January 2026

The Tony Award®-winning Suffs comes to TPAC this March! Written and composed by Shaina Taub, this acclaimed musical tells the powerful story of the American women who fought for the right to vote. Through passion, persistence, and sacrifice, Suffs shines a light on the leaders and unsung heroes of the suffrage movement in a struggle that still resonates today. Please click here to purchase your ticket. You can also use promo code: LWVSUFFS2026

Tune in with League of Women Voters from across the state for a special joint Hot Topic conversation as we hear from LWVTN lobbyist, Courtney Atnip, on what we can expect from the upcoming legislative session.

Time: 6:30 PM CT

February's feature speaker will be Deborah Fisher, the Executive Director of the Tennessee Coalition for Open Government. This non-partisan, non-profit organization advocates for citizen access to government information in Tennessee’s state and local governments. Ms. Fisher also serves as part-time Director of the John Siegenthaler Chair of Excellence in First Amendment Studies at MTSU.

To mark the first day of the 2026 Legislative Session, League members hand-delivered copies of the U.S. Constitution to members of the Tennessee General Assembly to welcome them back to office!

On Monday, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Kalen and State President, Debby Gould, partnered with the YWCA to share materials during the annual MLK Day Convocation.

As we begin a new year, we invite you to make a renewed commitment to civic engagement. With 2026 being an election year, the League will be ramping up our work in voter education, voter registration, and voter engagement—and we will be calling on our members to step up alongside one another to help defend our democracy. In the coming weeks, we’ll be announcing volunteer opportunities and hope you’ll find a way to get involved that fits your time and interests.

We also encourage you to connect our mission to the history that inspires it. Don’t forget to get your tickets to Suffs at TPAC this March, a powerful reminder of the fight for voting rights and why our work matters today. And please save the date for our Civic Soiree on March 14, 2026, a chance to gather during Women’s History Month, build community, and support the League’s continued growth.

Thank you for your commitment to the League and for standing with us in this critical year ahead.

The January Hot Topic will be a combined conversation with other Leagues across the state of Tennessee. We will hear from our state lobbyist, Courtney Atnip, who will share her perspectives on the upcoming legislative session. The time and date for the January Hot Topic will be announced in the coming weeks.

League of Women Voters of Nashville members will receive a private invitation via email.

Save the date for the League of Women Voters of Nashville Civic Soiree, March 14, 2026! Our upcoming fundraiser will take place during Women's History Month and serve as a way to build connections, celebrate our legacy, and build our resolve for continued growth. 

Tickets will be available for purchase soon. All are welcome to attend.

Absentee Ballots:
Absentee Ballots can be requested starting 90 days before an election date. Once you request an absentee ballot, you may not vote in person. Completed absentee ballots, by state law, must be mailed. You cannot bring it to a poll. There are instructions on which post office you may bring a ballot if you are late.

Registering to Vote:
You must be registered to vote in your county at least 30 days before the election date. You can register to vote online, and/or check your registration status at GoVoteTN.gov. Another useful site is Nashville.gov.

If you move out of the county, you must register to vote in your new county.

If you register to vote online or by mail, you must appear in person to vote in the first election after registration. If you are going away to college, make sure you vote in person before you leave, or go to the election commission to get your ID verified in person before you leave town. There is another way to get your ID verified after you leave town, but it’s complicated.

Voting In Person:
You must show a Tennessee or Federal photo ID to vote in person. Most people show a Tennessee driver’s license or a US passport.
If you move within the county, you can update your address online or at the poll.

Additional Notes:
Always respond to any mailers requesting information from the election commission.

Starting February 2, Nashville Waste Services will shift to a new residential trash and recycling collection schedule. Customers will continue to receive weekly trash pickup and every other week recycling pickup; it just might be on a new day, or your recycling pickup might be on a new week.

Residents can look up their new collection day using our New Pickup Day Lookup Tool and can see their full schedule starting in February using the pickup calendar on the Nashville Waste and Recycling App available in your mobile app store or on our website.

