ALTON - The Alton YWCA and National Council of Negro Women will host a candidates’ forum for the Illinois House of Representatives 111th District.
At 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024, incumbent Illinois Representative Amy Elik and challenger Nick Raftopoulos will introduce themselves and answer questions at the YWCA. RiverBender.com will livestream the event at RiverBender.com/Video.
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“This isn’t really a debate. It’s a voter forum,” explained Dorothy Hummel, YWCA executive director. “The idea is to truly give the candidates an opportunity to introduce themselves to the community and talk about issues that are going on within the state, within the area.”
Elik and Raftopoulos will have a few minutes to introduce themselves and talk about their issues. YWCA and NCNW have asked the candidates a series of questions, and Elik and Raftopoulos will give their prepared responses. If there is time, YWCA and NCNW will take questions from the audience. Doug Jenkins will moderate the forum.
YWCA and NCNW will also provide information on four advisory questions that Madison County voters can expect to see on their ballots in November. Hummel noted that these advisory questions are often written by attorneys and can be confusing to voters, so YWCA and NCNW will use information from the nonpartisan site Ballotpedia to inform voters about these questions.
Hummel voiced her appreciation for the candidates’ participation. She said they also invited Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski and challenger Joshua Loyd, but neither candidate could attend.
Elik and Raftopoulos are the only other competing candidates in the 111th District. The 111th district includes all or portions of Alton, Bethalto, East Alton, Godfrey, Granite City, Hartford, Mitchell, Roxana, South Roxana and Wood River.
“This is really important that the candidates participate in these voter forums. Oftentimes, they’ll choose not to,” Hummel said. “We just have two candidates, so it should be a pretty short and sweet voter forum. I’m delighted that they agreed to participate.”
YWCA and NCNW have partnered this year to sponsor a “Get Out the Vote” campaign on social media. They also hope to schedule coffee talks with local elected officials and candidates throughout the month of October. For more information about their work, visit the official YWCA Southwestern Illinois Facebook page or the official Alton Section of the NCNW website.
“We’ve had these voter forums for many, many years,” Hummel added. “I think they served their purpose, and I’m delighted. YWCA is a nonprofit. We’re nonpartisan. While we can take a stand on issues, we can’t endorse any candidate. At YW, one thing we want people to do is use their voice. Both YW and NCNW really want to increase participation this election.”
To watch the candidates' forum at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 3, 2024, visit RiverBender.com/Video.
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