With candidates currently qualifying for city elections, the Demopolis Area Chamber of Commerce and Demopolis Area Business Council are working together to plan a political forum to highlight local candidates.
The political forum is being planned for Monday, August 15, 5:30 p.m., at the Demopolis Civic Center. Those seeking offices of mayor, city council, as well as the candidates for Marengo County Commission District 2 are being invited to participate.
Qualifying for those city offices began on July 5 and continues through July 19. The city election will be August 23. The District 2 seat on the county commission — with incumbent Dan England facing Jason Windham — will be decided in November’s general election. The District 2 seat is the only contested commission seat remaining on the ballot.
“Those we choose to represent our community in these political offices is an important decision and our goal in hosting the forum is to give residents an opportunity to get involved in the process and to educate themselves on the candidates so when the time comes they can make the best decision possible,” said DACC Director Ashley Coplin.
While the DACC and DABC are finalizing the format for the forum, they do seek public involvement and input. The organizers are offering community members an opportunity to submit questions to be considered for the candidates.
“The questions should be specific in nature relating to the issues facing our community,” Coplin said.
Questions may be submitted by calling the chamber at 289-0270 or by email to ashley@demopolischamber.com. The deadline for questions will be August 8.
Those who have qualified for the city election as of the morning of Friday, July 15, include, for the office mayor: incumbent Mike Grayson, John Laney, Arthur Ogden, and Don Singleton. For the District 2 council seat, incumbent Nathan Hardy has filed paperwork, as has Districts 4 and 5 incumbents Bill Meador and Cleveland Cole. In District 3, incumbent Harris Nelson has qualified along with challenger David McCants.