Candidate Forum Announced for May 3 Primary

April 11, 2022

The League of Women Voters of Geauga will host one candidate forum prior to Ohio’s May 3 primary election.

This event, slated to take place at 7 p.m. April 27 at the Bainbridge Branch of the Geauga County Public Library System, will provide a platform to county commissioner candidates Walter “Skip” Claypool and Jim Dvorak, as well as county auditor candidates Diane Grendell and Charles E. Walder.

Typically, LWVG has hosted multiple forums throughout the county during an election season. A decision was made this year to focus on one in-person Bainbridge event, while also using technology to disseminate candidate platforms to a wider audience, according to an April 11 press release.

For the first time ever, LWVG will host a watch party in Chardon at the Library Administration Building, 12701 Ravenwood Drive. Watch party attendees will have access to the candidate forum via a live-stream screening in a private room staffed by library employees and managed by LWVG representatives, the release stated.

Guests can interact with other community members and enjoy complimentary food and refreshments. Attendees at the watch party must pre-register and will have the opportunity to submit their candidate questions to be asked.

And finally, LWVG will make the Candidate Forum available via a live-stream link for community members who desire the freedom and flexibility to watch from literally anywhere — their couch, around the kitchen table or even together with a group of friends, the release stated.

“Our goal is to give these candidates and community members equal access to each other,” says LWVG President Shelly Lewis. “Our library system is an outstanding resource that truly is the gold-standard in technology. Partnering with them to provide space in Bainbridge, Chardon and online, will afford candidates the opportunity to reach a larger number of voters. Information matters. We want the public to be informed.”

Each candidate will engage in a three-minute opening statement, followed by a question and answer session run by a LWVG board member.

Campaign materials will be available to the public immediately following the event.

All members of the public are encouraged to submit candidate questions. The community is encouraged to review LWVG’s Criteria for Good Questions, which is available at www.lwvgeauga.org on the main page.

How to Attend

• Bainbridge In-Person Forum. The first 100 guests to arrive will receive a ticket for entry to the main candidate forum area. Overflow areas with access to live-stream video will also be available. LWVG reserves the right to limit attendance in order to comply with capacity limits established by the Geauga County Public Library.
• Chardon Watch Party. Pre-register by emailing watchparty@lwvgeauga.org
• Live-Stream Platform from any location. The live-stream link will be prominently featured on our Facebook event page and at www.lwvgeauga.org/calendar. Live-stream chat will be disabled, so please plan to submit your questions via the email instructions below.

How to Submit a Question

• Bainbridge In-Person Forum. As guests filter in the Library, they will be offered note cards to submit their candidate questions. A LWVG screening panel will review questions against established criteria and combine similar questions. Public questions determine the topics for the evening.
• Chardon Watch-Party. Community members attending the Chardon event will be allowed to submit questions through the same note card process. A representative from LWVG will relay those questions to the screening panel at Bainbridge for inclusion.
• Online. For those who would like to submit questions prior to the event, please use the Candidate Question Portal found on the May 3, 2022, Primary Election area of LWVG’s website or send via email to heycandidates@lwvgeauga.org.

Online submissions will be screened using the same process as in-person submissions.