A Yolo County League of Women Voters is being formed to increase voter information and participation countywide. Joining forces are the Woodland and Davis Area Leagues of Women Voters, the members of which voted to combine their efforts over the past …
A Yolo County League of Women Voters is being formed to increase voter information and participation countywide.
Joining forces are the Woodland and Davis Area Leagues of Women Voters, the members of which voted to combine their efforts over the past two weeks.
The new county League will provide resources and support to communities throughout Yolo County to increase voter education, election participation and advocacy on governance issues of local, state and national importance, according to outgoing Woodland president Karen Urbano.
Yolo County's first League of Women Voters was formed in 1921. Although it later dissolved, Leagues of Women Voters were subsequently formed in both Davis and Woodland.
Urbano reported that over the past few years, these two local Leagues have worked closely on many countywide events, including candidate and ballot issue forums, voter registration, and civic education tabling, so it made sense for the two groups to link their efforts.
At their annual meetings this June, members of both Leagues each voted unanimously to join forces.
Outgoing Woodland League of Women Voters President Karen Urbano is presented with a book about the League's history by Carla Cox, local League treasurer along with a bouquet of flowers from Meg Stallard during a gathering of the organization recently at the home of Carol Souza Cole. (Jessica Smith/Courtesy)
"The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan resource for all voters in Yolo County," Urbano stated. "We are excited to bring more information and support to our county's diverse communities. We can help smaller cities conduct forums for their own competitive elections or local propositions.
"We can also meet with local groups or attend local events to provide voter registration materials and information resources, helping each community to better understand local ballots, or conduct studies on issues of local importance, such as health care access, housing, agriculture, and climate action," she added.
More than 50 members of the Woodland League gathered recently at the home of past president Carol Souza Cole to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the local group in addition to voting on a combined League of Women Voters.
Honored at the event were Judy Simas, Janet Ruggiero and Meg Stallard, three founding members of the Woodland League from 50 years earlier.
All three are still active in the Woodland League and praised the efforts of the organization to spread awareness about voting issues. Each received a proclamation from area lawmakers and a crystal plaque.
Stallard said she has always enjoyed providing services to local voters but couldn't always be as active as she has wanted to be because of nonpartisan requirements since she's married to Woodland City Councilman Tom Stallard.
Ruggiero spoke about the League's positive effects over the decades and showed off a bracelet she was wearing that contained a charm earned when she served as League president decades ago.
Souza Cole herself praised the League's efforts as well as the shared vision of improving voter awareness.
"No matter where you're from, League members get together and share a common spirit," she said. "You talk to a League member and you feel like you've known them all your life."
The Woodland League's 50th anniversary was also recently honored with a proclamation by the Woodland City Council and a Certificate of Recognition from Senator Bill Dodd and Assembly Member Cecilia Aguiar Curry.
Through the fall of this year, both Davis and Woodland Leagues will focus their efforts on holding candidate and proposition forums and providing voter registration materials and ballot return information addressing the November election ballot.
A special membership meeting is planned for January 2025, when the Leagues' full attention will focus on finalizing the formation and promotion of the new countywide League.
"We are looking forward to meeting with organizations and individuals throughout the county to establish our new countywide League," explained Davis League President Michelle Famula. "We will seek members from an array of communities, including the cities of Winters and West Sacramento, towns across the Capay Valley region, and those residing in the rural county areas.
"We welcome every community's voice and are joining together in the hope that a greater diversity of community needs can be met," Famula stated.
Added Urbano, "We also plan to reach out to youth groups and those working with seniors or those who speak another language primarily."
The League of Women Voters is a non-partisan, grassroots, national organization, dedicated to local voter education and empowering citizens to shape better communities for over 100 years.
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