June Primary Election

Tuesday, June 25, 2024

Tuesday, June 25, 2024 is Primary Election Day in New York State. Remember to check your voter registration status for this Primary Election on the New York State Portal. You may register to vote on any business day of the year, but your New York State Voter Registration Form must be received by June 15, 2024 in order to vote in the Primary Election.  

For detailed registration information visit https://elections.ny.gov/register-vote. 

• In-Person Voting: Election Day and Early Voting

Tuesday, June 25, 2024 (Primary Election Day): In person voting only at a voter’s assigned polling location.

Early voting is possible from Saturday, June 15, 2024 through Sunday, June 23, 2024 at any of the early primary voting polling locations in Westchester County during specified times.   

• Early Mail and Absentee Ballot Information

Voters may cast Early Mail or Absentee Ballots for this election. For detailed information about Early Mail and Absentee Ballot voting visit 2024 June Primary Election | LWVS or the Westchester County Board of Elections site (Request an Election Ballot).

For questions regarding voting or the elections, please contact the LWVS Voter Service Chair.

LWVW Online Candidate Forums for June Primary

The League of Women Voters of Westchester will be hosting moderated online candidate forums for countywide contested races in the June Primary, offering voters an opportunity to hear directly from the candidates. To date, forums have been scheduled for the Westchester County District Attorney Democratic race and the U.S. Congressional District 16 Democratic race. Registration is required to attend these online forums.

• Westchester County District Attorney Democratic Primary Online Forum

Tuesday, June 4, 2024, at 7 pm via Zoom

A LWVW-trained moderator who resides outside Westchester County will pose questions to Democratic Primary candidates Susan Cacace, Adeel Mirza, and William Wagstaff III. 

More information about this forum, a registration link, and a form to submit a question for the candidates can be found here: Democratic Candidate Forum for Westchester County District Attorney | MyLO. Note that the deadline for submitting an audience question is TODAY, Saturday June 1. 

• U.S. Congressional District 16 Democratic Primary

Monday, June 10, 2024, at 7 pm via Zoom

A LWVW-trained moderator who resides outside U.S. Congressional District 16 will pose questions to Democratic Primary candidates Representative Jamaal Bowman and County Executive George Latimer. Registration is required in order to receive the Zoom link.

More information about this forum, a registration link, and a form to submit a question for the candidates can be found here: Democratic Candidate Forum for U.S. Congressional District 16 | MyLO. Note that the deadline for submitting an audience question is Friday, June 7.

ERA Update: NY ERA Removed from Ballot (for now)

Earlier this month, a Rochester judge ruled that the State Senate made a procedural error when approving the Equal Rights Amendment. This ruling removed the NY ERA amendment from the November ballot.

The plaintiff is an outgoing State Assembly Member (Marjorie Byrnes). Byrnes argued that the NY State Senate did not follow the procedure laid out in Section 19 Article 1 of the State Constitution, which explains how to amend the state Constitution. The piece they are highlighting is that the Senate voted in a special session before receiving the opinion from the AG.

More than a dozen constitutional amendments have proceeded in this exact manner in the last 50 years — and all made it on the ballot. 

We are confident this lawsuit will be overturned on appeal. The AG has already appealed this to a higher court. We do not foresee a scenario where the opportunity for New Yorkers to vote on the amendment is meaningfully impacted or impeded. This November, New Yorkers will be able to vote on the ERA to protect our rights and freedoms. Our focus will remain on educating and empowering voters so that they can vote to pass this amendment in 2024.

The 2024 election cycle is underway, and the primary elections are only the start of a highly anticipated election year. As currently scheduled, the primary elections for District Attorney and for US Congressional Districts will take place on Tuesday, June 25, 2024. Online candidate forums for both races are scheduled and are an opportunity to stay informed and engaged. 

Our success in youth engagement and new voter registration continues. This year we sent two high school students to the Students Inside Albany program. The feedback we received regarding the program from both participants and the organizers is inspiring. Also, both Scarsdale and New Rochelle leagues helped register eligible student voters from Tuckahoe High School. It continues to be a privilege to support our young people’s understanding and role of our country’s political process. We hope to be in other Westchester County high schools through the month of June.

