Athens voters will have another chance to hear from the final two candidates vying to succeed outgoing Mayor Kelly Girtz. Board of Education member Tim Denson and Commissioner Dexter Fisher are facing off in a runoff debate sponsored by AthChat.The debate will be moderated by podcast cohosts Drew Abney and Russell Edwards.
Edwards says these kinds of events help draw attention to the candidates and community issues.
“Really drives the importance of raising awareness that hey, there is a race, there is a runoff here, we do need people to come back out and vote,” according to Edwards. “The more people who vote, the better our democracy is. So, part of the importance of the debate is getting people aware of what’s going on with the actual election.”
He also says the event could play a part in determining how supporters of the three former candidates cast their ballots.
“There’s a lot of questions about where the supporters for the candidates that didn’t get through the first round, where are those supporters going to go. Where are Dr. Lakeisha Gantt’s supporters going to go, where are Mara Zuniga’s supporters, where are Pastor Sharon Miller’s supporters going to go? I think that this debate can kind of help crystalize for folks, the choice that we’re faced in this runoff.”
The debate is on Saturday at 5:30 at the historic Morton Theatre. Doors open at 5 pm and it is free and open to the public.
