Sultan candidates forum was informative, helpful

Published 1:30 am Sunday, October 22, 2017

The Candidate Forum on Monday, October 9, at the Sultan High School was an informative activity for Sky Valley voters. The forum was supported and hosted by the League of Women Voters, Sno-Isle Libraries, Friends of the Sultan Library, and the Sky Valley Chamber of Commerce.

The forum started with an informal session for uncontested races, then a formal session for contested races. Standard questions were presented to each candidate, followed by questions submitted by audience members, with 60 seconds allotted to each candidate for answering. Jody Trautwein of the League of Women Voters of Snohomish County was the moderator.

The formal session first started with the County Council candidates for District 5, Sam Low and Kristin Kelly. The evening continued with Fire District 5 Commissioner Position 3, Sultan School Board Positions 2 and 5, and Sultan City Council, Positions 2, 3, and 6.

There was a surprise announcement for Sultan City Council Position 6. During her first question, candidate Marianne Naslund withdrew from the race in order to tend to the care of an elderly relative. She noted that Christina Sivewright would do an amazing job as Councilmember. Marianne received an ovation from the Sultan voters as they no longer had to try and choose between the two excellent candidates.

Sam Low stayed for the whole event and heard all of the candidates’ viewpoints and audience questions on many issues affecting the valley.

A video of the entire event is available on the Sultan School website at www.turkpride.tv.

Joe Beavers

Gold Bar