Mission:
The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.

The League of Women Voters works to improve our systems of government and impact public policies through citizen education and advocacy. The League is strictly nonpartisan; it neither supports nor opposes candidates for office at any level of government. At the same time, the League is wholeheartedly political and works to influence policy through advocacy.

History:
The League of Women Voters was founded by Carrie Chapman Catt in 1920 at the last convention of the National American Woman Suffrage Association, six months prior to the passage of the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution granting women the right to vote.

The League began as a "mighty political experiment" designed to help 20 million women carry out their new responsibilities as voters. From the beginning, the League has been an activist, grassroots organization that believes that citizens should play a critical role in shaping public policy. It was then, and is now, a nonpartisan organization, neither supporting nor opposing candidates or political parties at any level of government. Its basic purpose is "to make democracy work for all citizens" via voter education, and to influence policy through advocacy.

The League of Women Voters of Delaware was founded in 1921 with members from Dover, Middletown, Milford, Smyrna, Delmar, Georgetown and Newark. The new state League held its first Convention in 1923; its early activities included voters service, work toward abolition of child labor and support of school construction. However, the League disbanded a few years later, then was reestablished in 1953 with the formation of the Newark and Wilmington Leagues. The Laurel League was formed in 1957 and reorganized as the Sussex County League in 1976. The Dover League, recognized in 1966, became the Kent County League in 2008. The Wilmington and Newark Leagues merged in 1994 to become the New Castle County League.