League of Women Voters to host candidate forums for Kane County offices and state House Districts 65, 70

The Leagues of Women Voters of the Aurora Area, Elgin Area, and Central Kane County will be co-hosting hybrid candidate forums on both Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 at the Batavia City Hall, 100 N. Island Ave.

These non-partisan forums will provide area residents a chance to hear from candidates in contested Kane County races, as well as candidates running to represent Illinois State House Districts 65 and 70. Both forums are open to the public.

Residents are encouraged to participate by joining the live in-person audience, watching the live-stream on BATV, or viewing the recording later on the BATV YouTube Channel.

The first forum will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 30. The Leagues have invited candidates in contested races for the offices of Kane County Auditor, Kane County Coroner, Kane County Board Districts 2, 10, 12, 14 and 18, and Kane County Board Chair.

The second forum will begin at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 1. Candidates in contested races for the offices of Kane County Recorder, Kane County Circuit Clerk, Kane County State’s Attorney, and Illinois Representative Districts 65 and 70 have been invited.

Each forum will be moderated by members of the League of Women Voters. Candidates will be given an opportunity to provide one-minute opening statements, after which time the candidates will be presented with a series of questions.

Candidates will be given one minute to respond to each question they receive. Following questions, each candidate will be given one minute for a closing statement. Members of the public wishing to submit questions for the candidates may do so in writing during the live in-person events.

Consistent with normal League of Women Voters practice, questions will be reviewed by League members for appropriateness before they are presented to the candidates. Due to time constraints, we may not get to all the questions. Recordings of both forums may be posted on the websites of the hosting Leagues and will be available for viewing on the Illinois Voter Guide website (illinoisvoterguide.org), which is hosted by the League of Women Voters of Illinois Education Fund.

Patti Lackman, voter service chair of the LWV of Central Kane County, explained, “The League of Women Voters has a long history of conducting candidate forums and is widely considered to be one of the most capable non-partisan organizations in this regard. We are excited to hear from the candidates and provide them with this important opportunity to communicate with voters in their districts.”

Here are some important dates to know for the upcoming election:

• Sept. 26: First day of early voting at Kane County elections main office and Aurora satellite.

• Oct. 8: Last day to register to vote using the regular process.

• Oct. 9 to Nov. 4: Grace period registration and voting at designated sites.

• Oct. 21: First day that early voting is expanded to remaining early voting sites.

• Nov. 5: Election Day. Polls open from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Nonpartisan information about voting in Illinois can be found at illinoisvoterguide.org.

Anyone wishing to find out more about this candidate forum or any other event hosted by the League of Women Voters of Central Kane County may obtain more information by emailing info@lwvckc.org.

The League of Women Voters is a nonpartisan political organization that encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.