Democracy Forum WERU-FM

Host: Ann Luther, League of Women Voters of Maine Production Assistance: Joel Mann The mostly volunteer team at the League of Women Voters – Downeast who plan and coordinate this series includes: Martha Dickinson, Ruth Eveland, Michael Fisher, Starr Gilmartin, Maggie Harling, Ann Luther, Rick Lyles, Judith Lyles, Leah Taylor, and Linda Washburn. Democracy Forum: Participatory Democracy, encouraging citizens to take an active role in government and politics This month: Some of us thought we already had a right to vote. Where are we getting it wrong? How would a Constitutional Amendment help? What are the chances of getting it? Guest/s: – Dmitry Bam, Vice Dean/Provost, Professor of Law at the University of Maine School of Law mainelaw.maine.edu/faculty/profile/dmitry-bam/ – Rich Hasen, Professor of Law and Political Science at UCLA and Director of the Safeguarding Democracy Project. law.ucla.edu/faculty/faculty-profiles/richard-l-hasen To learn more about this topic: 1. Opinion | How Do You Teach Constitutional Law With This Supreme Court? | The New York Times, Jesse Wegman (NYT Editorial Board), February 2024, www.nytimes.com/2024/02/26/opinion/constitutional-law-crisis-supreme-court.html?unlocked_article_code=1.YU0.w0u6.v_LEsvakt-x-&smid=url-share 2. A Real Right to Vote: How a Constitutional Amendment Can Safeguard American Democracy, Rick Hasen, February 2024, press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691257716/a-real-right-to-vote 3. Opinion | The U.S. Lacks What Every Democracy Needs | New York Times, Rick Hasen, January 2024, messaging-custom-newsletters.nytimes.com/dynamic/render?campaign_id=39&emc=edit_ty_20240120&first_send=0&instance_id=113009&nl=opinion-today&paid_regi=1&productCode=TY&regi_id=112645860&segment_id=155858&te=1&uri=nyt%3A%2F%2Fnewsletter%2Fd53cac52-c68f-5cd1-9db9-35d6e9ee2ea2&user_id=89883f526c8e7fcdda54b38b8c9a217b 4. Does the Constitution Guarantee a Right to Vote? The Answer May Surprise You | New York Times, Michael Wines, October 2022, www.nytimes.com/article/voting-rights-constitution.html 5. The Right to Vote: Is the Amendment Game Worth the Candle? | William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal, Heather Gerken, October 2014, scholarship.law.wm.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?params=/context/wmborj/article/1704/&path_info=borj23_no1_p11_gerken.pdf   6. What Does the Constitution Say About the Right to Vote? – Democracy Docket, Mac Brower, February 2022, www.democracydocket.com/analysis/what-does-the-constitution-say-about-the-right-to-vote/ 7. The Missing Right: A Constitutional Right to Vote : Democracy Journal, Jonathan Soros, Spring 2013, democracyjournal.org/magazine/28/the-missing-right-a-constitutional-right-to-vote/ 8. What Does the Constitution Actually Say About Voting Rights? | The Atlantic, Garrett Epps, August, 2013, www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/08/what-does-the-constitution-actually-say-about-voting-rights/278782/ 9. The Right to Vote by Alexander Keyssar | Hachette Book Group, 2000, www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/alexander-keyssar/the-right-to-vote/9780465005024/?lens=basic-books 10. Voting rights laws and constitutional amendments | USAGov, www.usa.gov/voting-rights About the host: Ann currently serves as Treasurer of the League of Women Voters of Maine and leads the LWVME Advocacy Team. She served as President of LWVME from 2003 to 2007 and as co-president from 2007-2009. In her work for the League, Ann has worked for greater public understanding of public policy issues and for the League’s priority issues in Clean Elections & Campaign Finance Reform, Voting Rights, Ethics in Government, Ranked Choice Voting, and Repeal of Term Limits. Representing LWVME at Maine Citizens for Clean Elections, she served that coalition as co-president from 2006 to 2011. She remains on the board of MCCE and serves as Treasurer. She is active in the LWV-Downeast and hosts their monthly radio show, The Democracy Forum, on WERU FM Community Radio -which started out in 2004 as an recurring

