On March 2, the LWV of East Nassau, in co-sponsorship with the Freeport Memorial Library, conducted a candidates’ forum for the Village of Freeport elections. Three teams were in contention for the offices of Mayor, Justice and Trustee (2 positions). All twelve candidates were present and participated. Over 200 Freeport residents, including many standees, were in attendance.
The question and answer period was quite lively, with many very important areas of concern covered. The mayoral candidates fielded most of the answers, referring questions to team members when appropriate. With 12 candidates and a large and attentive audience, the evening was orderly and ran smoothly. I attribute this to our moderator Paula Blum and timekeeper Lorraine Newman, who were in sync with their signals.
I would be remiss if I omitted the magnificent efforts of our members Gemma Bartholemew and Marie Johnson in publicizing the forum. They were in constant contact with me regarding picking up the flyers from the library, when and where they were being distributed and finally when the task was completed. The library staff cooperated with us for our every request, checking with me throughout the evening of the forum to see if we needed any assistance. This was a positive team undertaking and a successful one. I inquired about the results immediately after the election, and learned that the sitting mayor and his team were reelected.
