HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The Hutchinson/Reno County Chamber of Commerce and NAACP have decided to expand the participation of the candidates forum scheduled for Oct. 11 at the Stringer Fine Arts Center.
The goal of the event is to engage the candidates on a set of topics of importance to the public policy work of the respective organizations, and to provide a means for members and the community to have a better sense of the policy positions of all candidates. In recent weeks, both the Chamber and the NAACP Hutchinson have listened to dialogue, discussion, and deliberation regarding the format for invited participation in the forum. Following an Oct. 4 meeting, a joint decision by both organizations was made to broaden the invitation list to all state representative and county commission primary winners, and those who have declared publicly their intentions for write-in candidacy.
“This decision carefully considered the input from our members and the community. Our goal is to allow forum attendees to hear all perspectives,” Chamber President/CEO, Debra Teufel, said. “The board leadership of both organizations agree that this is the most equitable way to ensure that the public and our respective members can hear the important positions of all candidates in advance of the November general election.”
State representatives to be invited include: 101st district candidate Joe Seiwert, 102nd district candidates Jason Probst and John Whitesel, 104th district candidates Paul Waggoner and Garth Strand, and 114th district candidate Michael Murphy. Running in District 1 in the County Commission race is primary election winner Randall (Randy) Parks and declared write-in candidate Cris Corey, District 4 candidates Michael Jobe and Mark Reese, and District 5 primary election winner Don Bogner and declared write-in candidate Penelope Poitras.
The forum is organized by the Chamber of Commerce Public Policy Committee and NAACP Hutchinson and is open to the public. Questions may be submitted in advance by email to [email protected] by Friday, Oct. 7.
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