Voter Service Report 2012

Educating young people and new citizens about the voting process was an exciting addition to Voter Service in 2012. LWVPA also registered voters, compiled Voters' Guides for each of our municipalities, and arranged debates. Superstorm Sandy interfered with some of our plans; still, Voter Service had its most active year. Without the many members who took part, such service would have been impossible. Read more:

Voter Education

    • Voting 101 workshop, June 3, a Sunday afternoon, Princeton Public Library in collaboration with the library, Human Services Commission, and Latin American Task Force. Purpose: to take new citizens and new voters step-by-step through the voting process.
    • Sandy Smith was interviewed on Princeton Community TV's “Politics, Policy and People in New Jersey,” hosted by Ingrid Reed and Michele Tuck-Ponder. Purpose: to explain the League's mission and outline its plans for supporting the 2012 election.
    • Voting Information Sessions in collaboration with YWCA, a reprise of Voting 101. Sandy, Nancy Hall and Chrystal Schivell explained the voting process to ESL and Citizenship classes of 20+ students at each of two sessions. We handed out approximately 40 registration forms and Voter Protection Hotline tri-folds.
    • WW-P High School North – Sandy Smith spoke to two AP classes and encouraged students to register themselves and others and gave out 20 forms.
    • Ewing Girl Scouts – Lee Forbes gave a voting workshop for their Behind the Ballot badge .
    • University Medical Center of Princeton in Plainsboro (UMCPP) - Workshop for hospital volunteers assigned to take patients' applications for Vote-by-Mail ballots to county clerks on November 5th and deliver completed ballots on Election Day.
    • Princeton's Rock the Vote – a non-partisan rock concert in collaboration with Princeton Public Library, the Record Exchange, and Democratic and Republican parties. Purpose: to get out the vote.
    • Rotary Club – A presentation to the club about the League's mission, at their invitation, was given by Linda Mather in January, 2013.

Voter Registration

    • Princeton's National Night Out, August 7 – Networked with various organizations and gave forms to Princeton Senior Resource Center, Homefront, and later to Princeton Community Housing.
    • Women's Equality Day, August 26 in collaboration with YWCA. None registered.
    • West Windsor – Gave out 59 registration forms and 89 vote-by-mail applications over five Saturdays in September at the West Windsor Farmers Market.
    • Montgomery – Registered three at Stonebridge. Registered three, gave out six forms and four vote-by-mail applications at the Montgomery Farmers' Market on statewide registration day.
    • Princeton – Registered two, handed out 21 registration forms and 22 vote-by-mail applications at McCaffrey's on statewide registration day.
    • Princeton High School Girl Scout Leader took 70 forms for Scouts to distribute at Princeton High.
    • Princeton Farmers' Market - Registered three, gave out seven registration forms and several vote-by-mail applications over two days. A form was taken at the mayoral debate.

Candidate Information

Voters Guides for the Plainsboro, Montgomery, Princeton, and South Brunswick municipal contests and for South Brunswick Board of Education and the 16th Legislative District were posted on the LWVPA website. Although the South Brunswick Post was able to publish our Guides, Superstorm Sandy canceled their publication in The Packet. The information was given to Princeton Patch and other online media.

Debates

    • The Princeton Mayoral Debate hosted by The Jewish Center, Nassau Street, was held October 11 and attended by approximately 300 voters. Video was posted on the League site and at Princeton Community TV and AllPrinceton.com.
    • A proposed debate among candidates for South Brunswick Township Council was canceled because the two parties could not agree on a date.
    • A proposed 16th Legislative District, originally scheduled for October 2 in Princeton, was taken over by the Somerset Member-At-Large (MAL) Unit at the request of a candidate. The debate was canceled by the arrival of Superstorm Sandy.
    • A 12th Congressional District studio debate between Rush Holt and Eric Beck was turned down. That debate was co-sponsored by every League in the 12th District. When the Holt campaign suggested instead a live debate at a venue centrally located in the district, Princeton LWV turned it over to Monmouth and Hightstown-East Windsor to organize, but it never took place.