Host: Ann Luther, League of Women Voters of Maine Production Assistance: Joel Mann The mostly volunteer team at the League of Women Voters – Downeast who plan and coordinate this series includes: Martha Dickinson, Claire Fox, Ruth Eveland, Michael Fisher, Claire Fox, Starr Gilmartin, Maggie Harling, Ann Luther, Rick Lyles, Judith Lyles, Wendilee O’Brien, Kathy Stark, Leah Taylor, and Linda Washburn. Democracy Forum: Participatory Democracy, encouraging citizens to take an active role in government and politics This month: We’ll talk about the Maine Clean Election Act — public funding for candidate campaigns– as we move through our third decade. How does our program work in Maine? What have been its benefits and disappointments? How do publicly financed elections fit into the practical landscape for campaign finance reform considering the current legal environment? What trends are we seeing in Maine and nationally? Guest/s: – Anna Kellar, Executive Director, Maine Citizens for Clean Elections www.lwvme.org/lwvme-staff – Ian Vandewalker, Special Counsel, Democracy, Brennan Center for Justice www.brennancenter.org/experts/ian-vandewalker To learn more about this topic: 1. RFK Jr.’s VP Pick and the Dangers of Self-Funded Campaigns | Brennan Center for Justice, Ian Vandewalker, March 2024 www.brennancenter.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/rfk-jrs-vp-pick-and-dangers-self-funded-campaigns 2. Maine considers expanding clean elections law to county candidates | Public News Service, February, 2024 www.publicnewsservice.org/2024-02-21/campaign-finance-reform-money-in-pol/maine-considers-expanding-clean-elections-law-to-county-candidates/a89001-1 3. Small Donor Public Financing Explained | Brennan Center for Justice, Mariana Paez and Ian Vandewalker, June 2023 www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/small-donor-public-financing-explained 4. 2023 Study Report on the MCEA | Maine Ethics Commission www.maine.gov/ethics/sites/maine.gov.ethics/files/inline-files/2023%20MCEA%20Study%20Report.pdf 5. MCEA Candidate Participation 2022 | Maine Ethics Commission www.maine.gov/ethics/sites/maine.gov.ethics/files/inline-files/2022%20MCEA%20Overview%20for%20VLA.pdf 6. Fight Over Clean Elections Act Won’t Be Over Anytime Soon And May Have Consequences In November | Maine Public, June 2018 www.mainepublic.org/politics/2018-06-27/fight-over-clean-elections-act-wont-be-over-anytime-soon-and-may-have-consequences-in-november 7. What is the Maine Clean Elections Law?, MCCE video explainer and fact sheet, www.mainecleanelections.org/cleanelections 8. Cleaning House? Assessing the Impact of Maine’s Clean Elections Act on Electoral Competitiveness | Maine Policy Review, 2012 digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1081&context=mpr 9. Maine “Clean Elections” Initiative, Question 1 (2015) – Ballotpedia ballotpedia.org/Maine_%22Clean_Elections%22_Initiative,_Question_1_(2015)#MCEA 10. Amplifying Small-Dollar Donors in the Citizens United Era | Common Cause www.commoncause.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/CT_SmallDonorDollar_Report_WEB.pdf About the host: Ann currently serves as Treasurer of the League of Women Voters of Maine and leads the LWVME Advocacy Team. She served as President of LWVME from 2003 to 2007 and as co-president from 2007-2009. In her work for the League, Ann has worked for greater public understanding of public policy issues and for the League’s priority issues in Clean Elections & Campaign Finance Reform, Voting Rights, Ethics in Government, Ranked Choice Voting, and Repeal of Term Limits. Representing LWVME at Maine Citizens for Clean Elections, she served that coalition as co-president from 2006 to 2011. She remains on the board of MCCE and serves as Treasurer. She is active in the LWV-Downeast and hosts their monthly radio show, The Democracy Forum, on WERU FM Community Radio -which started out in 2004 as an recurring special, and became a regular monthly program in 2012.

