If you’ve been wanting more information on the people running for municipal office in Billings this fall, you’re in luck.
Several organizations are sponsoring a series of forums for City Council and mayoral candidates, set for this weekend in a variety of city parks, and Community Seven Television is airing a series of 30-minute interviews with all the candidates.
A primary election is scheduled for Tuesday, Sept. 12, and the top two candidates in each race will proceed to the General Election on Nov. 7.
The live forums this weekend is being sponsored by Forward Montana, Yellowstone Valley Citizens Council, League of Women Voters of Billings, Billings Kiwanis, Not In Our Town, Billings Rising, Standing Up for Racial Justice, Billings TrailNet, and the Yellowstone County Area Human Trafficking Task Force.
The forums will be held in neighborhood parks within each of the city’s five wards, and the mayoral forum will be in Pioneer Park, in the city’s center. A press release from organizers of the series said the “candidates will answer questions about the most pressing issues facing the Magic City and share their visions for our community.”
The forums will be moderated by KTVQ’s Dustin Kleeman, and there will be time for questions from the public. All candidates actively seeking office have been invited to participate in the forums. Here’s the schedule:
Saturday
Ward 2: Castle Rock Park, 10 a.m.
Ward 4: Veterans Park, 2 p.m.
Ward 5: Millice Park, 5 p.m.
Sunday
Ward 3: Central Park, 1 p.m.
Ward 1: Pioneer Park, 5 p.m.
Mayoral: Pioneer Park, 7 p.m.
Visit the Billings Forums website for more information. There are links there to help you find out which ward you live.
Community Seven Television, meanwhile, is hosting a new series of shows called “Candidate Community Connection.” Each 30-minute segment will take an in-depth look at the City Council and mayoral candidates. The interviews, conducted by guest hosts Ben McKee and Forest Westwood, focus on getting to know the candidates a little better and talking about issues important to them.
Community Seven has conducted more than 15 interviews so far and is airing the shows on Charter cable channels 7, 189 and 507. Look for a different interview on Tuesdays at 7 p.m., Thursdays at 7 a.m. and Saturdays at 2:30 p.m. The interviews are also being streamed on Community Seven’s website. All episodes have been archived and are available for video-on-demand at the stations website, so you can watch when it’s convenient for you.
Community Seven is Billings’ only public, education and government access channel. For more information, call 281-5077 or send an email to comm7tv@comm7tv.com.
