The League of Women Voters of the Rivertowns encourages active and informed participation
by residents in these communities:
Ardsley, Dobbs Ferry, Hastings-on-Hudson, Irvington, Sleepy Hollow, Tarrytown and Yonkers
The LWV of the Rivertowns is a local chapter of the League of Women Voters of the United States,
which has chapters at the local, county, state and national levels.
At all levels, LWV is a nonpartisan, multi-issue, grassroots organization
that encourages informed, active participation in government and local communities.
The League of Women Voters is unique in its strict non-partisanship.
While we may lobby in support or in opposition of issues or legislation,
we never support nor endorse candidates or political parties.
Visit our About page to learn more about the history of the LWV.
To join or renew your membership, click here
Visit our Voter Information Page for information about voting in New York State
LWVR Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Policy - Click Here to Read: DEI Policy
check out our YouTube channel for videos
of past LWVR programs and candidate forums:
www.youtube.com/@lwvrivertowns5747
LWVR PRESIDENT'S LETTER and lwvr monthly newsletter
for JUNE 2025 click here
If you would like our monthly newsletter emailed to you, please email us with your request - we promise no solicitations!
LWVR NEWS
Primary election season 2025 in the Rivertowns has passed and now candidates are preparing for November elections. In May village school board elections were held. So that residents were able to know the views of their office holder and school board candidates, LWVR conducted several virtual candidates’ forums.
All were recorded and they can be seen on our YouTube channel. Questions were submitted in advance by email to LWVR from local residents.
To watch any of these videos in Closed Caption or another language: click on the link below, open the video, then pause it. On the bottom toolbar click on the CC icon (Closed Caption). You can change the language from English to another language by clicking on the cogwheel icon next to CC, select Subtitles, then Auto translate. Select your preferred language from the language list.
Here is a listing of all LWVR forums held in May and June. We appreciate all who voted in these elections, and THANK YOU FOR HELPING TO MAKE DEMOCRACY WORK! Click on each to view the forum.
May 7 we held a forum for Hastings School Board Candidates.
May 13, in cooperation with the PTA of the Tarrytowns, we held a forum Tarrytowns Board of Education Candidates.
May 14, in cooperation with the PTSA, we held a forum Dobbs Ferry School Board Candidates.
May 15 we held a forum for Pocantico Hills School Board Candidates.
View forums for primary candidates for Yonkers City Council President and Hastings-on-Hudson
mayor by clicking below. Questions were submitted by members of their home community.
Republican forum for Yonkers City Council President held June 2 can be seen here; Democratic forum for Yonkers City Council President held June 4 can be seen here. The virtual forum for Hastings-on-Hudson mayoral candidates was held June 11 and can be seen here.
Call to Action to Oppose the Federal Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act
All U.S. Leagues are encouraging the public to contact their Senators to oppose the SAVE Act, (H.R. 22), which is seen by LWV as a voter suppression bill to amend the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. The House of Representatives has approved its passage to the U.S. Senate where it will come up for a vote. WHY OPPOSE? By requiring certain proofs of citizenship in person, i.e. birth certificates or passports, it is estimated that more than 21 million Americans are unable to access the additional documents that would be required to register to vote under the SAVE Act or easily get to a Board of Elections office. Married people who have changed their name, minority group citizens at the poverty level, as well as young and elderly people, are more likely to have difficulty in accessing these documents.
We already have strict laws in place to protect the security of our elections !
IN SUMMARY:
The right to vote is a basic American freedom, and our elected officials should be working to protect that right, not restrict it. If the bill passes it is likely to have little effect on non-citizens voting, as there are very few cases of non-citizens trying to vote, but it will make it significantly harder for many American citizens to be able to register to vote. LWV opposes this legislation as unnecessary, divisive and likely to have a disparate impact on citizens who cannot access their birth certificates, do not have passports, or married women whose surnames do not match birth certificates. So, we request: Please contact your Senator!
JOIN US: The LWV launched “One Person, One Vote”, our campaign to end the Electoral College. Leagues throughout the country will work to move our nation beyond the archaic Electoral College, toward true representation. To hear from a panel of experts on why the Electoral College has existed for so long, how we can dismantle it and build a democracy powered by the people, for the people, ALL the people, please click here
Want to join us this Summer and Fall at an event?
We would love to hear from you!
click here or email: info@lwv-rivertowns.org
Disabilities rights
in regard to voting:
Watch here: Westchester Disabled On The Move and LWV Westchester co-sponsored a Voting and Disabilities Rights Special Event concerning NYS voting rights, with emphasis on those with disabilities.
At Mercy University we registered new voters and were joined by members of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, the oldest collegiate black Greek letter organization.
For League news from all around NYS here is the latest issue of the
LWV-NY “State Voter”
click here
JOIN THE LWV OF THE RIVERTOWNS
(not for women only!)
