PORT TOWNSEND — Two upcoming candidate debates in advance of the Nov. 5 general election have been updated based on expected participation.
One candidate for Port Townsend City Council has dropped out of the race and a candidate for a Port Townsend School Board position will be out of the country during the previously scheduled debate.
The League of Women Voters of Jefferson County and the Port Townsend branch of the American Association of University Women will host three forums next month.
Previously scheduled events Tuesday, Oct. 1 and Oct. 10 have been revised. Both will take place at 7 p.m. at the Port Townsend Community Center, 620 Tyler St.
The Oct. 1 event now will feature the lone race for a seat on the Port of Port Townsend commission. Candidates Chuck Fauls and Pam Petranek will debate for about an hour, with Siobhan Canty as the moderator.
Audience questions can be submitted either in writing or in the back of the room during each of the forums, said Dennis Daneau, chair of the Jefferson League of Women Voters.
“That one should be pretty interesting because people are really concerned about what’s going on at the port, and I think that one will be highly attended,” Daneau said.
Doug Ross and Harold “Jim” Sherwood are vying for Position 3 on the Port Townsend School Board, but Ross will be out of the country on business, Daneau said.
Sherwood will be allowed to be at the event to meet the public, but he won’t be able to answer questions in a live format, Daneau said.
“We tried to think of a way to do it,” he said. “We thought about Skype, but that wasn’t going to work.”
The Oct. 10 forum will be exclusively for Port Townsend City Council candidates, moderated by Shelly Randall.
Challenger Monica MickHager and incumbent Deborah Stinson, the current mayor, will debate for Position 3, and challenger Bernie Arthur will debate with incumbent Amy Howard for Position 6.
Tyler Myles Vega, a candidate for Position 7, has dropped out of his race with incumbent David Faber, although Vega’s name will remain on the ballot.
Owen Rowe is running uncontested for Position 4.
Faber and Rowe may be in attendance but will not participate in live question-and-answer sessions, Daneau said.
He added that Vega told him he sees Faber as a good candidate and doesn’t feel like he should run against him.
“We think the debate between Monica MickHager and Deborah Stinson will be pretty lively,” Daneau said. “Monica is trying to oust an incumbent, and she feels like the City Council is not responding to their constituents, and in several different ways.”
A third forum will be held at 7 p.m. Oct. 14 at the Tri-Area Community Center, 10 West Valley Road, Chimacum. It will be moderated by Renee Klein.
All three positions up for grabs will focus on the Chimacum School Board with about 30 minutes per race.
The Position 2 seat contest will be between Mike Aman and Mikey Nagy. The Position 3 race will be between Steve Martin and Kristina Mayer. The Position 4 seat will be between Michael Raymond and Tami Robocker.
Raymond was appointed earlier this year for the seat. The rest of the candidates would be new to the board.
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Jefferson County Managing Editor Brian McLean can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 6, or at bmclean@peninsuladailynews.com.
