Calendar

Charlton Candidates Night

May 2, 2022

6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Senior  Center

Dear Charlton Neighbors,

Please join me on Monday, May 2, 2022 at 6:00 pm in the Charlton Senior Center (basement of the Town Hall) for the annual Charlton Candidate's Night! 

Candidate’s Night is an important opportunity for the Charlton voting public to meet directly, in person, with candidates for office. Come meet your neighbors who are running for local office in the May 7, 2022 elections. Become a more informed voter!

If you are not able to attend in person, the event will be rebroadcast on the TVCharltonMass YouTube channel so that you can watch it at home at your convenience. Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/c/TVCharltonMass

Candidate's Night will begin at 6:00 pm with an informal gathering and introductions, light snacks and refreshments to set the congenial tone that we will maintain throughout the evening. As someone who ran for office for the first time in 2020, I appreciate how easy it is to be nervous if you haven't done this before. Hopefully this first half hour will put everyone at ease!

At 6:30 pm sharp we will begin the formal program. I will serve as Moderator and host for the evening. I will welcome you, share the ground rules and general flow of the event, and then invite each candidate to share a 3-minute opening statement. These opening statements allow the candidates to introduce themselves, state why they are running for office, share the skills and talents they bring to the position, and state why they are the best candidate. The opening statements will be timed. No one may cede their time to another candidate. Everyone will get the same 3-minute opportunity whether they choose to use it or not.

After the opening statements, I will pose questions to the candidates that reflect the interests of the townspeople. If you have a question that you would like to see posed, or an issue that you would like to see addressed by the candidates, you may email me your question. I will collect questions up to the day of the event. Sending them in advance will help me to prepare so that I can frame questions in the best, unbiased way possible and in a way that allows candidates to explain their positions. If you are attending the event, you can also present me your questions in writing and I will try to incorporate them. Please remember that we have 10,000+ registered voters in town. You are one of many people who have questions! 

To submit your question prior to the event, your email should include the following information:

1. Your full name and Charlton address (just like you do when you pose a question in Town Meeting). This ensures that the voters in town are the participants in this event. 

2. State the question or issue you wish to see addressed.

3. Name the position that you want to see respond to the question (for example is it a question for school committee candidates or planning board candidates or candidates for selectman, etc...)

Email the above information to me at Noreen.Smith@TownofCharlton.net by Sunday, May 1.

I will try to cover all of the most pressing issues in a respectful, unemotional manner so that the voters can make informed decisions at the polls. As moderator of the forum, I will ensure that the focus of the evening is on the candidates and the issues. Each candidate in a contested race will be asked to respond to the same questions. Each candidate will have equal time to present their views within a 3-minute limit. Again, no candidate may cede time to another candidate.

The event is scheduled to end at 8:00 pm. I will keep the conversation moving and get in as many questions as possible during this time. I already anticipate that we may not have time for every question, given the number of questions I have already received. The added value of coming to the forum in person is that you have a chance to shake hands with the candidates either before or after the event, and you can pose any remaining questions yourself one-on-one to candidates who are there voluntarily. Please do attend candidate's night, and please do encourage other Charlton voters to do so.

I hope that we all learn more about the candidates for office through this friendly event. Please remember that the most important place to express your opinions is in the voting booth on election day. PLEASE VOTE on May 7, 2022 at the Heritage School! Local elections matter.

Sincerely,

Noreen Smith, Charlton Town Moderator