This year has been filled with engagement and advocacy work and we are very thankful for all of your support. It is through your participation as members that we are able to serve our community.

In this issue of the bulletin, we thank the many generous community members whose donations and engagement serve to support our important work and I want to add my personal thanks. I would also like to formally congratulate our new 2024-25 Board members and look forward to working closely with all of you during the next year.

Please note that our 2024-25 Membership Drive will take place at the end of the summer. I welcome the entire community – any local resident who is interested – to join the League of Women Voters of Scarsdale. Please email me with any questions about League Membership.

I wish all of you a wonderful summer. Stay engaged, stay informed, and most importantly, VOTE!

My warmest regards,

Heedan Chung

June

• 6/4, Tuesday:
• 7:00 p.m. Candidate Forum for District Attorney, Zoom
• 6/6, Thursday:
• 5:00 p.m. LWVW Annual Convention, Manhattanville College
• 6/10, Monday:
• 9:15 a.m. Joint Old/New Board Meeting, Scarsdale Public Library
• 7:00 p.m. Candidate Forum for CD 16, Zoom
• 6/15, Saturday - 6/23, Sunday:
• Early Voting for June Primary
• 6/25, Tuesday:
• June Primary

LWVS Annual Meeting



On Friday May 3, LWVS hosted our Annual Meeting and Spring Luncheon at Scarsdale Golf Club. At the meeting, we successfully voted in our Proposed Annual Budget for 2024-25, Proposed LWVS Bylaws Amendments (markup with changes highlighted and clean version), our Proposed Local Program for 2024-25, and our Proposed Slate of Officers, Board Members and off-Board Nominating Committee Members for 2024-25. 

Our luncheon speaker was Jon Elsen, Scarsdale High School alumnus and the new Editor-in-Chief and Co-Publisher of The Rye Record, a newspaper in Rye, N.Y. We appreciated his perspective on the state of local news and democracy, particularly in light of the loss of our Scarsdale Inquirer. He was an extremely engaging speaker, and very open with sharing his experiences and knowledge in how to run a local print and web publication serving a community very similar to Scarsdale.

LWVS Book Discussion

North Woods 

by Daniel Mason

On May 14, a number of League members gathered in a private home to discuss North Woods by Daniel Mason. The book discussion was lively, with all participants sharing their insightful thoughts on this novel, which spanned 400 years and was grounded in a house in western Massachusetts. 

The group discussed the many themes raised in the book, including the relationship between man and nature, the connection between truth and insanity, and the passage of time and the cycle of life. The form of the novel and the writing style were also examined, especially in light of the author's background as a psychiatrist. Almost all present thoroughly enjoyed the book, although another felt disconnected from the characters, none of whom she found appealing. The intergenerational makeup of the group and diversity of experiences added much depth to the conversation.

Edgemont Junior Senior High School student Maya Barmecha and Scarsdale High School student Mason Levy were selected to attend the 2024 Students Inside Albany program, sponsored by the League of Women Voters of New York State Education Foundation, Inc. and the League of Women Voters of Scarsdale.

The 24th annual Students Inside Albany program took place from May 19-22, 2024, and brought 59 students from across the state to Albany to get a first-hand education about their state government. The program is designed to increase high school students' awareness of their responsibility in representative government and provide information about the tools necessary for meeting that responsibility.

Follow these links to read about their experiences:

• Maya Barmecha
• Mason Levy

LWVW Annual Convention

Thursday, June 6, 2024

5pm to 8pm

Manhattanville University, East Library in Reid Castle

2900 Purchase Street

Purchase, NY 10577

Featured Speaker:

Sasha Neha Ahuja, Campaign Director for New Yorkers for Equal Rights

Topic:

New York Equal Rights Amendment Kicks into Higher Gear

Meet other local league members within Westchester County, hear what LWVW has accomplished this past year, learn what is on the horizon for 2024-25, vote on the program and budget for next year, install the incoming leadership team, and enjoy the speaker and buffet supper.

LWVW's 2024 Directory of Officials

Now Available for Purchase!

This year's Directory of Officials for Westchester County contains new content, including social media, email addresses, URLs for streaming of public governmental meetings, legislative district maps and charts, and more.

Price: $9/each

If interested in a bulk purchase of 50 or more copies, please contact Kathy Meany.

