League of Woman Voters of Northampton Area

LWV WILL BE THERE. WILL YOU JOIN US ON MARCH 28?

When authoritarian efforts escalate, we must organize to stop them. The No Kings Coalition is acting RIGHT NOW, continuing to mobilize across the country for our new historic day of action on MARCH 28. Learn more.

STAND UP, SPEAK OUT, AND DEMAND AN END TO THESE HEINOUS ACTIONS.

CONGRESS: FEDERAL IMMIGRATION ENFORCEMENT HAS GONE TOO FAR  Click on ‘Write your letter here.” No agency or elected official is above the law. Democracy cannot endure when its government uses violence to silence dissent and evade accountability.  

  • Reject additional funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), or immigration detention;
  • Take steps to protect the constitutional rights of civilians to peacefully protest and assemble without having their lives threatened or taken. and more…

SEND LETTER TO CONGRESS: NO ONE IS ABOUVE THE LAW

Mobilizing in tens of thousands with protests, walkouts, boycotts, community support efforts, and more, we must continue to act. Now is the time for the voice of the people to rise up and hold our elected leaders in Congress and the White House accountable for their actions or lack thereof. Urge Congress to take action NOW TAKE ACTION HERE. Click on “Write your letter here.’

LWVMA Statement on 2026 Ballot Questions for the November 3 election

LWVMA statement on 2026 ballot questions The LWVMA Board votes to support, oppose, or take no position on specific ballot questions based on positions or goals previously researched and adopted by the League. LWVMA does not endorse political parties or candidates, but does advocate for issues that the organization has studied and taken a position on after consensus from members.

LWVMA supports the following Ballot Questions: Election Day Registration, Law to Improve Access to Public Records, Zoning of Single-Family Homes.

LWV also supports a YES vote on the referendum to repeal firearms laws passed in the last legislative session. A YES vote keeps the legislation intact.

LWV opposes the following Ballot Questions: Limiting State Tax Collection Growth and Returning Surpluses to Taxpayers, Reducing the State Personal Income Tax Rate from 5% to 4%.

LWVMA takes no position on the following ballot questions: Implement All-Party State Primaries “Top 2,” Act to reform and regulate legislative stipends, Nature for All Fund, Protect Tenants buy Limiting Rent Increases, Labor Relations Policies for Committee for Public Counsel Services Employees, Recriminalize marijuana.

 

Read article, “Single-payer health care just needs vote,” Gazette, 4/5/25 here.                      Write to your Senators and Reps and ask them to co-sponsor the bill, which does not rely on federal funds. The following are co-sponsors as of 4/6: Senators Comerford, Mark, Gomez, Olivera, and Rep Sabadosa. 

REVISE CHAPTER 70 FUNDING FOR PUBLIC SCHOOLS: Contact your legislators

Write to your Representative and Senator about the critical need to revise Chapter 70 Funding. Northampton, Amherst, Holyoke school systems can’t balance their budgets for 2026, and are considering cutting teachers and programs because of insufficient Ch.70 Funds.

LWVMA Where We Stand, p 39 calls for adjustment of the state’s education funding formula (the foundation budget formula) to meet changing needs and to cover costs, including those associated with mandated programs (2017)

Excellent slide show Overview of Chapter 70 Funding for Education by the Mass Municipal Association.

 

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion League Policy

The Northampton Area League is fully committed to ensure compliance – in principle and in practice – with LWVUS Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Policy.

1/21/2024 LWV DEI Policy: Discrimination or harassment of any kind will not be accepted within the League, including but not limited to race, socio-economic status, age, ability status, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, gender identity, or marital status. The League is committed to fostering, cultivating, and preserving a culture of diversity, equity, inclusion, access, and belonging for all people. The League is an organization that respects and values the richness of our community and our members. The collective sum of our individual differences and life experiences represents not only our culture, but our reputation and the organization’s mission and achievements as well.

Historical Posters and Photos are now in the 100th Anniversary Folder

View historical photos, events, and resources here.

 

 

 

 

 

Congress: Uphold the Constitution and protect our elections

LWV Condemns President Trump’s Call to “Nationalize” elections 2/4/26

“Calls to ‘nationalize’ elections, effectively shifting control from local to federal authorities, are deeply concerning, especially when paired with proposals to ‘take over’ voting in at least 15 jurisdictions…This is about exerting control where election results are politically unfavorable to the President. This is a dangerous precedent: manipulating who runs elections based on outcomes should alarm every American.   

“We call on our leaders to reject this rhetoric and ensure that our elections remain free, fair, and secure from political interference.

LWVUS BLASTS THE EPA IN OPPOSITION TO REMOVING GHG CONTROLS AND EMISSIONS REPORTS

LWVUS sent two urgent letters to the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Lee Zeldin. The letters (Sept. & Nov. 2025) were in strong opposition to rule changes that would: 1. rescind the 2009 Endangerment Finding, which is the legal foundation used to control all greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and 2. eliminate reporting GHG emissions by fossil fuel industries. Simply abandoning their mandate from Congress to control GHG emissions and to measure them won’t make climate change go away!  EPA’s proposed rules are not supported by robust scientific evidence and EPA’s economic rationale for the proposed rules is specious. 

“Eliminating the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) will not save Americans money as EPA claims, but rather, will result in the loss of billions of dollars in economic investment, tens of thousands of jobs, and America’s place as a leader in innovation, leaving Americans wholly unprepared to meet the challenges of the twenty-first century.”

Send email to your members of Congress: SUPPORT VOTING RIGHTS LAW

Tell your members of Congress to protect the freedom to vote and support the passage of the JOHN LEWIS VOTING RIGHTS ADVANCEMENT ACT. Use this LWVUS form to send the letter. Click on Write your letters.

Every day, the freedom to vote is under attack. Since the 2013 Supreme Court decision in Shelby County v. Holder gutted the Voting Rights Act (VRA), at least 31 states have enacted 114 voting laws that make it harder to vote, with the burden falling hardest on Black voters and other voters of color. We need a fully restored VRA to defend our democracy and protect the freedom to vote.

Congress has introduced the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act, which would require citizenship documentation to register to vote even though voters in every state are already required to affirm or verify their citizenship status when registering.
Americans do not need MORE obstacles to vote. Tell your representatives to say NO to the SAVE ACT.

 

Rep. Sabadosa, other pols again co-sponsor ‘Medicare for All’ bill

Rep. Sabadosa, other pols again co-sponsor ‘Medicare for All’ bill, Hampshire Gazette, 2/3/2025

 

Click to watch Northampton LWV member, Chris Flory, discuss Medicare for All in MA.