Published in the September 17-30, 2014 issue of Morgan Hill Life

The mid-term election is still six weeks away, but it’s vital for voters to start looking at the details about the candidates and ballot measures to make an informed decision.

The responsibility of voters in the democratic process is to first educate themselves about the candidates and the issues. It’s a cliché: vet before you vote.  Vetting is an important part of decision making so voters don’t vote blind. They need to understand their vote puts people into office who will impact the future of a city, county, state and nation.

This vetting process is a primary reason why we at Morgan Hill Life are proud to co-sponsor the Oct. 2 Candidate Forum being organized by the American Association of University’s Women’s Morgan Hill branch. Citizens will get a chance to see the various candidates for the Morgan Hill City Council and the Morgan Hill Unified School District board present reasons why they should be elected.

Mayor Steve Tate, who is running unopposed, will start the evening with a short welcoming speech in which he will speak about the direction he envisions the city taking in his fifth term as the head of the council.

The candidates running for the two open seats on the city council include incumbents Rich Constantine and Gordon Siebert as well as first-time candidate Donna Brusaschetti and third-time candidate Joseph Carrillo.

Nine candidates are vying for four seats open on the school board. Ron Woolfe is the only incumbent. The other candidates are David Gerard, Stephen Klem, Donna Foster-Ruebusch, Gino Borgioli, Janine Moreno, Ann Horner, Amando Benavides, and Brenda Cayme.

The AAUW is encouraging voters to email questions to Janet McElroy at [email protected].

AAUW candidate organizer Margaret McCann has contacted the civics teachers at the local high schools to encourage students in the junior and senior grades to submit questions for the candidates to answer. We see this as a great way to encourage young people to get involved in the process of democracy by asking candidates to address concerns that are related specifically to student-age citizens.

In the tradition of acknowledging the importance of a free press in American elections, questions from the public will be asked by Morgan Hill Times City Editor Michael Moore and Morgan Hill Life Editor Robert Airoldi.

In past AAUW forums, some candidates have failed to show up to present their case on why they should be elected. We encourage all candidates to provide voters with the opportunity to get to know them a bit better and observe how they respond under the pressure of public speaking to present their knowledge of the issues and demonstrate their commitment to civic engagement.

We also encourage voters to attend the AAUW Candidate Forum to learn more about the various people seeking elected office. We feel it is better to not vote at all than to vote blindly just to check a box on a ballot.

The AAUW Candidate Forum gives you an opportunity to vet before you vote.