SponsoredNewspapers InEducationContent
| SUNDAY,
SEPTEMBER 18, 2016
5
BALLOT ISSUESANDCANDIDATE FORUMS
Get your questions answered inperson. The
League of WomenVoters of Washington is
hosting the following forums, which you can
attend or watch onTV or online later. Formore
League forums, see
LearnMore
Watch a presidential debate or one of the
League of Women Voters’ candidate forums
on TVW:
Create a chart to analyze each debate
question. Howwould you rate the quality of
each debate question? Howwell did each
candidate answer each question?What did
you learn about debates?
BEFORE THE DEBATE, PREPARE
• Decidewhich campaign issues
aremost important to you.
• Think aboutwhat else youneed
toknow tomake your decision.
• Openyourmind tonew
opinions and impressions of the
candidates.
• Considerwatching the debate
with agroup. Discussing itwith
othersmayhelpyou clarify
your thoughts aboutwhatwas
said andhow the candidates
performed.
DURING THE DEBATE, ASK
• Does each candidate have an
equal opportunity to speak and
respond?
• Are the questions clear, fair and
equally tough on all candidates?
• Is themoderator in control of the
debate?
• Do the candidates answer
questions directly, or do they
evade them?
• Do theygive specifics, or do they
speak ingeneralities?
• Do they talk about their own
policies andpositions, or do they
mostly attack their opponents?
• Can they actually carry out the
promises they aremaking?
• Do they explainhow their
backgrounds and experience
qualify them tohold the office?
• Are their answers consistent
with their previous positions,
and if not, whynot?
• What image are they trying to
create?
• Do their responses appear
“canned?”
• Are reaction shots or other
techniques used to create a
sense of drama or conflict?
Watching debates and forums
Candidate debates and forums are
an opportunity for you to directly
compare the candidates and
their positions. During a debate,
candidatesmeet face-to-face to
answer questions, state their views
and respond to their opponents’
statements.
THEMOST COMMON DEBATE
FORMATS ARE:
• Singlemoderator: one person asks
the candidates questions
• Panel: a select group of people
question the candidates
• Townhall: questions are
submitted to the candidates by
voters in advance or during the
debate
The debate usually beginswith
an introduction of the candidates
and opening statements. Then the
candidates are askedquestions
and they respond—usuallywithin
a time limit. The questionermay
ask follow-upquestions to clarify
candidates’ responses. Some debates
give candidates an opportunity
to askquestions directly of each
other. At the end, candidates are
usuallygiven time tomake closing
statements. Recently, debates have
experimentedwith the format
byusingquestions fromTwitter
or narrowing the audience to
undecided voters.
AFTER THE DEBATE, REFLECT
• How are the pre-debate andpost-
debate commentaries trying to
influence you?
• Which candidate appearsmost
qualified for the office?
• For each candidate, onwhich
issues do you agree; onwhichdo
youdisagree?
• What didyou learn about the
issues or the candidates?
• What do youwant to look into
further?
Mon 9/19, 7:00PM
Topic: Sound Transit 3
Lynnwood Library
Tues 9/20, 7:00PM
Topic: Sound Transit 3
Seattle First Baptist Church
Wed 9/28, 5:00PM
Topic: Supreme Court
Barbieri Moot Court Room
Gonzaga Law School, Spokane
Sat 10/8, 10:00AM
Topic: Commissioner of Public Lands
&Supt. of Public Instruction Candidates
Quincy Jones Performance Center
GarfieldHighSchool
Wed 10/12, 6:00PM
Topic: Attorney General Candidates
PoliceDept. Training Center
204W. Clark, Pasco
Thurs 10/13, 6:00PM
Topic: Secretary of State
&Supt. of Public Instruction Candidates
Gjerde Center, ColumbiaBasinCollege, Pasco
Tues 10/18, 6:30PM
Topic: Supreme Court Candidates
Olympia Center
222Columbia St. NW, Olympia
Thurs 10/20, 7:00PM
Topic: Supt. of Public Instruction Candidates
PhilipHall, UWTacoma