To pay by mail, please make check payable to LWV of Westchester Education Foundation, send to the address below, and print clearly the name and address where the directory should be sent.

LWV of Westchester

520 White Plains Road, Suite 500

Tarrytown, NY 10591

Thank You

The LWVS thrives with the hard work and dedication of a community of volunteers. I would like to extend thanks to the League volunteers who contributed much time and energy during the month of May.

Thanks to my terrific Executive Committee–Jenny Simon Tabak, Anne Lyons, Diane Baylor, Dana Matsushita, and Erika Rublin– for your wise counsel and support throughout this year. Thank you Erika for all of your dedicated work as Treasurer. I will miss you on the board and miss working with you. Jenny and Anne, I will miss you on the Executive Committee but are thankful you are continuing on the board.

Thank you so much to all the people that made our festive Annual Meeting and Luncheon successful - Anne Lyons and Erika Rublin for your incredible planning, Diane Baylor for serving as Parliamentarian, and Dana Matsushita for acting as Recording Secretary.

Thanks to Kathy Gray for your work on Voter Service to keep our community informed and engaged. Thanks to Diane Baylor for your careful and detailed work as recording secretary and webmaster. Thanks to Dana Matsushita for keeping the community informed through the bulletin, e-blast communications, and social media postings.   

Thanks to Kitt Rosenthal for being a liaison to the LWVW. Thanks to Jenny Simon Tabak for all of your hard work as the membership statistician. Thanks to Dalya Khan for leading us in a wonderful, lively discussion of North Woods and to Shilpa Spencer for opening up your lovely home. Thanks to Abigail Ruane for keeping us abreast of the important ERA work of the League.

Thank you Diane Baylor, for all of your work as Chair of the Bylaws, Policies & Procedures Committee and thank you committee members Kathy Gray, Susan Lee, Dana Matsushita, Deb Morel, and Amber Yusuf. 

Thank you 2024 Nominating Committee chair Alissa Baum and committee members Kerry Hayes, Susan Lee, Laura Liu, and Diksha Mudbhary for all of your work in creating an amazing board for 2024-2025. Thank you 2025 Nominating Committee Chair Amber Yusuf and committee members Jeannie Rosenthal and Erika Rublin.

Thank you continuing board members Diane Baylor, Kathy Gray, Dalya Khan, Susan Lee, Anne Lyons, Dana Matsushita, Nan Eileen Mead, Diksha Mudbhary, Kitt Rosenthal, Abigail Ruane, Jyoti Ruta, Shilpa Spencer, and Jenny Simon Tabak. Your commitment, collective dedication and institutional knowledge is immeasurable. Thank you to outgoing board member Cindy Yau for your years of service to the League.

Thank you incoming board members Debbie Bhatt, Trish Chen, May Cowan, Beth Cukier, Lauren Grossberg, and Rokaya Hassaballa. We are thankful for your commitment of time, knowledge, and energy as we continue to grow and serve our community. 

Finally, a special thanks to all of our members who attended our Annual Meeting, to hear from Jon Elsen, Editor-in-Chief and Co-Publisher of the Rye Record. And thank you Jon - your perspective on the future of local newspaper publishing was informative and engaging.

I look forward to the important work that lies before us!

All my best,

Heedan Chung 

Thank You For Your Support

FRIENDS:

• Heedan Chung-Goh and Richard Goh, Lisa and Jordan Copeland, Leah and David Dembitzer, Cynthia and Timothy Dunne, Dara Gruenberg, Dana Matsushita and David Siegel, Debra and H. Robert Miller, Deborah Morel and Michael Shuster, Abigail and Alex Ruane, Beatrice Sevcik Gibney and Tony Gibney, Irena Spiegel and Jeffrey Turner, Janice and Ira Starr, Elaine Weiler, and Jessica Zellner and Jason Polevoy

SUFFRAGISTS:

• Nancy Adler, Joan and David Bowen, Madelaine Eppenstein, Jennifer and Leonard Gruenberg, Diane Gurden, Suzie Hahn, Anne Janiak, Mary Pat Jones, Michelle and Frank Lichtenberg, Nancy and David Michaels, June Reidenberg, Elissa Ruback, Suzanne Seiden, and Joanne Wallenstein

LIFE MEMBERS:

• Harriet Sobol and Evelyn Stock

NEW MEMBERS:

• Maya Barmecha, Susi Coplan, Kathy Gray, Liza Levy, Laura Liu, Natalie Nudelman, Samina Malik, Jennifer Pappalardo, Irena Spiegel and Jeffrey Turner, Marsha Winston-Fayer

Finally, thank you to all the members who contributed to our Annual Finance Drive. Your generosity is greatly appreciated!