Host: Ann Luther, League of Women Voters of Maine Production Assistance: Joel Mann The mostly volunteer team at the League of Women Voters – Downeast who plan and coordinate this series includes: Martha Dickinson, Ruth Eveland, Michael Fisher, Claire Fox, Starr Gilmartin, Maggie Harling, Ann Luther, Rick Lyles, Judith Lyles, Wendilee O’Brien, Leah Taylor, and Linda Washburn. Democracy Forum: Participatory Democracy, encouraging citizens to take an active role in government and politics This month: We’ll revisit topics from our show in 2021, talking about the historical and contemporary links between labor organizing and expanding political rights like voting. Is union organizing an important, if not essential, tool in building a vibrant democracy – of people having a voice in their self-governance? What led to the demise of unions over the last half century? What have been the political consequences? Are unions making a comeback? Why is that? What new trends are emerging here in Maine? Guest/s: David Madland, Senior Fellow and senior adviser to the American Worker Project at the Center for American Progress www.americanprogress.org/people/madland-david/ Arthur Phillips, Economic Policy Analyst at the Maine Center for Economic Policy www.mecep.org/about/our-teams/ Cynthia Phinney, President of the Maine AFL-CIO. maineaflcio.org/content/32232 To learn more about this topic: 1. Americans’ views of labor unions | Pew Research Center, February, 2024, www.pewresearch.org/politics/2024/02/01/labor-unions/ 2. State worker union filing charges against Mills administration over pay gap | WGME, February, 2024, wgme.com/news/local/state-worker-union-filing-charges-against-mills-administration-over-pay-gap-maine-gov-janet-mills-low-wages-cost-of-living 3. USPS reschedules meeting on Hampden processing facility | WABI, February, 2024, www.wabi.tv/2024/02/01/usps-reschedules-meeting-hampden-processing-facility/ 4. Local union president shares concerns about proposed changes to Hampden USPS facility | WABI, January, 2024, www.wabi.tv/2024/01/18/local-union-president-shares-concerns-about-proposed-changes-hampden-usps-facility/?link_id=6&can_id=1905c6b9067a4b4bf8e189b166246f7a&source=email-new-take-action-re-mail-service-changes&email_referrer=email_2215388&email_subject=correction-re-mail-service-changes 5. Union membership grew last year, but only 10% of U.S. workers belong to a union | NPR, January, 2024, www.npr.org/2024/01/23/1226034366/labor-union-membership-uaw-hollywood-workers-strike-gallup 6. Maine’s labor movement sees big shift from small unions | Portland Press Herald, December, 2023, www.pressherald.com/2023/12/04/small-unions-drive-maines-labor-movement-forward/ 7. Maine farmworkers deserve equal rights | Bangor Daily News, Food and Medicine Op-ed, December, 2023, www.bangordailynews.com/2023/12/25/opinion/opinion-contributor/maine-farmworkers-equal-rights/ 8. UMaine System graduate-student workers win union certification | Mainebiz.biz, October, 2023, www.mainebiz.biz/article/umaine-system-graduate-student-workers-win-union-certification 9. Brief: The state of labor organizing in Maine | MECEP, September, 2023, www.mecep.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/The-state-of-labor-organizing-in-Maine-Labor-Day-2023.pdf 10. Why Government Unions—Unlike Trade Unions—Corrupt Democracy | TIME April, 2023, time.com/6267979/government-unions-corrupt-democracy/ 11. Chipotle agrees to pay $240 K after closing a store that sought to unionize | CBS, March, 2023, www.cbsnews.com/news/chipotle-union-settlement-closing-store-augusta-maine/ 12. Chipotle workers in Maine file for chain’s first union election | The Hill, June, 2022, thehill.com/business-a-lobbying/business-lobbying/3534270-chipotle-workers-in-maine-file-for-chains-first-union-election/ 13. House sustains veto of bill to allow Maine farm workers to unionize | Maine Public, January, 2022, www.mainepublic.org/politics/2022-01-26/house-sustains-veto-of-bill-to-allow-main

Host: Ann Luther, League of Women Voters of Maine The mostly volunteer team at the League of Women Voters – Downeast who plan and coordinate this series includes: Martha Dickinson, Michael Fisher, Claire Fox, Starr Gilmartin, Maggie Harling, Ann Luther, Rick Lyles, Judith Lyles, Wendilee O’Brien, Lane Sturtevant, Leah Taylor, and Linda Washburn. Democracy Forum: Participatory Democracy, encouraging citizens to take an active role in government and politics This month: We will talk about the history of the Electoral College and how it's working in the 21st century. What reforms are needed, and which are possible? What is the NPV compact, and how would it work? Is it right for Maine? Guest/s: Mike Saxl, former Speaker of the Maine House of Representatives and Managing Principal of Maine Street Solutions, the leading proponent of the National Popular Vote in Maine www.verrill-law.com/michael-v-saxl/ Kate Shaw, Professor of