Yesterday, the VOTER 49 Forum was a major bust. About 45 people showed. The room should've been packed.
Here's the worst part of it: At least 15 people were in attendance that supported Heather Steans. You could tell by the political buttons on their coats. Elder had her posse too. About 10 people were there to support Suzanne. Then you add another five that were there as part of VOTER 49, the hosts for the event.
That leaves about 15 people who had no pony in the race. About 15 people show up to listen to the candidates speak. Here a organization goes out of their way to put on a informational candidate forum - and 15 people show up. That's it. It was pathetic, to say the least.
The turnout was so bad, by the time this day is over - I'll have had 25 times as many readers finding out my view on the forum, than they would've gotten had they shown up themselves. In human terms, that's over 1200 more people than actually attended the forum itself. Hell, it could be 300 to 500 more people reading, but it's not a work day. They'll read this tomorrow. (FYI: Weekend numbers are always down a few hundred readers per day for some reason.)
While the forum participants were forth-coming about themselves, (Heather defended her husband's 'Pay to Play' lobbying) very few people would get to witness that. Nor would they have seen Suzanne Elder take the high road and decline to 'pile it on' after Heather admitted to her husbands 'over the top' contributions to 'Public Official A'.
On a personal note: I found Heather to be a name dropper. A question wouldn't go by without her proclaiming the 'Machine' is behind her 110%. That alone speaks volumes.
In summary: Unless you are the type of voter who gullibility believes what's printed on those fancy glossy mailers the rich and connected candidates send out - you'll have to wait until Pioneer Press gives their play by play to find out what the candidates said about the other issues besides 'Pay to Play'!
4 comments:
sounds like voter 49 is getting the credibility that it deserves. good.
I attended and thought that Steans was well rehearsed. Like she took pointers from a High School aged child and was about to promise us new soda machines in the cafeteria and no school on Fridays. The name dropping was also disgraceful, because she used it as a crutch. ...Vote for me because I've got all these people who say you should... It was pretty sad. I felt that Elder had much more conviction in her statements and was more sincere, and Steans was just blowing a bunch of hot air.
Speaking on behalf of the Elder campaign, and having attended probably 500 events like this over the past 25 years, I'd say that, while you always want more turnout, it typically does not happen, and by any standard the Voter49 event was a success and impressive. Consider:
• it was bitterly, brutally cold
• there have already been two other forums in the 49th Ward, the 49th Ward Democratic Party event and the IVI-IPO endorsement session, although this was the first really open to the entire public
• the hosting organization is only 9 months old, and several months ago, changed its name
• there was no big-name "draw"
• the vast majority of voters in the ward hadn't heard of either candidate and many, many voters are likely still unaware there is a race for an open seat
• there is a ton of other politics competing for public attention, with the presidential race grabbing most of it.
I'd also estimate the "uncommitted" interested citizens in attendance somewhat higher. If there were 10 people there specifically to support Suzanne, we didn't know about it! Our "posse" consisted only of Suzanne and me, and Suzanne's campaign treasurer showed up later. I know a couple others in the room were already supporting Suzanne, but they are bona fide involved Rogers Park voters who, I'm sure would have been there no matter what races or candidates were being spotlighted.
As has happened at every event, the Elder campaign did pick up some additional support from some of the attendees who made up their minds after hearing and seeing both cadidates.
The format was fair and the candidates respected it. Most questions were answered pretty directly, the exchange was extremely civil, there was a fair amount of substance in the discussion, and the long applause indicated to me that the audience seemed appreciative. I wish it had been videotaped. Liz Sarnik and Christine Wellman and the other organizers deserve credit for their work putting the forum together.
Events are hard work, and each one is a learning experience in how to do things better next time.
I didn't know what to expect in terms of turnout. 45 was many more than I was anticipating due to the cold. The audience response at the end was enthusiastic, and I got a lot of feedback commending RPV for having a well run forum. I believe that candidate forums provide a good opportunity for the voters to hear from the candidates themselves, and I am happy we were able to sponsor one.
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