Day One Agenda
Expert Discussion 1: Local Office: A Pivotal Pathway to Power
Time: 3:10-3:35pm ET
The decisions being made by elected officials at the local level have the power to impact our day-to-day lives. Local office is also a critical entry point for women getting involved in politics. Our first session of Day One will be a fireside chat with Liana Cassar, Interim Executive Director of Family Values @ Work, along with RepresentWomen's very own Programs and Partnerships Managers Victoria Pelletier and Tamaya Dennard on the realities and importance of women serving at the local office, drawing from their own experiences as city council members of their respective cities.
Panel: From Portland to Portland - Women Winning with Ranked Choice Voting
Time: 3:35-4:15pm ET
In ranked choice voting elections, women win. Our second session for Day One will feature women elected with ranked choice voting (RCV) from cities across the country. Marcela Miranda-Caballero, Executive Director of Cal RCV, will sit down with Amelia Powers Gardner, Utah County Commissioner (Utah State), Johanna Bencomo, City of Las Cruces (NM) Mayor Pro Tem,
April Fournier, At-Large City Councilor Portland Maine, and Candace Avalos, Portland City Councilor for District 1, to discuss their experiences and benefits of running for office with a ranked choice voting system.
Expert Discussion 2: From New York City to Alaska: Building the Movement From the Ground Up
Time: 4:15-4:55pm ET
After hearing directly from women elected with ranked choice voting, we will wrap up the day with another expert discussion on the effective ways to build the democracy reform movement, using New York City and Alaska as models. Ebonie Simpson, Executive Director of The New Majority NYC, will be joined by Grace Ramsey, Co-Executive Director of Democracy Rising and Juli Lucky, Executive Director of Alaskans for Better Elections to highlight key lessons learned from their engagement and education in local communities to successfully implement and defend ranked choice voting.