Law, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, co-host of the Supreme Court podcast Strict Scrutiny www.law.upenn.edu/faculty/kateshaw To learn more about this topic: Our View: It’s time to pick the president by national popular vote | Portland Press Herald, Editorial, January, 2024 www.pressherald.com/2024/01/14/our-view-its-time-to-pick-the-president-by-national-popular-vote-2/ No thanks to national popular vote | Bangor Daily News, Matt Gagnon op-ed, January, 2024, www.bangordailynews.com/2024/01/10/opinion/opinion-contributor/national-popular-vote-problems/ Arguments against national popular vote compact fall short | Bangor Daily News, Amy Fried op-ed, January, 2024, www.bangordailynews.com/2024/01/30/opinion/opinion-contributor/arguments-against-national-popular-vote-compact-fall-short-joam40zk0w/ Yarmouth representative pitches National Popular Vote plan | Spectrum News, January, 2024, spectrumlocalnews.com/me/maine/politics/2024/01/08/yarmouth-representative-pitches-national-popular-vote-plan-for-presidential-elections National Popular Vote | National Conference of State Legislatures, December, 2023, shows state-by-state passage, www.ncsl.org/elections-and-campaigns/national-popular-vote Majority of Americans continue to favor moving away from Electoral College | Pew Research, September, 2023, www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/09/25/majority-of-americans-continue-to-favor-moving-away-from-electoral-college/ “A Mystifying and Distorting Factor”: The Electoral College and American Democracy | Michigan Law Review, Katharine Shaw, 2022, repository.law.umich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=8442&context=mlr The National Popular Vote, Explained | Brennan Center for Justice, December, 2020, www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/national-popular-vote-explained?utm_medium=PANTHEON_STRIPPED&utm_source=PANTHEON_STRIPPED The Electoral College is flawed — so are the alternatives: Experts | ABC News, December, 2020, abcnews.go.com/Politics/electoral-college-flawed-alternatives/story?id=74708394 Why We Need A National Popular Vote | Robert Reich, m.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn8rWMVGlfQ About the host: Ann currently serves as Treasurer of the League of Women Voters of Maine and leads the LWVME Advocacy Team. She served as President of LWVME from 2003 to 2007 and as co-president from 2007-2009. In her work for the League, Ann has worked for greater public understanding of public policy issues and for the League’s priority issues in Clean Elections & Campaign Finance Reform, Voting Rights, Ethics in Government, Ranked Choice Voting, and Repeal of Term Limits. Representing LWVME at Maine Citizens for Clean Elections, she served that coalition as co-president from 2006 to 2011. She remains on the board of MCCE and serves as Treasurer. She is active in the LWV-Downeast and hosts their monthly radio show, The Democracy Forum, on WERU FM Community Radio -which started out in 2004 as an recurring special, and became a regular monthly program in 2012. She was the 2013 recipient of the Baldwin Award from

Host: Ann Luther, League of Women Voters of Maine The mostly volunteer team at the League of Women Voters – Downeast who plan and coordinate this series includes: Martha Dickinson, Michael Fisher, Claire Fox, Starr Gilmartin, Maggie Harling, Ann Luther, Rick Lyles, Judith Lyles, Wendilee O’Brien, Lane Sturtevant, Leah Taylor, and Linda Washburn. Democracy Forum: Participatory Democracy, encouraging citizens to take an active role in government and politics This month: We’ll talk about the roll-out of semi-open primaries. Maine will be running semi-open primaries for the first time in 2024. We’ll explain to voters what to expect and what important deadlines and new procedures may pertain. And we’ll talk about how semi-open primaries might affect voter behavior and election outcomes. Guest/s: Shenna Bellows, Maine Secretary of State www.maine.gov/sos/about/bio.html Jill Goldthwait, Hancock County journalist and political columnist, former Maine state senator (unenrolled) en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jill_Goldthwait Laurel Harbridge-Yong, Professor of Political Science; Faculty Fellow, Institute for Policy Research; Northwestern University www.ipr.northwestern.edu/who-we-are/faculty-experts/harbridge.html To learn more about this topic: 1. LWV Of Tennessee | League of Women Voters LWVTN sues over Bona Fide Primary Voting Law, November, 2023 www.lwv.org/newsroom/press-releases/lwvtn-tennessee-voters-file-federal-lawsuit-challenging-state-bona-fide 2. Understanding the Partisan Divide: How Demographics and Policy Views Shape Party Coalitions | New America, February, 2023 www.newamerica.org/political-reform/reports/understanding-the-partisan-divide/ 3. The Success Story Behind Maine’s Adoption of Semi-Open Primaries | Independent Voter News, August, 