Patch/WGTD Legislative Debate Tonight

**Updated 1 p.m. Oct. 22

Everyone is invited to the Patch and WGTD Radio live candidates forum tonight featuring the candidates for three legislative districts.

From 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. at Case High School, 7345 Washington Ave., we will have a debate featuring the candidates from the 22nd Senate and 63rd and 62nd Assembly districts.

All six candidates vying for three seats in the state legislature have agreed to participate: Republican Tom Weatherson and Democrat Melissa Lemke in the 62nd Assembly District; Rep. Robin Vos, R-Rochester, and Democrat Kelley Albrecht in the 63rd Assembly District; and state Sen. Bob Wirch and Republican Pam Stevens in the 22nd Senate District.

And since we'll already be together, we're inviting everyone to stay and watch the final presidential debate as well.

The forum will provide an opportunity for area residents to hear from the all six
legislative candidates in person about the key issues facing the region and the state. Patch will have a live blog of the forum on our Caledonia and Mount Pleasant-Sturtevant sites, and WGTD will broadcast the debate live at 91.1FM.

The moderator will be Janine Anderson, the Associate Regional Editor for Patch in Milwaukee. Our timekeeper for the evening will be Dave McGrath from WGTD 91.1FM.

What You Can Expect

Because there will be six candidates in attendance, and because the forum will only be 75 minutes long, we will be following this format:

• There will be no opening statements from candidates, nor will there be time for rebuttals.
• The debate will begin with the moderator asking three questions prepared by Patch and WGTD, and each candidate will have one minute to respond to that question. The order in which candidates answer the questions will be determined randomly before the forum.
• Candidates will then answer three questions from the audience. Audience
  members will write down their questions on index cards. The index cards will be collected before the forum, and the questions will be read by the moderator.
• Questions will be screened to ensure there are no personal attacks or questions about issues not germane to the state Legislature. Each candidate will have one minute to respond to each question.
• After those questions have been asked, there will be a “speed round” in which the moderator will ask four questions that pretty much only need a “yes” or “no” answer. Each candidate will have 15 seconds to respond to each question.
• Candidates each will have two minutes to make a closing statement.
• Candidates will be allowed to bring campaign materials to the forum, and those materials will be placed on a table on the back of the room.