About the League

What is our mission? How are we structured? What is our history?

2014 Budget LWV-AAA and CTN Share Award 90th Birthday Celebration A Big Success Old News Our Mission Other Leagues Our History

2014 Budget

LWV-AAA and CTN Share Award

From AnnArbor.com: Local League of Women Voters and Community Television Network win media excellence award

November 3, 2011, Ann Arbor, Michigan---CTN and LWV have won a Philo award in the category of political awareness for its broadcast of the League of Women Voters' County Commissioner District 10, 11 Democratic Primary Candidates Forum at this year's Philo T. Farnsworth Festival of Media Arts Awards. CTN staff members Greg McDonald and Rob Cross worked with the League to produce this program.

Several League programs have brought awards to CTN in recent years, including:

2009 Philo Media Arts Festival, 2nd Place - Ward 5 Primary Candidates Debate, 2007 Philo Media Arts Festival, 1st Place - 5th Ward Primary Candidate Debate 2001 Philo Media Arts Festival, 1st Place - City Council Candidates Forum

90th Birthday Celebration A Big Success

Fall 2011: Hathaway's Hideaway on south Ashley Street started out as the old Second Ward Polling Place. It was the perfect location for the Ann Arbor Area League of Women Voters to celebrate 90 years of women having the vote and also 90 years of League activity promoting civic involvement.

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Michigan President Jessica Reiser and Ann Arbor Area President Sue Smith.

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Member Mary Hathaway and Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje

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L to R: Mona Walz, Sunny Morse, Mary Stadel, Eunice Burns, Suzy Morse

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Zoe Behnke models suffragette garb to promote the upcoming exhibit at the Washtenaw Historical Society.

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L to R: Barbara Clark and Fran Lyman

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L to R: Jessica Reiser, Judy Mich and Ann Arbor Councilwoman Maggie Teall

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Sue Smith demonstrates an old-style ballot box.

Old News - But Fun

Newspaper clipping from 1973 covering the annual LWV interview with 2nd District Republican Congressman Marvin Esch.
Representative Esch participated via speaker phone (LWV was high tech even then) because he was in Washington working on the energy bill that was passed that year (remember the gasoline shortages of 1973?).
He said that his priorities for the upcoming session of Congress included pension reform, tax reform, housing, education, restructuring Congress, and campaign financing reform. Those are still topics facing our government today.

Our Mission and Roles

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization encouraging informed and active participation in government. It influences public policy through education and advocacy. We never support or oppose any political party or candidate.
The League of Women Voters has two separate and distinct roles.

Voters Service/Citizen Education: we present unbiased nonpartisan information about elections, the voting process, and issues.

Action/Advocacy: we are also nonpartisan, but, after study, we use our positions to advocate for or against particular policies in the public interest.

To conduct our voter service and citizen education activities, we use funds from the League of Women Voters Education Fund, which is a 501(c)(3) corporation, a nonprofit educational organization. The League of Women Voters, a membership organization, conducts action and advocacy and is a nonprofit 501(c)(4) corporation.
Our Vision, Beliefs, and Intentions guide our activities.

Other League Organizations

Our Ann Arbor Area League is one of 22 local Leagues throughout Michigan.
Our members are also members of

League of Women Voters of Michigan

and

League of Women Voters of the United States

History of the League of Women Voters

Read a short history of the League of Women Voters.