Hey Focus fans!
When we hosted an interactive elections-chat event before the June primary highlighting the many then-candidates for California governor, we told our CalMatters partners that we’d be happy with a couple of dozen attendees.
All of us were blown away when more than 100 of you turned up. What a testament to Modesto’s desire to gather and learn and talk politics.
Or maybe you just like the draw of free beer and tacos.
Anyway, we’re doing it again.
Mark your calendars for 6 p.m. Oct. 15 for another VotingMatters event at the North Valley Labor Federation hall at 1235 M St. in Modesto.
This one will help you get up to speed on the 14 statewide propositions on the Nov. 3 ballot, plus the local measures facing voters in Modesto and Stanislaus County.
And there’s a bonus: Adam Ashton, a multitalented long-ago Modesto Bee colleague and now deputy news editor for our CalMatters partners, will make a public return to Modesto for this event.
And yes, you can count on free tacos and libations.
🗳️🗳️🗳️
How often should congressional candidates meet with regular people?
Accessibility is an issue sometimes raised by challengers who have nothing to lose in uphill battles to oust a better-known incumbent – whose edge just might vanish if they happen to stumble at an unnecessary public event. Like a town hall meeting.
Incumbents in both races to represent Stanislaus County in the U.S. House of Representatives (5th and 13th congressional districts) have been criticized for their reluctance to hold town halls.
In his campaign messaging, Democrat Michael Masuda of Riverbank openly mocks Republican incumbent Tom McClintock of El Dorado Hills in the 5th District for holding zero town halls. Masuda, meanwhile, is working through 37 such events on his campaign schedule.
It’s not a one-party attack strategy, though. Democratic incumbent Adam Gray in the 13th District played defense in an op-ed responding to a story by The Merced FOCUS, our sister publication, noting his aversion to town halls.
“There’s no rule that says the only way a Member of Congress can listen to constituents is at a town hall. I meet with people where they live, work and play, hearing directly from the people I represent,” Gray wrote.
And he proceeded to list a string of meetings and community appearances he’s engaged in up and down the district, covering Merced County and the west half of Stanislaus County with a finger jutting up into Stockton.
His Republican challenger, former Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln, does not appear fond of town halls either, while both candidates are hosting lots of meet-and-greets with supporters.
Another measure of accessibility – and accountability – is willingness to debate, answering questions in a public forum and allowing voters to get a sense of a candidate’s personality and approach.
For the record, Gray and Masuda have agreed to October debates in their respective races, moderated by The Modesto Focus and The Merced FOCUS newsrooms, while Lincoln and McClintock have not responded.
🗳️🗳️🗳️
I’m counting 34 election stories in The Modesto Bee this year written by reporters who no longer work there, or soon won’t.
Those articles contained heaps of important, relevant information gathered by smart, dedicated journalists, all meant to help people get a handle on one of their most important duties in a democracy: voting.
The Bee – my employer for 30 mostly wonderful years – won’t replace them. That’s the nature of heartbreaking layoffs in a workplace now owned by a hedge fund managing a slow, death-by-a-thousand-cuts decline in local journalism.
Yes, The Modesto Focus stands tall with a smaller staff and growing readership, and we will continue producing election coverage. That includes the ever-popular debates you haven’t seen The Bee do since I left as opinions editor three years ago (they didn’t replace me, either).
For the record, The Modesto Focus moderated a debate before the statewide Proposition 50 vote last fall; four debates involving local candidates before the June primary; and we’re in the middle of a series of eight debates this fall.
The Bee is expected to continue its election coverage as well, and I hope people continue to read and support the excellent journalism they’re doing.
Feel free to share notes, tips and insights for Stanislaus-centric campaign coverage at garth@themodestofocus.org.