Welcome to the League of Women Voters of Portland
The League of Women Voters of Portland is a nonpartisan political organization that promotes informed and active participation in government. Membership is open to all, men and women, who are interested in learning how the government operates and have a desire to make a difference.
The League of Women Voters of Portland is a nonpartisan political organization that promotes informed and active participation in government. Membership is open to all, men and women, who are interested in learning how the government operates and have a desire to make a difference.
Become an Informed Voter -- May 21 Election
Voters' Guide and VOTE411.org
League volunteers have prepared a nonpartisan Voters' Guide to provide information about the candidates and ballot measures on the ballot.
Streamline your voting research! Enter your residence address at VOTE411.org and it will create a customized Voters’ Guide with information for only those candidates and items on your ballot.
A limited number of paper copies of the Voters' Guide will be available at Multnomah County library branches and the Multnomah County Election Office.
You can also view or print the Voters' Guide from your home computer: Portland Edition (PDF, 419 KB)
Ballot Measure Forum
The League of Women Voters of Portland organized a forum for three local ballot measures on April 2. If you missed the forum, you can still watch a replay on local access cable television or view it online.
Candidate Forum: Portland Public School District Directors
All five candidates for Portland Public School District Director attended a candidate forum sponsored by the LWV of Portland and Community and Parents for Public Schools. If you missed the forum, you can still watch a replay on local access cable television or view it online.
April General Meeting: Taxation - The Realities of Paying for Government
Co-sponsored by Reed College and Oregon Center for Public Policy
Our April General Meeting focused on state and local taxation systems; how they began and evolved and the continuing challenge of crafting policies and revenue systems that can pay for our government.
Speakers:
- Jon Rork, Professor of Economics, Reed College
- Jules Bailey, Oregon State Representative, District 42 (southeast Portland)
- Jason Gettel, Policy Analyst, Oregon Center for Public Policy
If you missed the meeting, you can view it online here or you can view it on local access cable:
MetroEast Community Media (East Multnomah County)
Saturday, 5/18, 5:00 pm -- Comcast 21/Frontier 32
Thursday, 5/23, 11:30 pm -- Comcast 11/Frontier 22
Portland Community Media (Portland)
Tuesday, 5/14, 6:00 pm -- Comcast 30
Monday, 5/20, 10:00 pm -- Comcast 30
March General Meeting: The Future of Affordable Rental Housing in the Portland Market
Co-sponsored by Oregon Opportunity Network and Center for Real Estate, School of Business Administration, Portland State University
Our March meeting examined, with public policy and housing industry leaders, the dimensions of our rental housing problem for low and moderate income individuals and families. We also explored innovations and incentives that can potentially address problems going forward.
Speakers:- Traci Manning, Director, Portland Housing Bureau
- Gerard Mildner, Ph.D., Academic Director, Center for Real Estate, PSU
- Martha McLennan, Executive Director, Northwest Housing Alternatives
- J. Daniel Steffey, Senior Vice President, Guardian Real Estate Services LLC
If you missed the meeting, you can watch it on the web here.
Directory of Elected Officials, 2013-2015 Multnomah County Edition
League volunteers have completed their update of the Directory of Elected Officials, 2013-2015 Multnomah County Edition. View the information online or print the PDF to assemble into a booklet. A limited number of paper copies will be available. Contact the League Office at 503-228-1675 or info@lwvpdx.org to request your copy.
February General Meeting: Oregon Learns - The Future of Education in Oregon
Governor Kitzhaber last year began a program to redesign education in Oregon: its structure, content and most of all its outcomes. On February 12, a panel of speakers discussed the details of the Governor's program, the research behind it, how a major employer views change in education, and a Portland educator's views on accomplishing its goals.
Speakers:
- Ben Cannon, Education Policy Advisor to Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber, Rhodes Scholar and former Oregon State Representative.
- John Tapogna, President, ECONorthwest, author of the analysis that is the foundation for much of the Governor’s program.
- Maureen Fallt, leads workforce planning efforts for Portland General Electric and administers management development and diversity programs for the company.
- Robert C. Stewart, Superintendent of the Gladstone School District, founder of the Gladstone Center for Children and Families.
If you missed the meeting, you can watch it on the web.
January General Meeting: Criminal Justice in Oregon
We had a very interesting and lively presentation by Les Zaitz, Senior Investigative Reporter for The Oregonian at our media lunch on January 8. The lunch was lovely and tasty.
Here is a link to the Pew report that he suggested that we read.
You can also read some of the articles that he has written recently for The Oregonian on the Oregon prison system:
- Commission points way to major Oregon prison savings, requiring Measure 11 changes
- Oregon still forecasting more inmates, plans hundreds of new prison beds
- Hard choices: Big part of Oregon prison budget is all locked up
You may also be interested in his series of special reports on the Rajneeshees—as more information came up 25 years later.
November General Meeting: Riding the Next Wave - The Future of Oregon's Coast
Oregon’s coastal and nearshore waters are an important part of Oregon’s identity. Citizens across Oregon are asked to make decisions that impact the coastline, but often do not understand the economic and natural resources issues of the coastal area. Our expert panel discussed forging a balance between technology advances and the integrity of our natural resources while ensuring coastal communities thrive. Topics of particular interest included marine reserves, wave energy, ocean science and the coastal economy.
Speakers included Susan Allen, Pew Environmental Group, Manager for Our Oceans and marine conservation representative on Oregon’s Territorial Sea Plan; Jim Martin, Conservation Director for the Berkley Conservation Institute, a branch of Pure Fishing and 30 years with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife; Robin Hartman, Ocean Program Director for Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition and member of the Oregon Wave Energy Trust board of directors, chairing the Trust’s ecological committee; Brian N. Tissot, Professor, School of the Environment, Associate Director, Graduate Education and Research, College of Arts and Sciences, Washington State University, Vancouver.
The League of Women Voters of Oregon recently published a report, Coastal and Nearshore Oregon: Using and Protecting Our Natural Resources (PDF, 2.68 MB), that provides useful background.
If you missed the meeting, you can watch on-demand here on your computer.
October General Meeting: 
Can Government Entities Work Together? Problem Solving in the 21st Century
On October 9, panelists helped the League examine the expanding role of government in meeting the needs of citizens. How and why has the government role in people's lives grown? How do government entities work together? What is the future of government and problem solving in the 21st century?
The panel included Professor Phillip J. Cooper, Professor of Public Administration in the Hatfield School of Government at Portland State University; Professor Erin Ryan, Associate Professor of Law at the Northwestern School of Law of Lewis and Clark College and Rich Muza, Remedial Project Manager, Superfund Program, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
If you missed the meeting, you can watch the program from your computer.
