Newmarket residents can meet more than a dozen local election candidates at the Newmarket Chamber of Commerce all-candidates event Sept. 27.
The chamber will host a drop-in meet the candidates event at the Newmarket Community Centre, where voters can ask questions of the Oct. 24 municipal candidates.
Chamber president and CEO Chris Emmanuel said it is part of their tradition of civic engagement.
”We’re looking forward to having, hopefully, all the candidates out,” he said. “Hopefully, the members of the public will see the value in creating these opportunities.”
There are 10 races involving Newmarket, including six council seats and trustees for four different school boards.
The meet-and-greet format is being done by many chambers, Emmanuel said. He added that the chamber board decided on it in the summer as a way for all candidates to have a chance to present themselves to voters.
“We’ve had a very mayoral focus, and we’re cognizant of that,” he said. “We want to make sure we’re creating the best opportunity for not just our members but all residents who want to meet those running for public office.”
The chamber of commerce, alongside NewmarketToday, hosted a debate for the last provincial election. Emmanuel said the board considered that locally, but felt it was beyond their scope this time.
“Because of our scope and focus of the chamber, that is actually something we’re probably going to do in future, (for) all levels of government, creating meet-and-greet opportunities,” he said. “Perhaps other levels of government, other elections, coalitions could come together to organize debates. But this makes sense, I think, for us.”
No other organizations have yet announced all-candidates events or debates for Newmarket’s municipal election.
The candidates who will be attending has yet to be confirmed. The response from candidates to invitations has been good so far, Emmanuel said. He expects a good turnout, with enough room for every candidate who attends.
“We’ve got a responsibility in creating a forum, for not just our members, but the community, and making sure residents have an understanding of the vision for those running for public office,” he said. “If people get that and they get a bit better informed, we’ve achieved our goal.”
The event will run Sept. 27 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the community centre at the Riverwalk Commons. It is free to attend for the public, with no pre-registration required.
