Category: Election

Here’s everything you’ll need to know about the November 3rd election.

Your Democratic Candidates
Here’s the Democrats who you’ll see on your ballot on November 3rd.

• Presidential Ticket – Joe Biden and Kamala Harris
• U.S. Senate – Marquita Bradshaw
• 4th Congressional District – Christopher Hale
• State Senate 14th District – Chase Clemons

How to Register to Vote
To vote in November, you must be registered by October 5th.

You’ve got three options for registering:

• Online – Head over to the GoVoteTN.com site here to register.
• By Mail – Print the voter registration form here and send it in by mail.
• In-Person – Stop by 208 Davidson Street East Room 106 here in Fayetteville. The Election Commission is open Monday thru Friday from 8:00am to 4:00pm. You can fill out the registration form there.

Check Your Voter Registration
Head over to GoVoteTN.com to find info on your polling place as well as check your registration. You can also stop by the Election Commission at 208 Davidson Street East – Room 106.

Even if you voted recently, double check your voter registration to make sure you’re still on the voting list.

How to Vote Early
Early voting runs from Wednesday October 14th to Thursday October 29th. Voting hours are 8am to 4pm on weekdays. On Saturdays, voting hours are 8am to 12pm Noon.

You’ll vote at the Election Commission – 208 Davidson Street East – Room 106 / Fayetteville, Tennessee 37334

How to Vote
Head over to GoVoteTN.com to find info on your polling place.

Polls are open from 9am to 7pm on election day – November 3rd. If you’re in line at 7pm, stay in line and vote.

Make sure to bring a valid photo ID. Any of the following IDs may be used, even if expired:

• Tennessee driver license with your photo
• United States Passport
• Photo ID issued by the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security
• Photo ID issued by the federal or Tennessee state government
• United States Military photo ID
• Tennessee handgun carry permit with your photoCollege student IDs and photo IDs not issued by the federal or Tennessee state government are NOT acceptable. This includes county or city issued photo IDs, such as library cards, and photo IDs issued by other states.

Need help getting a valid ID? We can help you get one.

Need a ride to the polls? We can help with that too.

The first presidential debates of the 2020 Democratic Primary kicks off this week!

With a dozen candidates vying for the nomination, the Democratic Party split the first debate into two nights with ten candidates appearing each night.

The first group of 10 appearing on Wednesday, June 26:

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren; Former Texas Rep. Beto O’Rourke; New Jersey Sen. CoryBooker; Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar; Washington Gov. Jay Inslee; former HUD Secretary Julián Castro; Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard; New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio; Ohio Rep. Tim Ryan; and former Maryland Rep. John Delaney.

The second group of 10 appearing on Thursday, June 27:

Former Vice-Presiden Joe Biden; Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders; California Sen. Kamala Harris; South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg; New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand; Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet; former Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper; California Rep. Eric Swalwell; entrepreneur Andrew Yang; and self-help author Marianne Williamson.

Four other candidates failed to meet the polling and donation thresholds for this debate so won’t be appearing. Those four are Montana Gov. Steve Bullock, Massachusetts Rep. Seth Moulton, Miramar, Fla., Mayor Wayne Messam, and former Alaska Sen. Mike Gravel.

Hosted by NBC News, MSNBC and Telemundo, the debates features five moderators: “Today” co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, NBC Nightly News host Lester Holt, “Meet the Press” moderator Chuck Todd, MSNBC host Rachel Maddow and “Noticias Telemundo” host José Diaz-Balart.

You can watch the debate on NBC, MSNBC and Telemundo starting at 8:00pm on each night. It’ll also be streaming for free on NBCNews.com, MSNBC.com, and the NBC News app.

With every election, it’s a challenge to know who to vote for. Flashy political ads obscure what candidates really think. Debates give us poll-tested answers that set up three-second sound bites. You’ll probably never even meet the candidates personally.

At our local level, that all changes. You might not have a ton of history or media coverage to know a person. But you’ll have an opportunity to meet and talk with the candidate. And that’s important! For new candidates especially, you’re relying on conversations with that person.

Talking politics like this is tough. But it’s important when picking our community leaders and deciding our future. Knowing what questions to ask is key here.

When talking with local leaders, I often ask for questions that we should be asking. Here’s a handy list compiled from those answers.

Why are you running?

Sounds like a simple one, right? But you’d be surprised at how many candidates can’t answer that question. If they’re running for public office, they should give you an answer on why.

What to listen for: Are they running to tackle a specific problem? Or maybe they believe their past experience will be beneficial? Steer clear of the candidates that can’t answer this in a clear and concise way.

What’s your vision for our community? Where do you see Fayetteville and Lincoln County in the next 5, 10, and 15 years?

Community leaders lay out the future for our community. A candidate should have a few key points in this answer that work together and lay out their vision.

What to listen for: Are they focused solely on the next few years and don’t mention past that? We need leaders that can look beyond the next budget cycle. Their vision should get you excited about them as a person and where they see our town headed.

Do you think our main street and downtown are healthy and successful? If not, what would you do to change that?

With city elections, candidates have an even closer connection to our downtown. We want candidates that are thinking about the current state of downtown.

What to listen for: Start first with how you think things are going. What do you see when you walk around downtown? What do you see going right or wrong on main street? Then think through some ways that the community could improve that part of town. Those ideas are what you’ll want to listen for when the candidate answers.

What neighborhood do you live in? Where are your favorite places to spend time in our town?

All of our elected officials live in the county limits. But there’s lots of areas to our community.

What to listen for: Does the candidate seem familiar with the whole community? Or are their answers focused on only specific areas? A candidate that focuses only on specific areas might not see the big picture and how our town fits together.

If elected, what three steps would you take to put our community on a firmer financial footing?

Local finances tie directly into your pocket-book. Are lots of businesses and residents leaving the city? Look for cuts in public services and increases in taxes. Is business booming with people flocking to live in the city limits? That means more tax revenue collected so more services and less taxes.

What to listen for: Vague answers show unfamiliarity with the topic. Concrete, actionable, and affordable steps show what the candidate’s really thinking.

How do you plan to involve residents in the decision-making process in our town?

One of the biggest asks I hear from community leaders is for residents to get more involved. This is a two-way street – we should be more involved and candidates should have ideas on engaging more people.

What to listen for: Pay close attention to how a candidate will engage with people who can’t always make it to a board meeting, i.e. folks that work multiple jobs, parents that don’t have childcare options, etc.