LAS CRUCES---The League of Women Voters of Southern New Mexico (LWVSNM) is accepting nominations for the 4th annual Making Democracy Work Award. The award is given annually in February to recognize outstanding projects or activities that strengthen democracy, said the League’s co-presidents.

“The League wants to honor the efforts and volunteerism by individuals in southern New Mexico or by a small group of individuals that bolster our democracy,” said Jo Galván Nash, co-president.

Nominations are being accepted through Feb. 3, 2024. The honoree(s) will be recognized by the League and will receive a $250. cash prize. If a group is selected for the honor, the participants will share the prize. The nominee and the nominator must both reside within one of the following Southern New Mexico counties: Doña Ana, Otero, Sierra, Luna or Grant, she added.

The award nomination form and the award’s criteria are located on the League’s website at www.lwvsnm.org . The completed form be downloaded and emailed to lwvsnm@gmail.com  or sent in the mail to LWVSNM, P.O. Box 15142, Las Cruces, NM 88004. Current members of the League may nominate someone but are not eligible to receive the award, officials said.

Nash said the nomination form requires a description of how someone has been strengthening the democracy, and must include an explanation of how the nominee incorporated the principles of justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion, which are central principles adopted by the League.

The 2024 winner(s) will be selected by the League’s Board of Directors. It will be announced by February 14, the anniversary date of the creation of the League of Women Voters in 1920.

NOMINATIONS ADD ONE
Past honorees are: 2023 - Robyn Holmes, Otero County Clerk; 2022 - Mary Carter, Executive Director of the Women’s Intercultural Center located in Anthony, NM; and 2021 - Jamie Patterson and Josie Miller, academic content specialists from the Las Cruces Public Schools (LCPS), and Jamey Rickman, former community engagement manager for the City of Las Cruces.

The national League of Women Voters began the “Making Democracy Work” campaign in the late 1990s, to maintain the strength of our representative democracy in the hands of the people at every level of government. It focused on voter participation, campaign finance reform, diversity of representation, civic education and knowledge, and civic participation.

For more information, click on www.lwvsnm.org / or call 575-524-VOTE (8683).