The entire community is encouraged to attend the debate.
(SALEM, Ore.) - Salem and surrounding communities are invited to come together at Hudson Hall on the Willamette University campus for one evening on February 26th and hear the opinions and thoughts of those running in the 2008 City Election.
The 7:00 PM event will see incumbent Mayor Janet Taylor and challenger Lloyd Chapman as well as two candidates for Salem City Council who are scheduled to participate.
"We will ask the candidates hard questions about many diverse topics," Salem Monthly Newspaper Publisher A.P. Walther said. "As a community newspaper, we feel we can play a vital role in bringing all of the community together this election season. We can provide a platform for voters to hear directly from the candidates."
Walther says that it is important for this community to become more involved in its city politics.
"Last year only about one-third of voters even cast a vote for mayor. We're hoping this forum helps change that. We're hoping people get involved this year."
Salem Monthly Assistant Editor Cliff Boyer will moderate and local media as well as a panel of guest community members may participate.
The entire community is encouraged to attend the debate. But if you cannot make it, WillametteLive will provide a play-by-play live blog so you can catch what you missed or even follow along at home. WillametteLive Development Director Shawn Estes is excited about the coverage that will be provided.
"It's groundbreaking for WillametteLive, but more importantly it branches the local election into the same genre as national elections," Estes said. "The coverage of local elections is minimal on the Internet, so by covering this event extensively we hope to bring some of that attention to the important city elections."
To follow along with us from home, visit WillametteLive.com beginning at 7:00 PM on February 26th. There will be a chance for those watching the blog to comment and, as always, you can comment after the debate is over.
After the event, WillametteLive will post video of the event not only to WillametteLive.com, but also to YouTube.
Salem-News.com's Tim King will participate in the Salem Monthly forum as an invited media guest. Several other local media outlets have been invited as well. Salem's future is in the hands of local voters, we hope you show up to learn more about the candidates who want to take on or carry on that challenge.
To learn more about this special Salem Monthly/Willamettelive.com event: City of Salem to participate in local election forum
Salem-News will participate in WillametteLive City Election ForumSalem-News.com