Democracy Forum

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, Lisa Leaverton, Ann Luther, Rick Lyles, Judith Lyles, Wendilee O’Brien, Maryann Ogonowski, emerita, Lane Sturtevant, Leah Taylor, and Linda Washburn. Democracy Forum: Participatory Democracy, encouraging citizens to take an active role in government and politics This month: Ballot Questions: Whose Initiatives Are They? We’ll talk about the citizen initiative process in Maine: the sheer number of them, the money behind them, their strengths and shortcomings, home-grown vs. “from away.” How does the initiative process work, and how is it working for Maine? Can ordinary citizens can still run a ballot question? Guest/s: Shenna Bellows, Maine Secretary of State Todd Donovan, Professor of Political Science, Western Washington University To learn more about this topic: As