2007 CARY CANDIDATE FORUM SET

Forum features new candidate forum manager, more questions from citizens

CARY, NC – Make plans now to play an active role in the 2007 Cary Community Candidate Forum, the first and only forum for candidates for local office sponsored by a Triangle local government, and the only forum for local offices to be aired this year on Cary TV 11. Sponsored by the Town of Cary and featuring only questions submitted by Cary citizens, this year’s forum will be managed on behalf of the Town by the NC Center for Voter Education (NCCVE).  In addition, the previous limit of one question per citizen has been lifted, allowing for a robust discussion of a larger variety of issues important to Cary citizens.

“We appreciate the expertise, energy, and resources that the NC Center for Voter Education is bringing to this year’s forum,” said Town of Cary Public Information Officer Susan Moran .  “Candidates and voters alike can have confidence that the forum will once again serve as a valuable part of the election season’s information sharing.”

The North Carolina Center for Voter Education is a non-partisan, non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality and responsiveness of North Carolina 's election system.   The Center has hosted and moderated candidate forums including the 2006 judicial candidates’ forum. The forum, aired statewide on UNC TV, gave candidates for North Carolina ’s state appellate courts an opportunity to debate issues in a constructive format.  The Center has a reputation as a platform for unbiased candidate information.  In past elections, the Center has used its external communication capacity (podcasts, radio show, media releases and a syndicated column) to give candidates from all political persuasions the opportunity to disseminate information directly to voters.

“Our research shows that the primary reason why qualified voters don’t go to the polls on Election Day is because they lack information on the candidates,” said Chris Heagarty, NCCVE executive director.  “We are very pleased to take part in the Town of Cary ’s effort to empower its citizens with the facts they need to cast a confident ballot.”

This year’s forum, which will be held on September 12, will include candidates for Cary Town Council Mayor as well as one At-Large seat and districts B and D.  Wake County School Board seats that represent Cary will also be included:  districts 5, 6, and 8.  The forum will be taped and played throughout Western Wake County daily on the Town’s government access channel—Cary TV 11—and available on the Town’s web site September 22 until Election Day. 

Questions asked of candidates will be submitted by Cary citizens to the forum manager later this summer. The forum manager will review, select, and read the questions to candidates for the first time during the forum.  The Town of Cary is paying the NCCVE $1,200 to serve as this year’s forum manager.

The idea of the Town’s hosting a forum dates back to the fall of 2001 when a record number of candidate forums sponsored by special interest groups were cablecast on the Town’s government access channel, Cary TV 11.  Complaints about that situation led the Town Council to ask staff to develop alternatives.  After nine months of research, which included meetings with past forum sponsors, staff recommended in August of 2002 the concept of one large  “mega forum” – now known as the Cary Community Candidate Forum.  Benefits of this approach include:

• Allowing for increased community focus and involvement

• Eliminating the issue of candidate endorsements

• Providing a better product for viewers

• Reducing the amount of time candidates and Town staff spend in forums

The first Cary Community Forums were held in the fall of 2003, followed by the second one in 2005.  For more, visit Cary Community Candidate Forum at www.townofcary.org.

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