Empowering Voters. Defending Democracy.
Welcome!
Thank you for visiting the website of the League of Women Voters of Kalamazoo Area and its Calhoun County Geographical Unit. We hope you will join us in our commitment to MAKING DEMOCRACY WORK.
League of Women Voters Mission Statement
The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
Monitoring the Redistricting Process
The Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission (MICRC) was voted into law in 2018 and has been operational since Fall 2020. The MICRC is obligated by state Constitution to deliver maps by November 1, 2021, with hearings held for 45 days beforehand. The Commission cannot hold hearings before it receives Census data for the maps, and they continue to face a challenge with the newly announced further delay of the delivery of Census data to states from March to September 30, 2021.
Permission for a delay is being sought from the Michigan Supreme Court. To ensure the MICRC takes into account Communities of Interest (COIs), such as coastal land owners and school districts, League of Women Voters of Kalamazoo Area held an educational Town Hall on redistricting on April 29th , to encourage citizen participation in the MICRC public hearing that was held in Kalamazoo on May 13th. More than 70 people testified before the Commission at the Kalamazoo hearing. Additional MICRC public hearings are being held around the state with the final hearing being held in Grand Rapids on July 1st.
View the LWVKA Redistricting Town Hall, held April 29, 2021.
League News and Events
Read The Voter:
Event Calendar
MICRC Redistricting Public Hearing
July 1 @ 6:00 pmKalamazoo Growlers “A League of Their Own”
July 16 @ 6:35 pm
How Your Donation Supports Our Work
Our volunteers work year-round to register new voters, host community forums and provide voters with election information they need. We engage at the national, local, and state levels on legislative priorities and efforts to improve our elections and protect our democracy.
Interested in Joining Us? Membership is open to anyone age 16 and over. A member of the League of Women Voters of Kalamazoo Area is automatically a member of the League of Women Voters of Michigan and the League of Women Voters of the United States, and receives publications from all three.
VOTE411 and THE VOTER GUIDE
Get the Election Information You Need before you vote! VOTE411.org is a “one-stop-shop,” for nonpartisan election-related information. Funded by the League of Women Voters Education Fund, Vote411.org provides local, state and national election information.
Find out “What’s On Your Ballot,” learn where candidates running for office in your community stand on the issues, build a printable Sample Ballot, and find Polling Place information, Debate and Forum dates and links, all from the Vote411 dashboard.
LWVKA contributes local information to Vote411 and also produces a printed Voter Guide during general elections, which is offered free to Kalamazoo County residents. The Voter Guide provides a print version for many of the elected positions including candidate bios and answers to questions relevant to the positions they seek, as well as important local and state election-related information.
How to Use Vote411
Watch this Video in Spanish:
VOTE411: La información electoral que tú necesitas Video
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Congratulations to the Greater Grand Rapids Area Geographical Unit!
LWVMI has approved the application of the Greater Grand Rapids Area Geographical Unit to
move from LWVKA mentorship to a Member-At-Large (MAL) under LWVMI!
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LWV Supports the FOR THE PEOPLE ACT