2022 ivn.us/posts/the-success-story-behind-maines-adoption-of-semi-open-primaries 4. State Primary Election Systems | National Council of State Legislators, June, 2021 documents.ncsl.org/wwwncsl/Elections/Primary-Types-Table_2021.pdf 5. Why Do Legislators Reject ‘Half-Loaf’ Compromises? | Northwestern Institute for Policy Research, April, 2020 www.ipr.northwestern.edu/news/2020/harbridge-yong-half-loaf-compromises.html 6. Rejecting Compromise: Legislators’ Fear of Primary Voters. Anderson, S., D. Butler, and Harbridge-Yong, Cambridge University Press, 2020 www.cambridge.org/core/books/rejecting-compromise/01F2DA900C72ACF02E1B3ECF4EED43D3 7. LWVME Study Guide on Primaries, 2017-2018 www.lwvme.org/sites/default/files/pdfs/Primary_Study_Guide.pdf 8. 9 media myths about independent voters, debunked | Vox, January 2016 www.vox.com/2016/1/22/10814522/independents-voters-facts-myths 9. How Do You Like Me Now? The desirability of Political Independence, Klar S, Krupnikov Y., Independent Politics: How American Disdain for Parties Leads to Political Inaction, Cambridge University Press, 2016. www.cambridge.org/core/books/abs/independent-politics/how-do-you-like-me-now-the-desirability-of-political-independence/312BD7BFCC87D43FFACADAA264E261FB About the host: Ann currently serves as Treasurer of the League of Women Voters of Maine and leads the LWVME Advocacy Team. She served as President of LWVME from 2003 to 2007 and as co-president from 2007-2009. In her work for the League, Ann has worked for greater public understanding of public policy issues and for the League’s priority issues in Clean Elections & Campaign Finance Reform, Voting Rights, Ethics in Government, Ranked Choice Voting, and Repeal of Term Limits. Representing LWVME at Maine Citizens for Clean Elections, she served that coalition as co-president from 2006 to 2011. She remains on the board of MCCE and serves as Treasurer. She is active in the LWV-Downeast and hosts their monthly radio show, The Democracy Forum, on WERU FM Community Radio -which started out in 2004 as an recurring special, and became a regular monthly program in 2012. She was the 2013 recipient of the Baldwin Award from the ACLU of Maine for her work

Host: Ann Luther, League of Women Voters of Maine The mostly volunteer team at the League of Women Voters – Downeast who plan and coordinate this series includes: Martha Dickinson, Michael Fisher, Starr Gilmartin, Maggie Harling, Ann Luther, Rick Lyles, Judith Lyles, Wendilee O’Brien, Lane Sturtevant, Leah Taylor, and Linda Washburn. Democracy Forum: Participatory Democracy, encouraging citizens to take an active role in government and politics This month: We’ll talk about what happened in the November 7 election. Who were the winners and losers, and what does it mean for the future? Guest/s: Shenna Bellows, Maine Secretary of State www.maine.gov/sos/about/bio.html Michael Shepherd, Political Editor at the Bangor Daily News www.bangordailynews.com/author/mshepherd/ To learn more about this topic: Mike Shepherd in the BDN www.bangordailynews.com/2023/11/08/politics/maine-2023-election-surprises-n6hjn1me0n/?mc_cid=3b4ae1f6a5&mc_eid=a2b49da37d www.bangordailynews.com/2023/11/08/morning-update/here-are-results-of-the-biggest-maine-races-from-tuesdays-election/ www.pressherald.com/2023-election/ www.vote411.org/ www.maine.gov/sos/cec/elec/upcoming/ballotquestionsnov2023.html 2023 Citizen’s Guide to the Referendum Election www.maine.gov/sos/cec/elec/upcoming/pdf/citizensguide23.pdf www.mainepublic.org/tags/political-pulse archives.weru.org/democracy-forum/2023/10/democracy-forum-10-20-23-yikes-8-ballot-questions/ archives.weru.org/democracy-forum/2023/04/democracy-forum-4-21-23-ballot-questions-whose-initiatives-are-they/ About the host: Ann currently serves as Treasurer of the League of Women Voters of Maine and leads the LWVME Advocacy Team. She served as President of LWVME from 2003 to 2007 and as co-president from 2007-2009. In her work for the League, Ann has worked for greater public understanding of public policy issues and for the League’s priority issues in Clean Elections & Campaign Finance Reform, Voting Rights, Ethics in Government, Ranked Choice Voting, and Repeal of Term Limits. Representing LWVME at Maine Citizens for Clean Elections, she served that coalition as co-president from 2006 to 2011. She remains on the board of MCCE and serves as Treasurer. She is active in the LWV-Downeast and hosts their monthly radio show, The Democracy Forum, on WERU FM Community Radio -which started out in 2004 as an recurring special, and became a regular monthly program in 2012. She was the 2013 recipient of the Baldwin Award from the ACLU of Maine for her work on voting rights and elections. She joined the League in 1998 when she retired as Senior Vice President at SEI Investments. Ann was a founder of the MDI Restorative Justice Program, 1999 – 2000, and served on its Executive Board.