questions, and challenge the persistent misinformation and disinformation claims that we see every day. We are all susceptible to believing misinformation or disinformation, and we must all become informed citizens to exercise our vote and to protect our democracy.”
- The League of Women Voters of Sonoma County offers a virtual series on how our government works:
Three Sessions
Quickly and easily improve your "government IQ". If you know a lot about government, this series will be a good refresher. If you have been thinking you should learn more about government but never seem to find the time – you’ll love this series!
| ________________________________________ | LWV Santa Clara County
Civil Discourse Committee
Help us with 2025 event planning!
Join our next planning meeting January 20, 1pm here
Upcoming topics include immigration and mis/disinformation.
Our delivery team will be facilitating a Civil Discourse training for Palo Alto University in January for PAU students.
View the recordings of prior LWVSCC Civil Discourse events here.
We need your help to make our events a success!
| ________________________________________ | LWC Bay Area - LWVBA
- Interested in participating in the LWVBA Study on Regional Government Equity?
- Contact us here.
| ________________________________________ |
City Meeting Agenda
|
City Council Meeting, January 21st meeting agenda here.
Contact: cityclerk@cupertino.gov Contact Phone: 408.777.3223
|
Cupertino City Updates
-
Updated City Council status here
-
Cupertino News & Events here.
-
Vallco Project - Second Modification to the Rise Development Approved - Formerly the Vallco Town Center Development, the Rise is a mixed-use housing development with 2,669 units, of which 890 units are affordable to lower income households. The modified project includes 47 townhomes, which were not contemplated in the previously approved project. The project also includes approximately 1.95 million square foot of office space, 225 million square foot of retail space and at grade open space areas. The approval documents and approved plans are available online here.
| ________________________________________ | Sunnyvale City Events Calendar - and More... here
Sunnyvale City Governance
- City Council Welcomes In-person Public Participation
- To FIND INFORMATION ABOUT COUNCIL & COMMISSION UPCOMING MEETINGS:
- Tuesday, January 7 Council meeting info here
- Go to https://sunnyvaleca.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx, find the date of the meeting, then click on Meeting Details.
-
|
|
|
To join in person and comment:
Council Chambers, City Hall, 456 W. Olive Ave., Sunnyvale, CA 94086
Call-in: 833-548-0276 | Meeting ID: 961 1158 0540
To provide audio public comment, connect to the meeting online or by telephone. Use the Raise Hand feature to request to speak (*9 on a telephone).
To watch:
|
|
- City of Sunnyvale Top 30 Project Summaries Project Summary List Has Valuable Updates On Priority Projects For Sunnyvale.
Sunnyvale Chamber of Commerce events
| ________________________________________ | |
LWV Cupertino-Sunnyvale
Board of Directors
Co-Presidents: Elaine Manley & Tracey Edwards
Secretary: acting: Debbie Timmers
Treasurer: Beth Claywell
Voter Service Director: Pam Anderson
Membership Director: Nina Wong-Dobkin
Online Access Team Director: Marilyn Sherry
Technical Services Director: Bruce Kendall
Online Events Coordinator: Debbie Timmers
Director at Large: Polly Bove
Director at Large: Bill Wilson
Nominations Chair: Marieann Shovlin
| | | ________________________________________ | LWV Cupertino-Sunnyvale Board Meeting Notes - November
- Next Board meeting January 14, 7pm, join via website link.
- Save the Date for LWVCS Program Planning meeting February 15 - and plan on coming!
- LWVCS Nominating Committee is looking for YOUR support!
- LWVCS Student memberships extended through 2025
January, 2025 Quote:
“The care of human life and happiness, and not their destruction, is the first and only object of government."
Thomas Jefferson, US President, 1801-1809
| ____________________________________________ | Elected Officials Representing Cupertino & Sunnyvale
For contact information and more detail visit:
| ____________________________________________ | Join the League of Women Voters
Voting membership in the League of Women Voters is open to men and women 16 years of age and beyond.
Annual Membership:
$100 Individual member
$50 for each additional member in the same household:
Free for full-time students at this time
| | | ____________________________________________ | | The Cupertino-Sunnyvale VOTER
Published 10 times a year by the
League of Women Voters of Cupertino-Sunnyvale.
This newsletter is posted on our website:
| | The LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages the informed and active participation of citizens in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
Permission is granted to reprint any part of this newsletter with credit to the League of Women Voters of Cupertino-Sunnyvale | | | ____________________________________________ |
League of Women Voters of Cupertino-Sunnyvale
PO Box 2923
Sunnyvale, CA 94087
| |