Hosting a Candidate Forum

Note: The Federal Elections Commission (FEC) have very tight restrictions on candidate forums, especially debates for federal candidates, including format, location, broadcasting during and after the event, candidate participation, etc. Please review all FEC, IRS, and state laws before proceeding with a forum, especially if the candidates are running for federal office. A candidate forum gives the voters a unique opportunity to hear and communicate directly to the candidates in their area. They can be done in a variety of formats, ranging from Q & A to debate style. The primary purpose of a candidate forum is to provide an opportunity to the voter to get informed on issues of the day. A forum can also help the candidates understand the issues important to your community and your organization. It can also help you to build relationships with future elected officials. As with any event, good planning is critical to a successful forum. This guide will help you in the planning process. It is up to you how much, or how little, of this outline you choose to follow. It is your community and you know it best. Adapt these suggestions to your community. NOTE: TPP is putting together a voter guide for federal candidates. If you are hosting a candidate forum in the 2012 season, please consider asking the three questions from our voter guide, preferably on video, and send the results to Amy at amyb@teapartypatriots.org. When you send the footage, make sure to identify the candidate. The 3 questions are: 1) Will you fully repeal Obamacare? 2) Will you balance the budget within 5 years without increasing taxes? 3) For Senate Leadership and Speaker of the House, whom would you vote for? The following is a check list of things to do when planning and hosting a candidate forum.

Phase 1- Plan
Establish a forum committee Identify group or media partners Set date, time, and place Decide on the format Set a forum budget Develop a marketing strategy Select a moderator and invite

Phase 3- Reconfirm
Confirm candidates Reconfirm site arrangements Reconfirm volunteers Distribute promo materials Send press release Contact media Reconfirm moderator

Phase 2 - Invite
Send invitations to candidates Make initial media contacts Volunteer recruitment Follow up with candidates

Phase 4- Event
Complete set-up at forum Volunteers greet people Welcome and thank Review ground rules for forum Informal Q&A after the forum

Tea Party Patriots 2012 Get Out the Vote

The following information provides more detailed information on things to consider while organizing a candidate forum.

Partisan v. Nonpartisan
When you hold your forum may dictate whether it is partisan or nonpartisan. Candidate forums during a general election in which all candidates are invited, by its nature, is nonpartisan. Likewise, a forum held during a primary election for a particular party is partisan. Either way, if you are a nonprofit 501(c)3 or 501(c)4 you should be careful to allow the forum to be partisan or nonpartisan based on its nature, not because you are endorsing one party over the other. To insure that your organization remains nonbiased, you should consider the following: 1. The candidates should discuss a broad range of issues, or if there is a specific theme, all candidates should be made aware of the theme before the forum. 2. Make sure each candidate receives equal time to present their position. 3. The forum moderator should stay neutral. At times this is very difficult to do, but moderator should not indicate approval or disapproval of the candidates or their responses. 4. You should invite all viable candidates to the forum and encourage each of them to attend equally. Of course viable is up to interpretation, you know your community, you decide who is viable and who is not. Be sure to apply your viable test to all candidates equally. 5. Confirm with all candidates that they are coming. If candidates do not show make it clear to the audience that they were invited. Sometimes it is helpful to still provide a chair and nametag for the candidate so the audience receives the obvious message that the candidate was invited but chose not to attend. If only one candidate attends continue on with the forum with the clear disclosure that your organization is not necessarily endorsing that candidate. You must be cautious, an empty chair forum or a forum with an unopposed candidate may be considered an endorsement by the IRS and could affect your 501(c) 3 or 4 status and in many cases may violate federal election laws for federal candidates. 6. Determine how much audience involvement you will allow in relation to partisan or individual candidate support. You may choose to ask the audience to be equally respectful of all candidates and refrain for any excessive response for or against the candidates. However, you may choose to encourage a totally open audience response so the candidates and other people in the audience can become further informed on community response to the issues and candidates. 7. If candidates answers are timed, be sure to enforce the time limits strictly and equally for all candidates.

Tea Party Patriots 2012 Get Out the Vote

Format
Q&A Format- Equal Time In a questions and answers, equal time format the moderator asks the candidates a question and each candidate is given an equal time to answer the question. The moderator may choose to ask a follow-up question in which each candidate again had an equal time to answer. Q&A Format- Random Time In a questions and answers, random time format the moderator, at their discretion, will ask a candidate(s) of their choosing, a question. The moderator may choose to ask follow-up questions to one or more candidates as well. The moderator should still attempt to balance the time and questions among the candidates. Debate Format A debate format allows the candidates to interact with each other. The level of that interaction is up to you. They could be limited to responding only to specific challenges, responding to answers from the other candidate(s), each candidate may be allowed to ask other candidate(s) questions, etc. It is still recommended to adhere to time limits during the debate format. Town Hall Format The town hall format allows audience members to ask the candidate(s) of their choosing questions. The questions could be asked directly by the audience, or if more control is desired, the audience could submit questions to the moderator and the moderator would choose the questions to be asked. Informal Q&A Regardless of the format chosen, you may consider allowing for an informal questions and answers session with more limited time constraints.

Tea Party Patriots 2012 Get Out the Vote

Communications, Media, & Promotion

Communication and media is a critical component to a successful forum, before and after the event. A few things to consider when planning your forum: 1. Media Sponsor. It is a good strategy to find a media sponsor or partner. Choose a media outlet who is popular with your audience and invite them to co-sponsor the forum. This will give you additional media coverage before, during, and after the event. However, keep in mind that having a media sponsor may discourage other media outlets from promoting the event. 2. Press Release. Send out a press release to all applicable media outlets. Remember, reporters like an easy to write story. When drafting your press release do it in story format, include facts and figures and quotes from members of your group and/or other public figures. Remember to send out a press release after the event as well. 3. Networking. Use all of your networking connections; other organizations, groups, social media, etc. to promote the event. Remember to communicate the success of the event to your networks as well. 4. Personality. Consider asking a local, well-known personality to moderate the forum to increase interest and help market the event. 5. Target Audience. Identify your audience and make a plan on how to get information about your forum to that audience. 6. Co-Hosts. The most active people are those who attend group meetings and events. Partnering with other groups will expand your network to that groups membership.

Getting the Candidates to the forum

Candidates are very busy during election season, they respond to every invitation. You must give them incentive to be there. You can identify the candidates running for office by contacting the government agency responsible for the election. On a city level it is often your city clerk, county-county clerk or recorder, statesecretary of state, etc. What is it that candidates want? 1. Candidates want votes and are therefore attracted to a large audience. 2. Candidates want to be able to express their positions fairly. 3. Candidates usually like additional time to meet and greet the voters directly. Thank you for hosting a candidate forum. An informed and educated electorate is essential to keeping our republic and to keeping our liberty secure.

Tea Party Patriots 2012 Get Out the Vote