Volunteering with the League

The League of Women Voters of Metropolitan Phoenix is an all-volunteer membership organization. This means that every member is encouraged to be actively involved with any number of League events and programs. Member participation is the key to League effectiveness! Whatever your interest or expertise, we have a place for you to contribute your time and talents.

As a member, the first thing you can do is talk to your friends and family. Share the newsletters and other information provided by the League. If you can, donate or urge your friends and family to donate.  Grow the League by inviting family and friends to join. And finally, follow us on social media and share our posts. More importantly, we invite you to join a committee, attend the meetings and participate fully in the committee’s work. Listed below are descriptions of specific volunteer opportunities.  If any of these pique your interest or you would like more information, please contact us at infolwvmp@gmail.com

 

Voter Services

The League of Women Voters provides a key role in educating and registering citizens to become voters!  Listed below are the many functions filled by Voter Services volunteers:

Youth Voter Program: Our Youth Voter Program seeks to help young people understand why it is important to vote. Volunteers are needed to educate students and build awareness of how the political process of voting brings about change that can impact their lives. 

Voter Registration: Throughout the year, the Voter Services team hosts voter registration tables at various festivals, neighborhoods and public events in Metro Phoenix. Volunteers are needed to help at these “tabling” events. The team also needs Lead Captains who can take responsibility for an individual event and work with the Voter Services chair to make sure that volunteers have all of the materials and information needed for a successful event. You can also become a trained Deputy Registrar to register voters at monthly naturalization ceremonies. This program is offered in partnership with the Maricopa County Recorder's Office. If you’re interested in being a Lead Captain or Deputy Registrar email voterslwvmp@gmail.com

Get-out-the-Vote Campaigns: In campaign years, the League actively contacts voters urging them to exercise their right to vote. This program requires hundreds of volunteers to phone voters and text voters, write postcards and canvass neighborhoods. 

 

VOTE411 Team

Vote411.org is the League’s premier online voter guide providing accurate, timely, and balanced information about candidates and ballot measures to Arizona voters. In order to publish up-to-date voter information, volunteers are needed to:  

Identify Races and Candidates: Volunteers identify the candidates for all federal, state, county and local races, and collect their contact information. Research strategies and scripts for phone calls and emails are provided. 

Write Candidate Questions: Members with diverse perspectives craft position-specific questions that reflect the issues most important to voters. Guidelines and sample questions are provided.

Ballot Measure Analysis and Description: A small team of volunteers reads the state ballot measures and distills the language into easy-to-understand arguments for and against the measures. 

Operational Support: Volunteers help with publicity, follow up with candidates, read proposed content for clarity, update Arizona voting requirements, assist with social media posts, and much more.

To volunteer on our VOTE411 Team, please email lwvazadvocacy@gmail.com

Communications & Technology

Social Media: Volunteers who are tech savvy and are experienced with social media are needed! Create a social media strategy and manage daily posts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, and Outreach Circle. 

Newsletters: We need help writing, editing, and emailing our monthly newsletter Members Matter and quarterly letter Voters Voice. Contact us today to help!  

Website: If you have experience with websites, we need assistance updating content. This won’t take much time as use a platform designed for associations like ours, Club Express. It is fully integrated with a member database, event calendar, email and blog functions, online payments, and more.  

Project Manager: Volunteers with experience in creative project management are needed. We are looking for someone to manage the overall communications request process to ensure timely delivery of creative content. 

Advocacy

At the local level we work to promote our positions and principles at the county, city and school district level. We actively monitor our elected officials by attending public meetings and report the results. In addition to Advocacy , we educate the public on issues with forums and debates; and contact elected officials to discuss specific bills. If you are interested in volunteering, please email  lwvazadvocacy@gmail.com

Observer Corp: Volunteers of the Observer Corps attend public meetings (in person or via Zoom) and observe how decisions are being made. The types of meetings range from City Council and School Board to the Water Board, the Corporation Commission, and more. Observers take note of what happens, and report back to the League. Local governments can move quickly, so as the eyes and ears of the League, you can help ensure we are holding our elected officials accountable.
Lobbying: League lobbying is an advocacy technique to influence specific legislation or policies of a government entity. It involves a concerted effort to advance public policies consistent with League positions. League Boards at every level set their own lobbying priorities. Legislative lobbying is organized and managed by the LWVAZ advocacy committee. With our close proximity to the state capitol, the LWVAZ advocacy committee leans heavily on LWVMP members to serve as volunteer lobbyists.  LWVUS and LWVAZ  public policy positions are the official statements for each issue area and are used by all Leagues in determining areas for advocacy and lobbying. 
Writing Articles: If you like writing advocacy articles about the local issues for which we have a League position, this is your opportunity to expand and amplify our advocacy work. 

Finance and Development
LWVMP is nonpartisan and self-funded, so we actively pursue financial support for our vital programming and advocacy work. Below are some of the fundraising opportunities for enthusiastic volunteers.
Grant Writers: Volunteers with expertise in grant writing are needed to help the League apply for various funding opportunities.  
Social Giving Lead:  A volunteer familiar with fundraising through social media is needed to lead the League efforts in this area. 
Event Planning Team: Consider joining the Events Team, which is an essential to fundraising and our future.  

If you are interested in volunteering on any of these teams, please contact infolwvmp@gmail.com and express your interest.

Debates and Forums 
Leagues across the nation are known for hosting nonpartisan Candidate Debates and Issues Forums. Volunteers are needed to plan and implement these special events. Tasks include researching candidates and gaining agreement to participate in a debate. We also need members to write meaningful questions for candidates. Ideally, questions are from diverse perspectives. The actual event requires more volunteers to serve as greeters, moderators, and timekeepers, and to handle set-up and take down. Training is provided.
Issues Forums require volunteers to arrange for a panel of experts and elected officials to discuss issues for which the League has a public policy position. Due to our deep roots and long history of nonpartisanship, communities across the country have put their trust in the League to host these events. 
Debates: We are often called on to moderate debates by community groups. The LWVMP moderates debates for county and municipal elections. The volunteers from LWVMP also work on LWVMP-organized candidate debates. We work in tandem with the community to publicize these events. 

Public Policies and Positions
The League adopts Public Policy Positions by studying issues, arriving at consensus for a new or revised position, or by concurrence with an existing position adopted by other state or local Leagues. The studies are conducted by League members. If research is your strength, this is the place for you.

Become a League Leader
After you have become familiar with our work, you are welcome to consider serving on the Board of Directors. The Board is elected by the membership to manage the activities of the League. These positions are elected for 2-year terms.