Residents should also look out for:

This change is about serving a growing city and will make collection smarter and improve service efficiency.

“I remember the child on the 4th floor of Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital when I walked into her room to take care of her in 1974. She was 5 years old but in an infant crib, smeared with feces, crying, non-
verbal, and suffering from congenital rubella syndrome. I did my best to care for her, swearing that I would do all I could to ensure other children would not suffer from vaccine-preventable diseases. Many
other vaccines have since been developed, preventing the deadly and debilitating infectious diseases that I saw as a young nurse.” (Patti Scott, DNP, RN, PNP, NCSN-e)

Rubella is part of the MMR vaccine (Measles, Mumps, Rubella), given at 12-15 months and 4-6 years of age. It is demonstrated to be safe and does not cause autism. But the fear and subsequent misinformation have impacted vaccine recommendations.

The Trump administration recently overhauled the childhood vaccination schedule by cutting recommended shots to 11, though the recommended list still includes a measles shot for children.

Herd immunity is the threshold that is considered necessary to contain the spread of a vaccine-preventable disease. Only one county (Lake County) in Tennessee meets the herd immunity threshold for measles (95% or greater) with vaccination rates for other TN kindergarteners far below the 95% mark. Nashville recently logged its first confirmed measles case in 20 years. Fewer than half of all Williamson County kindergarteners were vaccinated against the disease. This tells us that the misinformation affects our
children and our state.

As a group that promotes voting and speaking out, please let your families, friends, and community know that vaccines are safe and necessary for a healthy Tennessee.

Immunizations are one of the greatest public health achievements, preventing tens of thousands of deaths, millions of cases of disease, and saving billions of dollars per decade. Immunizations are a safe,
effective way to protect children from disease, including some cancers, as well as hospitalization, disability, and death. It is especially important to maintain routine immunizations to prevent a disease outbreak, public health emergency or future pandemic.

The Tennessean recently reported that, while one of Tennessee's private school voucher programs grew over the last three years, a new state report reveals shortcomings in the taxpayer-funded program, known as Education Savings Accounts, or ESA.

A Jan. 5 report from the Tennessee Comptroller's Office of Research and Education Accountability offered the first-ever formal review of the program, which took effect in the 2022-23 school year after a yearslong legal battle delayed its implementation. Read the full report through the link below.

In most of the country, including Tennessee, voting rights are lost after a felony conviction. Policies for when and how rights may be restored vary widely, with Tennessee's process among the most complicated in the country.

321,942 Tennesseans have lost their right to vote since 1996. A new report from ThinkTennessee explores the massive scale of disenfranchisement in our state and the financial hurdles still standing in the way of restoration. Read the full report through the link below.

Co-Presidents: Ophelia Doe and Kathryn Anderson

1st Vice Presidents: Karen Hernan and Ethel Detch

Secretary: Ethel Detch

Treasurer: Susan Mattson

Nominating Committee Members:

Betsy Walkup

Constance Caldwell

Hasina Mohyuddin

June Bond

Brenda Wynn

Portfolio Chairs

Communications: Yolonda Beech

Community Connections: Sabina Mohyuddin & Leona Edwards

Education: Dr. Patricia H. Brock, Dr. Leslie Cowell, and MaKenzie Mosby

Environment: Kelley Knott-Sandifer, Simone Chhut, Carynton Howard, and Catherine Price

Health Care/Public Health:  Harper-Grace Niedermeyer and Ashudee Kirk 

Membership: Reba Holmes, Dani Sheree Ross, and Dylan Schlesinger

Metro Government:  Pat McCauley and Brenda Haywood

Voter Services: Sue Johnson

Williamson County Representative:  June Bond

Nominating Committee Chair: Senator Brenda Gilmore 

LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS NASHVILLE
Box 158369, Nashville, Tennessee 37215

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contact@lwvnashville.org

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The League is proud to be non-partisan, neither supporting nor opposing candidates or political parties at any level of government, but always working on vital issues of concern to their members and the public. The League works to encourage informed and active participation in government and to influence public policy through education and advocacy.

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