I attended the League of Women Voters’ "Meet the Candidates" event on Sept. 15 at the Anderson Township Center, and I left disappointed. Not because of anything that was said at the event, or the incredible care taken by the organizers, but because of who wasn’t there.
One political party was missing from the event. That meant voters who took the time to attend did not have an opportunity to hear directly from every candidate. And, according to the League volunteer who spoke to the audience, this was the only all-candidate event of its kind scheduled by the League this election cycle.
I find it unacceptable for an entire slate to be absent, and I think voters should pay attention to it.
Showing up matters
When a candidate shows up to meet constituents, they are doing
more than participating in a campaign event. They are demonstrating that they value voters’ time enough to spend some of their own. They are making themselves available to answer questions and explain what they would do if elected.
That matters because voters already have an enormous amount of work to do. On my Hamilton County ballot, there are 45 candidates in contested races, ranging from governor and Congress to the state legislature and judges. Researching 45 candidates independently − learning who they are, what they believe, what they have done and what they say they will do − takes a tremendous amount of time.
And the stakes are high.
The price of everyday necessities matters. Health care costs matter. Public school funding matters. Property taxes matter. These issues affect our families, our communities and our pocketbooks, and the people we elect will make decisions about them. We need to know where those candidates stand.
Candidate forums allow voters to hear candidates answer questions directly. They allow us to hear candidates explain their positions in their own words. And they give us an opportunity to put a face and a voice to the names we will see on our ballots.
That is why I believe candidates should make every reasonable effort to participate in these events. Of course, schedules conflict and emergencies happen. But when an entire slate of candidates chooses not to participate, that sends a message to voters and to the event organizers: Our time is not worth your time.
And this isn’t just the candidates’ responsibility. It is ours, too.
Keep asking the questions
We need to keep asking all candidates to show up. We need nonpartisan organizations to keep organizing opportunities for voters to hear from everyone on the ballot, even when some candidates choose not to participate. And we need to use the resources available to us. Especially now, when political campaigns can put enormous effort into telling us what is wrong with the other candidate, I want to hear what a candidate actually has to say.
So I encourage voters to look for candidates’ own words and documented positions whenever possible. Attend candidate forums. Read the voter guides. Ask questions. And keep asking candidates to show up.
If I’m going to spend my time researching 45 candidates, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask those candidates to spend some of their time meeting me, too. Candidate forums and meet-and-greets aren’t just campaign events. They are opportunities for voters and potential representatives to meet each other. They are part of how democracy works.
We should expect those opportunities to continue, and we should expect candidates to take them seriously.
Andrea Granieri is a nonprofit program manager and lives in Anderson Township.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Want our votes? Candidates need to show up and answer our questions | Opinion
