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Washington Evening Journal
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Fairfield chamber plans candidate forum for city, school board elections
FAIRFIELD – The Fairfield Area Chamber of Commerce is hosting a forum that will feature the contested races for Fairfield’s mayor, city council and school board.
The forum, free and open to the public, will be held from 5-8 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 30 at the Fairfield Arts & Convention Center. It will be moderated by Joe Ledger. Doors will open at 4:30 p.m., with an introduction at 5 p.m. and then questions directed at the two mayoral candidates from 5:15-5:45 p.m. The two candidates are incumbent Connie Boyer and challenger Ed Noyes.
There are four city council seats up for grabs, but only two contested races, so those are the races that will be included in the Oct. 30 forum. One of the at-large seats, currently occupied by Katy Anderson, is being sought by Elizabeth Estey and Aiddy Phomvisay.
Estey is a member of the council but she is moving within the town, and must vacate her position as fourth ward representative. Two candidates have thrown their hat in the ring to fill Estey’s open seat in the fourth ward, and they are Matthew Rowe and Curtis Oliver.
Those two races will be featured from 6-7 p.m. that evening, followed by the candidates running for school board from 7-8 p.m.
Eight people have filed to run for the district’s five open seats. The five open seats on the board currently belong to John McKerley, Margo Von Strohuber, board president Christi Welsh, Tim Bower and Frank Broz. Deborah Williamson is the only candidate who has filed to run for Broz’s seat, who was a temporary replacement after Kelly Scott resigned from the board in July. If elected, Williamson will serve the final two years of that term.
Bower is the only incumbent who is seeking re-election to the board. The other six candidates seeking four-year terms are Theresa Tuvera, David Eastburn, Mark Thornton, Christie Kessel, Meghan Dowd Robbins and Nate Weaton.
Fairfield Area Chamber of Commerce Director Mendy McAdams said the chamber might not have hosted a forum this year, but she received so much feedback from the public demanding one that she felt the chamber had to do it.
McAdams said all of the questions to be addressed at the forum have come from chamber members and the chamber board. There will not be an opportunity for questions from the audience.
Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com
