Listen to this note:
As the general election in the U.S. approaches, several local organizations have called on candidates for District 4 in San Mateo County to attend a public forum, with the intention of giving voters a more informed vote on who could represent them.
The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors District 4 Candidate Forum will be held on Monday, September 23 from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. at the North Fair Oaks Community Center, and all residents are invited to attend.
Hosted by ThriveAlliance, Leadership Council San Mateo County, and Choose Children, a project of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, the forum will provide San Mateo County residents with the opportunity to hear from the candidates for Board of Supervisors representing District 4: East Palo Alto City Councilmember Lisa Gauthier and East Palo Alto Mayor Antonio Lopez.
Candidates Gauthier and López qualified for the November 5 elections thanks to the primaries held on March 5.
It should be noted that all districts have changed since the 2020 Census report and the following redistricting process. District 4 includes the cities of Redwood City, East Palo Alto, Menlo Park, and North Fair Oaks.
“Thrive Alliance, Choose Children and the San Mateo County Leadership Council are collaborating to offer this Candidate Forum to facilitate voter education, and we encourage County residents to attend. Questions on a variety of topics will be directed to the candidates,” said San Mateo County Leadership Council Co-Chair Kaarin Hardy.
For her part, Yajaira Ortega, Director of Policy and Equity at ThriveAlliance, said that an engaged and informed electorate is the foundation of a prosperous democracy.
“Through events like this Candidate Forum, Thrive Alliance works to create spaces where community members can connect with candidates, ask important questions, and feel empowered to make informed decisions at the ballot box. Civic participation is more than a right – we are all responsible for building a more inclusive and representative future for San Mateo County,” she stressed.
The San Mateo County Board of Supervisors oversees County departments, programs and properties with an annual budget of more than $4 billion. Through this oversight, the Supervisors seek to serve the many goals and priorities of the community.
“An overwhelming majority of San Mateo voters agree and want elected officials to prioritize family-friendly policies that will create a bright future for our children and our community. Voters want candidates to come to the table with meaningful proposals to address the needs of our youngest children and their families,” said Christine Thorsteinson, director of Early Childhood Initiatives at the Silicon Valley Community Foundation.
“Our future is brighter when all children are healthy, safe and engaged in early learning. It is brighter when working families have access to affordable child care and when our early care providers are fairly compensated,” she added.
It is worth noting that ThriveAlliance, Leadership Council San Mateo County, and Choose Children and Silicon Valley Community Foundation are non-sponsoring and non-partisan organizations that only organize the forum.
Virtual assistance will be Available on Zoom, will also have interpretation into Spanish.
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