Expert Discussion 1: Deep Dive on Alaska

Time: 3:05-3:30pm ET

In 2022, Alaska used ranked choice voting statewide for the very first time. We will kick off Day One with a live fireside chat between US Senator Lisa Murkowski (AK), US Representative Mary Peltola (AK), and Alaska State Senator Cathy Giessel all about the impact ranked choice voting has had on democracy and representation in Alaska, and why the "Alaska model" is so important for voters during this presidential election year.

Expert Discussion 2: The Women Funding the Movement

Time: 3:30-4:10pm ET

The work to strengthen our democracy wouldn't be possible without the investment of generous donors. Historically, due to centuries of systemic barriers and cultural practices, philanthropy has been dominated by men. This has a significant impact on what is deemed a priority, and which solutions are considered worth investment. At RepresentWomen, we want to shift that narrative and highlight the women who are investing in bold and innovative solutions where our country needs them most. Our second session of Day One will be a fireside chat between Winny Chen, Associate Director for the Governance program at Democracy Fund, Kathryn Murdoch, co-founder and President of the Quadrivium Foundation, and Laura Arnold, co-founder of Arnold Ventures, who will share their funding philosophies and why investing in voting reform is so important.

Immediately following that conversation, Erika Wood, Senior Program Officer at the Ford Foundation, and Emily Lockwood of Pivotal Ventures will highlight some practical ways funders can get involved in this work.

Take Action Panel: 2024 Ranked Choice Voting Ballot Measures and How You Can Get Involved

Time: 4:10-4:55pm ET

We will wrap up the day by bringing it close to home with a panel conversation with the leaders of a few key RCV ballot measure campaigns that are happening as we speak. It just so happens that the leaders of these campaigns are all women! (Are we really that surprised?) Diane Silver, Advocacy Manager at FairVote, will sit down with Sol Mora of RCV Oregon and Lisa Rice of the Making All Voices Count effort in Washington, DC, to hear what we need to know about these campaigns, how things are going, and how we can get involved. We are also hoping to hear from the Colorado effort and the Alaska protect-the-win effort!

EXPERT DISCUSSION 1: DEEP DIVE ON ALASKA

Senator Lisa Murkowski

Lisa Murkowski, Alaska’s senior U.S. Senator, is a third generation Alaskan proudly serving as the first Alaskan born senator. Murkowski was born in Ketchikan and raised in towns across the state, including Wrangell, Juneau, Fairbanks, and Anchorage.

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Representative Mary Peltola

Mary Sattler Peltola is a Yup’ik Eskimo, salmon advocate, and Democrat who represented the Bethel region in the Alaska House of Representatives for 10 years. As a lawmaker, Mary helped rebuild the Bush Caucus that improved lives in rural Alaska under her tenure as Chair. 

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State Senator Cathy Giessel

AK State Senator Cathy Giessel was born & raised in the community of Fairbanks, and in the Territory of Alaska. She has served in the State Senate from 2011 through 2020, and again from 2023 to present. She served as Senate president from 2019 through 2020, and her focus has been on state resource development, health topics, arctic issues, and budget.

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Amy Walter

Amy Walter is the Publisher and Editor-In-Chief of The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter. For more than 25 years, Amy Walter has built a reputation as an accurate, objective, and insightful political analyst with unparalleled access to campaign insiders and decision-makers.

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EXPERT DISCUSSION 2: THE WOMEN FUNDING THE MOVEMENT

Winny Chen

Associate Director for the Governance program at Democracy Fund

Winny Chen is the Associate Director for the Governance program at Democracy Fund, an independent foundation working to ensure that our political system is able to withstand new challenges and deliver on its promise to the American people.

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Laura Arnold

Philanthropist and co-founder of Arnold Ventures

Laura Arnold, born Laura Munoz, is an American philanthropist and activist. Together with her husband, the retired hedge fund manager John D. Arnold, she is the co-founder of the Laura and John Arnold Foundation and the grantmaking organization Arnold Ventures.

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Kathryn Murdoch

Co-Founder and President of the Quadrivium Foundation

Kathryn Murdoch is co-founder and president of Quadrivium, which supports practical, evidence-based solutions for critical societal problems. Kathryn currently serves on the boards of Unite America, the Climate Leadership Council and Climate Central. She is a founding board member of SciLine and co-chairs the Oceans and Communications committees as a trustee of the Environmental Defense Fund.

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TAKE ACTION PANEL: 2024 RANKED CHOICE VOTING BALLOT MEASURES

Diane Silver

Advocacy Manager at FairVote

Diane Silver is FairVote's Advocacy Manager, working to expand support for national ranked choice voting legislation as well as capacity building for state and local RCV efforts.

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Sol Mora

Political Director at Oregon Ranked Choice Voting Advocates

Sol Mora was born in Tijuana, Mexico, and grew up in Salem, Oregon. Sol is the Political Director at Oregon Ranked Choice Voting Advocates, working to pass RCV statewide this year.

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Lisa Rice

Make All Votes Count (Washington, DC)

Lisa is a political strategist, passionate about reform and political innovation. She is active in bringing productive change to U.S. politics.

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Alliana Salanguit

Deputy Director for Alaskans for Better Elections

Alliana Salanguit is the Deputy Director for Alaskans for Better Elections. Alaskans for Better Elections is a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to providing public education and research about how Alaska-style elections work. The 501(c)(3) foundation and 501(c)(4) corporation are governed by directors that include Alaskans with diverse political views from every corner of the state.

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