LWV event to explore money in politics

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An upcoming event in Bellingham will help attendees “follow the money” and find out who is spending money on political campaigns.

The League of Women Voters (LWV) of Bellingham/Whatcom County will be hosting a discussion about funding transparency in political campaigns on Saturday, November 16. The event will take place from 10 a.m. to noon at the Bellingham Unitarian Fellowship, 1207 Ellsworth Street, Bellingham.

Topics to be discussed include: who paid for the promotional candidate flyers mailed for the recent election; how Washington state responds to violations of campaign financing laws; and what citizens can do to make sure their voices are heard in the political process.

Doors will open at 9:30 a.m. for a social gathering, with a presentation and discussion to follow. Presenters will include public disclosure commissioner Anne Levinson. Levinson has served as a judge, as chair of the state’s utilities and transportation commission and in several roles for the city of Seattle, including legal counsel, chief of staff and deputy mayor for mayor Norm Rice.

Since retiring from the bench, Levinson has consulted for governments and courts, and has provided review and oversight of administrative police misconduct investigations. The Public Disclosure Commission is responsible for administering Washington’s campaign finance regulations and ensuring that the information is transparent to the public.

Other presenters will include Elise Orlick, an organizer and advocate who has worked on campaigns to separate money from politics, elevate the voices of small donors, simplify voter registration and bring transparency to state and federal government.

Orlick most recently worked as the state director of WashPIRG, a grassroots consumer advocacy organization. Prior to that, she was a democracy associate with U.S. PIRG working in Washington, D.C., where she led a federal campaign to overturn the Citizens United Supreme Court decision.

Eric Newman, chief litigation counsel for the antitrust division of the Washington State Office of the Attorney General, will also speak. Newman provides leadership and support to the office’s campaign finance unit.

For more information about the upcoming event, email info@lwvbellinghamwhatcom.org or call 360/927-4413.

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