The Aurora Area, Downers Grove/Woodridge/Lisle, and Naperville Chapters of the League of Women Voters will sponsor candidate forums in September. Due to the pandemic, these forums will be held on closed Zoom sessions. Please visit our Facebook page after the dates listed to view the respective forums. Visit our website at www.lwvauroraarea.org, to gain access to additional information, or to join a chapter. All women and men aged 16 and older are welcome to become members of the League of Women Voters.
Here are the events planned and their dates in sequence.
• Congressional 11th District Candidate Forum, Candidates: Bill Foster (D) and Rick Laib (R)
View on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/LWVAuroraArea, after Sunday, Sept. 13.
• Kendall County Board District 1, Candidate Forum. Candidates: Audia Hendrex (D), Anthony Magliari (D), Brian Debolt (R), Scott Gengler (R), Todd Milliron (I).
View on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/LWVAuroraArea, after Tuesday, Sept. 15.
• Kendall County Board District 2, Candidate Forum. Candidates: Elizabeth Flowers (D), Mary Murray (D), Karen Novy (D), Matthew Kellogg (R), Dan Koukol (R), Joe West (R).
View on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/LWVAuroraArea, after Tuesday, Sept. 15.
• Illinois House District 83, Candidate Forum. Candidates: Barbara Hernandez (D), Donald Walter (R).
View on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/LWVAuroraArea, after Tuesday, Sept. 22.
• Kane County Board District 4, Candidate Forum. Candidates-Mavis Bates (D), Tracy Miller (R).
View on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/LWVAuroraArea, after Tuesday, Sept. 22.
• Illinois House District 97, Candidate Forum. Candidates: Harry Benton (D), Mark Batinick (R).
View on our Facebook page, www.facebook.com/LWVAuroraArea, after Thursday, Oct. 1.
All candidates were invited and have accepted our invitations.
There are Facebook pages and websites of other local League of Women Voters chapters in surrounding communities which hold forums of interest. Election districts and League districts do not necessarily neatly coincide, and to conserve resources and coordinate efforts, other pertinent forums are being held by other chapters and posted on their respective websites, or social media outlets. Posted on our social media sites is information about planned forums that were canceled because candidates could not attend the dates planned. The League of Women Voters rules do not allow Leagues to hold one-candidate forums.
Unlike a debate, a forum involves a neutral, trained, moderator from outside the district who presents questions to candidates for their live responses. Questions are selected by the LWV chapters based on community input.
The League of Women Voters, founded in 1920, envisions a democracy where every individual has the desire, the right, the knowledge and the confidence to participate. The League believes in the power of citizens to create a more perfect democracy and has been conducting forums as part of its mission of voter education for decades. The LWV is proud to be nonpartisan, neither supporting, nor opposing candidates, or political parties at any level of government, but, always working on vital issues of concern to its members and the public.
— Aurora Area, Downers Grove/Woodridge/Lisle, and Naperville Chapters of the League of Women Voters