Greetings from M Street!

I am looking forward to meeting many of you at the League's 47th National Convention in Minneapolis, June 9-13. It is just a few weeks away! Right now on M Street, besides our usual range of activities, we are in the midst of final preparations.

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As I usually do in this message, I am highlighting just some of our many ongoing LWVUS/EF activities and some that we have completed since I last wrote. You will be able to read more about what is happening in other sections of this Voter (particularly the Education Fund and Advocacy news in the League Matters section, and Hill Bulletin).

In the area of election reform, the League recently received a grant from the government of the District of Columbia to undertake education around the country about DC citizens' lack of full voting rights and full self-government. In early April, the League, together with the Campaign Legal Center and the Council for Excellence in Government, hosted a conference about strategies for redistricting reform across the country. League leaders from five states (CA, FL, NY, OH, PA) shared their knowledge, and outside pollsters stressed the importance of the involvement of the League in the passage of such reforms.

The League's three-year (2006-09) project, Safeguarding the U.S. Democracy: Promoting an Independent Judiciary by Defending the U.S. Constitution, now has 237 state and local Leagues organizing programs in 23 states.

The League was very active during Sunshine Week 2006. The LWVEF co-sponsored an event at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, and many Leagues hosted highly successful community forums on the theme of "Openness in Government: Looking for the Sunshine." Copies of a new resource guide, Looking for Sunshine: Protecting Your Right to Know, were provided to all Leagues. Some copies are still available (see ad on outside back cover).

In April we kicked off the first phase of the two-year exchange project, Kenyans Working Together for Good Governance. We welcomed a group of six Kenyans for a week's orientation before they traveled to their two host Leagues.

This issue of the magazine focuses on "serving the voter." The feature articles all relate to issues of concern to the League. The piece on polling places is based on a larger work that will be published on our Web site. The one on new barriers covers developments in election administration policymaking that are hindering eligible voters' access to the polls. The third feature, on the Voting Rights Act, provides background information on the importance of reauthorization efforts.

Nancy E. Tate,

LWVUS Executive Director