Candidates’ Forum Set for October 20
On October 20th, the League of Women Voters of Yakima County is hosting a Candidates’ Forum for all 6 candidates running for the Yakima Board of County Commissioners – this will be the first time all 3 seats are up for election at the same time offering a unique perspective we have never seen before.
The League of Women Voters has a long history of hosting nonpartisan candidate forums and educating the American people. Every election season, Leagues across the country hold hundreds of candidate debates and forums to help voters learn about the candidates on their ballot. Attending or watching a candidate forum is one of the best ways to prepare for casting your ballot. As a core feature of U.S. politics, candidate forums help voters learn more about a candidate and their stance on key issues.
- Candidate debates help us get informed and learn more about the candidates: Forums help voters cut through the noise and get the facts by hearing firsthand about a candidate’s views and plans. Research even shows that attending a debate or forum can impact your vote, and that Americans are more likely to vote when they feel informed about the candidates.
- Forums provide us with an opportunity for us to ask the hard questions: Forum moderators often take questions from the audience, which means that you have the chance to ask candidates – publicly and on the record – about the issues that matter most to you. We have a right to have our voices represented in government, and candidate forums help us ask the questions to determine the candidate that best reflects our concerns.
- Democracy works best when we engage with it: When you watch a forum and discuss it with the people around you – including coworkers, classmates, friends, and family – you’re helping foster important dialogue about the issues that affect our lives.
- The candidates that we vote into office will make important decisions that affect you, your family, and your community: The people we elect this November will make decisions that affect issues like the economy, education, security, health care and more. Election Day is just around the corner; now is the time for all of us to get the information we need to cast a ballot in the 2022 elections.
Come be a part of the process of shaping our community. Attend the forum:
– In person at 6:30 PM at Yakima City Hall Council Chambers at 129 North Second Street
– Online with live stream at https://www.yakimawa.gov/council/live-stream/
– Through Y-PAC on 194 Spectrum Cable or on Y-PAC website.
League Connects with Public at Yakima Farmers’ Market
Having a booth at the Downtown Yakima Farmers’ Market was a great success thanks to Kitty Jubran, Criss Bardill, Janis Luvaas, Steve Hill, and Deborah Severtson-Coffin – all of whom volunteered to talk to members, answer questions, and enjoy the sounds of the market.
Over the 8 weekends we were there, we interacted with almost 200 individuals which resulted in 70 membership applications being handed out, 2 new members and 31 new people added to our Friends of the League distribution list. Volunteers also registered 5 new voters and answered scores of questions.
A great big thank you to the members who stopped by to say hi and ask about our upcoming forum. I look forward to doing this again next year!
Lee Murdock, League President