(click on the Join/Renew tab above)
It’s easy to join and/or renew!
Dues begins at $20 per year.
By clicking the tab
you can opt for
automatic renewals each year;
You also can designate
a donation to LWV Rivertowns.
We are part of LWV U.S.
LWVUS leaders and volunteers work on key issues that matter to voters and impact public policy nationwide.
TO LEARN MORE AND, IF YOU WISH, HOW YOU CAN VOLUNTEER, GO TO: https://www.lwv.org/
POLL WORKERS
ARE ALWAYS NEEDED! You can make a difference!
What’s involved in
becoming a poll worker?
FIND OUT HERE
IMPORTANT MEETING DATES
THE LWVR ANNUAL MEETING
WAS HELD ON JUNE 13
At our annual meeting we heard reports from LWVR committees and planned our 2025-6 program (click on the “About” button above to see our plans and current Board members). Our speaker, Allison Schulte, publisher (and founder) of the weekly Rivertowns Dispatch, talked about how local news is vital to a community. The LWV encourages local news support as a vital path to a strong democracy. We also heard from our Gorton HS student from Yonkers about her experience in Albany, shadowing her NYS Senator. Her inspirational presentation resulted in a gift membership to LWVR by our Board.
In February, Congressman George Latimer attended our Board meeting to explain details of the SAVE Act which was pending (see opposite column for details). On Feb. 19 at a virtual presentation sponsored by the LWV Westchester, Rep. Latimer explained the details of this proposed legislation and opened the conversation to all attending. It can be seen here.
STUDENTS INSIDE ALBANY
May 18-21, 2025
Each year our League joins with all Leagues in NYS to send one or two students to Albany for an insider's view of New York State government at work. No student is required to pay for any part of this program and funds are contributed by Leagues and individuals to support the program. Here is a summary of this year’s exciting and potentially life-changing program (and surprise visitor). The 2025 student sent by LWVR (photo below) gave us an excellent report at our annual meeting on June 13 about her time in Albany. A junior at Gorton HS, Liz was chosen as a result of a wonderful essay she submitted. At our annual meeting she was given a gift membership to LWVR by our League. We all look forward to her helping us make democracy work!
Perhaps some future legislators in this group?
They learned so much in 4 days!
REPRESENTING LWVR OUR GORTON HS JUNIOR, LIZ, AND HER NYS YONKERS SENATOR, ANDREA STEWART-COUSINS
click below to learn more about the NY ERA :
What You Need to Know About New York’s Equal Rights Amendment – NYCLU
________________________________
Moderators Are Needed For The FALL 2025 Election Cycle
LEAGUES FROM ALL NYS MET AT THE STATE CAPITOL TO HEAR FROM SPEAKERS AND LOBBY THEIR STATE REPRESENTATIVES
Election results are official 25 days after Election Day. To see the unofficial tally of results, please go to Westchester Board of Elections page here
CHECK YOUR VOTER REGISTRATION STATUS click on this link :
NYS Voter Registration Database Search
click here FOR YOUR PERSONAL VOTING INFORMATION at Vote411.org
When there are more than 2 candidates for an office “ranked choice voting” (RCV) is a method to assure the voters’ choice will be the winner. It also gives a chance to candidates who are not official choices of the two major parties. RCV is becoming more popular and takes the place of run-off elections. In RCV, instead of selecting one candidate, you look at all candidates and rank them, marking your 1st choice, your 2nd choice, 3rd choice, and so on . . . . By adding candidates you could live with, you increase the likelihood of being satisfied with the winner, even if your first choice did not prevail.
A brief video explaining mechanics and advantages of RCV can be seen here:
Sometimes elections can come down to a small number of votes which greatly affect how our cities, state and nation are run.
YOUR VOTE COUNTS!
EVERY ELECTION IS IMPORTANT
AND EVERY VOTE MAKES A DIFFERENCE!
Increasing the number of people that vote in each election means better representation, more funding to our communities and
a better quality of life.
Politicians listen to two things: money and votes. Education, healthcare, immigration, social security, infrastructure, the economy, veterans… are all affected by our vote! _________________________________________
LWVW Fair Campaign Practices Committee
For 33 years the LWV of Westchester’s Fair Campaign Practices Committee has heard complaints from political candidates who believe opponents have employed unfair practices. The Committee holds politicians accountable for content of their ads. The Committee’s Citizen Info website page lists resources explaining how to identify Ai-generated content and ways to determine veracity of campaign ads and socal media posts. While having no power of enforcement, the Committee relies on the media and concerned citizens to publicize findings. For more about UCP Committee, including past decisions,
click here. To submit a complaint: email faircampaigns@gmail.com call 914/ 468-4465
PLEASE HELP TO SUPPORT OUR WORK
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PLEASE HELP TO SUPPORT OUR WORK 〰️
(click here:) https://www.lwv-rivertowns.org/donate
