Annette Hall; Ex-President of League of Women Voters

Annette Hall, veteran spokeswoman and former president of the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles, who headed its popular preelection ballot information programs, has died. She was 78.

Hall died Thursday in her home in Reseda, said Xandra Kayden, the league president.

The still-active Hall was first vice president of the Inter-League Organization of the Leagues of Women Voters in Los Angeles County at the time of her death.

She was also heading a league study on the San Fernando Valley’s proposed secession from Los Angeles, aimed toward enabling the league to take a stand on the controversial issue.

President of the league from 1993 to 1997, Hall personified the league’s policy of providing information on all sides of an issue and providing voters with information about candidates and measures without telling them how to vote. During her tenure, she established an ongoing relationship with the Los Angeles Housing Authority to conduct elections for their various developments.

She served for many years as the league’s voter service director with the responsibility of publishing the election guides, and she was a popular league speaker on ballot measures, providing unbiased analyses to organizations throughout the city. Hall also developed a reputation as an unflappable moderator of candidate forums arranged by the league.

“Although soft-spoken, her direct, calm manner and wry sense of humor helped her cut through to the heart of many issues,” Kayden said, “and also stood her in good stead as a leader in the league . . . for almost 50 years.”

Kayden praised Hall for her “evenhandedness and willingness to take on difficult tasks.” Among the many issues Hall had studied was homelessness, which enabled the league to become an advocate for the homeless.

Hall’s efforts were recognized in 1996, when she received the Woman of the Year Award of the Tri-Valley District of Business and Professional Womens Clubs.

Born in Minnesota and raised in Glendale, Hall attended Glendale College, UCLA, San Jose State and Cal State Northridge. She worked in aerospace and banking.

A widow, Hall is survived by one of her two sons, David Hall; a sister, and several nieces and nephews.