Join us for our #BlackVotesMatter Candidates' Forum to hear from the candidates running to be your Mayor and District Attorney.
This forum is an opportunity for Black voters and other allies to ask direct questions to the candidates who are seeking to serve our community. Multnomah County and Portland are home to some severe racial disparities in education, environmental quality, poverty, policing, housing and incarceration. Now's a chance to ask these candidates how they plan to improve our community for ALL of us. Let's make sure those who represent our community know that #BlackVotesMatter. You can stream the event live on YouTube or Facebook. You can also watch the event on channel 30 on Comcast or tune in to KBOO radio station at 90.7 FM.
We hope that you will join in to hear the important questions posed by your neighbors and community members.
Portland Mayoral Race
The Mayor of Portland is part of Portland’s unique commission form of government, in which the Mayor and four Commissioners share legislative and executive powers. All five are elected citywide and they collectively act as the Portland City Council (legislative body). The Mayor presides at Council meetings; each member has one vote.
Executive and administrative functions of the City of Portland are carried out by bureaus (such as the Portland Police Bureau and the Portland Water Bureau) headed by the Mayor and Commissioners. The Mayor assigns (and may at any time reassign) these departments and bureaus to Commissioners.
Multnomah County District Attorney's Race
The Multnomah County District Attorney (DA) is responsible for prosecuting those who violate state criminal laws in Multnomah County, as well as all city code violations in the City of Portland. The DA’s office is also responsible for protecting/advocating for crime victims, promoting programs that reduce crime, advocating for children who are abused/neglected, and pursuing the payment of child support. The Multnomah County DA oversees 78 appointed Deputy District Attorneys.
Source (adapted from).
Special Thank You
We would like to extend a special thank you to our partners at: Open Signal - Media Arts Center, who is broadcasting this event; KBOO - Community Radio Station, who is airing the event; and LNS Captioning, who is providing live captioning for the event.
We also want to thank all of the community members who submitted thoughtful questions for us to ask the candidates.
Supporting the Urban League
The Urban League is a non-profit organization that relies upon donations to be able to serve the community. If you're able, I invite you to make a donation. Every $5 and $50 gift helps us to keep serving youth, senior citizens, job-seekers, and others who need us most during these challenging times.