• Marcia Cardarelli, Denice and Ernest Collazo, Leona Kern, Deb Pekarek, Elizabeth Pforzheimer, Linda Plattus, Kitt Rosenthal, The Charles S. Raizen Foundation, Adie Shore, Margaret and Larry Smith, Evelyn Stock, Jane Veron, and Elaine Weiler.

Village of Scarsdale

As of May 31, 2024

Board of Trustees

Justin Arest, Mayor

  Term ends April 2025

Dara Gruenberg, Deputy Mayor

  1st term ends April 2025

Sameer Ahuja

  1st term ends April 2025

Karen Brew

  2nd term ends April 2025

Jeremy Gans

  2nd term ends April 2026

Ken Mazer

  2nd term ends April 2026

Jeremy Wise

1st term ends April 2026

Board of Education

Ronald Schulhof, President

  2nd term ends June 2025

Suzie Hahn, Vice President

  1st term ends June 2025

Colleen Brown

  1st term ends June 2025

Jim Dugan

  1st term ends June 2024

Robert Klein

  2nd term ends June 2026

Jessica Resnick-Ault

  1st term ends June 2024

Amber Yusuf

   2nd term ends June 2026

League of Women Voters of Scarsdale

2023-24

Officers

President: Heedan Chung

LWVSpresident@gmail.com

First Vice President: Jenny Simon Tabak

Second Vice President: Anne Lyons

Recording Secretary: Diane Baylor

LWVSrecsecretary@gmail.com

Corresponding Secretary: Dana Matsushita

LWVScommunications@gmail.com

Treasurer: Erika Rublin

LWVStreasury@gmail.com

2023-24 Elected Board Members

Dalya Khan

Susan Lee

Nan Eileen Mead

Diksha Mudbhary

Jyoti Ruta

Shilpa Spencer

Cindy Yau

2023-24 Appointed Board Members

Kathy Gray

Kitt Rosenthal

Abigail Ruane

Committee Chairs

Advocacy: TBD

Audit: Amber Yusuf (Off-Board)

Book Group: Dalya Khan

Budget: Nancy Michaels (Off-Board) 

Bylaws, Policies, and Procedures: Diane Baylor

Communications:

• Bulletin Editor: Dana Matsushita 
• Eblast: Dana Matsushita  
• Publicity: Heedan Chung
• Social Media: Dana Matsushita 
• Website: Diane Baylor 

Development/Finance Drive: Anne Lyons

Environment/Sustainability: Shilpa Spencer

Hospitality: Kitt Rosenthal

Local Budgets:

• School Budget: Dalya Khan and Nan Eileen Mead 
• Village Budget: Shilpa Spencer 

Local Election Systems:

• School Election: Diksha Mudbhary 
• Village Election: Diane Baylor 

Luncheons: Anne Lyons

LWVW Liaison: Kitt Rosenthal

Membership: Diksha Mudbhary 

• Membership Statistician: Jenny Simon Tabak 

Nominating Chair: Alissa Baum (Off-Board) 

Planning and Zoning: Shilpa Spencer

Program/Education: Cindy Yau

Voter Service: Kathy Gray

• Candidate Forum(s)
• Naturalization Court
• Voter Registration Drive(s)

Youth Engagement:

• Civics Jeopardy: Susan Lee
• Mock Election: Susan Lee
• Students Inside Albany: Cindy Yau

Democracy is Not a Spectator Sport –

Get Involved!

The League of Women Voters

Creating A More Perfect Democracy 

For Over 100 Years

The League of Women Voters of Scarsdale (LWVS) is a volunteer nonpartisan political organization which promotes political responsibility through informed and active participation of citizens in government. The League is nonpartisan in that it does not support or oppose any candidate for public office; it is political in that it takes positions on selected governmental issues after serious member study and consensus.