Candidate Forums

As many of you know, there have been a couple of Candidate Forums over the past two weekends. One was held in Portland, Oregon and the other in Sisters, Oregon. These have served as a blessing for the candidates who are trying to get their names publicized to the greatest degree possible.

I believe that this is the first year that anything like this has taken place. Which I find ironic due to the complications of the new mailing system. I know that there have been Candidate Forums in the past but were always held in Grand Ronde and were "censored" by the Publications Department. Last year was the first year in many that there was not a Candidate Forum held. And I don't believe that the Tribe plans to host one this year. However, there will be another one on Saturday, August 15, 2009 at St. Michael's Church in Grand Ronde. It will begin at 3:00 p.m.

Special Note: There was a concern brought to my attention regarding my above statement that the previous Candidate Forums were "censored" by the Publications Department. I would like to clear that up. There were bulletins put up around the tribal campus requesting that members submit a question to be asked of the candidates at the forum. The questions had to be signed by the tribal member including their roll number. If the question was not signed with their roll number, the question was not accepted. The Publications Department did not determine whether or not a question was appropriate. I apologize if I misled anyone. My interpretation of the word "censored" in this particular case was that the questions had to go through a filtering system before being asked. My statement was by no means meant to be contentious toward the Publications Department.

Back to my original point, this kind of forum coincides with one of my earlier posts titled "Support For Tribal Council." The forums allow the membership to meet the candidates, have a better understanding of the candidates and make an educated decision as to which candidate they will support. It is a blessing for not only the candidates but the membership as well.

As for being helpful to the candidates, it allows them to express their ideas and concerns in a public forum that would otherwise go unheard. There were only a couple of avenues for expressing ideas and concerns for the candidates in the past. One was the 600-word Candidate Statement in our tribal publication and the other was to spend a lot of money on mailouts. And I mean a lot of money!!! If one could not afford to send mailouts, that leaves only one option.

With that being said, I understand that this system has been used for many years. And for a tribe that only communicates with the local membership, this system is probably successful. However, there are many others casting votes outside of our six county service area. Opening up an opportunity for candidates to debate, discuss and communicate outside of Grand Ronde is what this is all about. To me, it is absolutely necessary.

I will continue to take advantage of every opportunity to let my voice be heard. The Candidate Forums are another avenue that benefits our entire tribe.

Thank you for reading and remember, TOBY09.

P.S. The Candidate Forums were hosted and sponsored by a non-profit organization titled "Grand Ronde for an Open and Honest Leadership" (GROHL). Both forums were recorded and can be viewed at: www.grandrondepac.org