Reaching Out, Checking In (Plus Action for Voting, Legislative Update)

Dear Friends, Partners, and Allies, 

We know it’s been a while, but we wanted to reach out, connect, and check-in with you. Since we were last in touch, our lives and our work has been significantly upended by the coronavirus pandemic and the necessary demand to stay home, and it’s hard to know what to say in times like these. It hardly seems adequate to say we hope you and your loved ones are well and that you are taking steps to protect yourself and your community.

We hope you are finding meaningful ways to connect with and check-in with one another in these times of physical distancing. (While we need to be physically distanced right now, we need to build more social connection!) 

Most Americans are now having to consider alarming issues that we don’t normally have to face each day. Our inboxes and newsfeeds are inundated with tips on how to stay healthy in both body and spirit while trying to navigate stay-at-home orders, work layoffs, and fears for the health of our families and communities.

Beyond washing your hands often for 20 seconds at a time and maintaining physical distance from others, several oft-repeated tips include checking up on others by phone and digital means, setting daily goals, and deepening the sense of purpose you create for your life by your actions and activities.

Heeding that advice, we want to share with you an easy action you can take to make sure your voice is heard in the upcoming election. This week, Governor Justice announced that he is using his emergency powers to delay the primary until June 9, past the anticipated peak of the coronavirus outbreak. Below we’ve included important deadlines to keep in mind with the new election date and details on how you can cast your ballot safely from home. 

As public and private entities are taking significant steps to prevent a flood of cases that would overwhelm our health care system, we also wanted to share an update on the COVID-19 response for West Virginia’s criminal justice system and the urgent need to take action to minimize the harm inflicted on inmates and correctional staff in West Virginia – and, by extension, the harm inflicted on our communities. 

And finally, although it feels like it was ages ago, we wanted to share a bit of good news by way of a legislative wrap-up. 

That’s it for now, but please stay tuned and stay in touch. Many of us are struggling with the unknowns in front of us, but we’ll pull through this by pulling together, continuing to look out for community, and continuing to take action. 

Sincerely,

Julie Archer
Project Manager, WV Citizen Action Group (WV CAG)
Coordinator, WV Citizens for Clean Elections

Vivian Stockman
Executive Director, Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition (OVEC)

Absentee Voting Available to Anyone During the Coronavirus Emergency
The threat of COVID-19 is greater today than it was in June when West Virginia voters proved that voting by mail works. West Virginia voters can still use the pandemic as a reason to vote absentee, but they’ll need to take the extra step of going online or calling their county clerk to request an absentee ballot application. More here and at GoVoteWV.com.
Tagged: Clean Elections, Health, Voting Rights, WV Supreme Court

COVID-19 Response for WV’s Criminal Justice System
What can be done to reduce the unique threat the COVID-19 virus poses to those who are incarcerated? An urgent response is needed from our Governor to prevent a severe COVID-19 outbreak that would put at risk the lives of inmates, correctional officers, their families, and jeopardize our health care system’s overall capacity to respond to this pandemic. West Virginia's criminal justice reform coalition, led by our friends at AFSC, is advocating for an urgent COVID-19 plan for the state's criminal justice system.
Tagged: Criminal Justice, Fair Courts, Health

WV House Rejects New Court Sought by Powerful Special Interests
If you were one of the people who responded to calls to action from WV Citizens for Clean Elections Coalition and our partners and allies during the 2020 WV Legislative Session, thank you! You helped defeat a bad bill sought by powerful special interests. Besides the intermediate court of appeals, there were also multiple constitutional amendments proposed that would have undermined the independence of the courts. We must continue to fight these attacks and push for increased transparency in our elections and the adoption of strong recusal standards to remove political pressure and conflicts of interest from our courts.
Tagged: Dark Money, Disclosure, Fair Courts, Judicial Independence, Transparency