Weekly Mayoral Debates Continue Friday

Mayoral candidates (from left to right) Tony Hall, Billy Bob Whitmer, Quintin Mecke,
Lonnie Holmes, Ahimsa Porter Sumchai, h. brown, Harold Hoogasian, Josh Wolf, George Davis, Wilma Pang and Grasshopper Kaplan.
Photo by Luke Thomas

From the campaign to elect Josh Wolf

August 23, 2007

Following the success of last week's Candidates Collaborative debate, this Friday, Aug. 24, the San Francisco mayoral candidates will again gather at 5 p.m. on the lawn in front of City Hall. Eleven of the 14 candidates participated in last week's debate and a similar level of participation is expected on Friday. The debates, organized by the 2007 Mayoral Candidates Collaborative, will continue every Friday until the election.

For those unable to attend, the debate will be streamed live at www.joshwolf.net. Following this trial-run, all future debates of the Collaborative will be streamed at the SF Democracy Web site which is currently in development and will provide a means for those watching at home to interact with the candidates.

The debate will start at 5 p.m. and run until 6:30 p.m. Each candidate will be given four minutes to introduce himself or herself, outline the issue he or she feels is most important for the mayor to address, what remedies should be applied and where the money to realize this solutions should come from. The debate will conclude with the moderator taking questions from the audience for specific candidates or the panel. Freelance journalist Rick Knee will moderate Friday's debate.

About the Collaborative

The origins of the Candidates Collaborative can be traced back to the 2004 District Five Board of Supervisors' race when "Diamond Dave" Whitaker envisioned a forum through which candidates could unite around the issues they share, build alliances and provide a forum for all the candidates. With the help of Julian Davis' leadership, the first Candidates Collaborative proved an amazing success and nearly all of the 22 candidates participated, including Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi.

Host a debate

A representative from a different media outlet will present each debate in the series. Outlets interested in hosting a future debate are encouraged to contact Josh Wolf to schedule a forum session.

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