Candidate forum canceled due to Republicans running in Centre County not participating
A local forum organized for candidates running to represent Centre County has been canceled after all Republican candidates either declined to participate or just didn’t respond.
The League of Women Voters of Centre County hosts a Candidates’ Night forum for each primary and general election. During the forum, candidates are asked six questions and have a minute to respond to each question. They also give a 90-second closing statement.
A statement on the LWVCC’s website states the forum was planned to be held in October and invitations were sent to candidates in August, with a response requested by Sept. 7. A reminder was sent a week prior to the deadline.
Democratic candidates Rep. Scott Conklin, Michael Molesevich, Paul Takac and Robert Zeigler said they’d participate, according to the statement.
But the four Republican candidates, Justin Behrens, Rep. Kerry Benninghoff, U.S. Rep. Glenn Thompson and Stephen Yetsko, either declined or did not respond to the invitation, the statement says.
LWV is a nonpartisan organization that encourages “informed and active participation in government,” among other things, according to its website.
“On behalf of all voters we are disappointed that this opportunity for voters to hear from candidates in a head to head forum is being denied to them. Voters deserve to hear from all candidates as they candidly address constituents’ questions,” the statement says.
Thompson, who is seeking reelection to the redrawn 15th Congressional District, is running against Union County businessman Molesevich. A spokesperson for Friends of Glenn Thompson said the date of the forum was already booked on Thompson’s calendar when the invitation was received.
“Congressman Thompson has and will participate in several candidate forums prior to the November election. He has completed the LoWV/Vote 411 candidates’ questionnaire, which the CDT has used for their candidate previews in years’ past,” a spokesperson for Friends of Glenn Thompson wrote in an email.
However, the spokesperson added that for years, there have been documented concerns with the League of Women Voters “becoming a partisan entity.”
Zeigler is seeking election to the 171st House District, running against incumbent Benninghoff. He said he accepted the invitation to the forum because “voters deserve to know where a candidate stands on an issue.”
If someone is unwilling to participate in a forum or debate, “that would mean they are likely trying to hide something from the voters,” he said.
“If candidates are not willing to share their views with voters or simply don’t respond, they are either cowards or complacent. Is that the type of person you want to work for you while in office? My goal is to govern with people, not just for them, and engagement is what makes that happen,” Zeigler wrote in an email.
Benninghoff did not respond Thursday to a request for comment.
Takac, who is seeking election to the newly-created 82nd House District against State College resident Behrens, echoed Zeigler’s concerns.
“Unfortunately, this is a trend we’re seeing nationally and statewide, and the extremism of the GOP attempting to control every aspect of a functioning democracy — including the parameters for debate and public engagement — has trickled down to a local level,” Takac wrote in an email.
Candidates’ Night is one of the “most consistent means” for voters to get and understand information about the local candidates, Takac said.
“Without Candidates’ Night as a resource, it will either force voters into doing more extensive research on individual candidates on their own, or will leave voters with more questions before heading into their polling place or filling out their mail-in ballot,” he said.
Because Takac and Behrens are running in a new district, Takac said he’d be willing to debate at another venue.
“Especially considering that we are running in a brand new district, with many communities and interests, I feel strongly that the voters in the 82nd House District should have the opportunity to hear from us both in a public forum,” he said.
Behrens did not respond Thursday to a request for comment.
Conklin, who is seeking reelection to the 77th House District and running against Huston Township resident Yetsko, has long participated in the Candidates’ Night, which a spokesperson for his campaign called a “long standing tradition in this county.”
“I hope that voters will pause and consider why candidates are choosing not to participate. I hope they take a real hard look at those candidates and say, what are they trying to hide? What are they trying to evade? That’s one effect it’s going to have on the voters. And the second effect it’s going to have is that it also takes away yet another independent look at the candidates,” Conklin’s spokesperson said.
Conklin would like the LWVCC to reconsider the cancellation and allow those who do want to participate, to do so. But according to the LWVCC’s statement, that is not possible.
“This is not our choice. Federal Election Commission rules and League of Women Voters guidelines preclude us from conducting a forum for any race when only one candidate running for the office will be present,” the LWVCC statement says.
Thompson’s spokesperson had a different view on the cancellation. When asked if there would be an impact on voters due to not having it, he said, “not one little bit.”
Molesevich, Yetkso and Centre County Republican Party Chair Michelle Schellberg did not respond to a request for comment.
Election Day is Nov. 8.
