Students' Union hosts virtual mayoral forum Sept. 23

Calgarians have been voting for municipal representatives since 1884 when the first mayor, George Murdoch, was elected for a single-year term. On Oct. 18, they’ll return to the ballot box to elect a new municipal government and, for many University of Calgary students, this will be their first opportunity to vote.

This will be the city’s 103rd municipal election, and the candidate field is a crowded one. Between the votes for mayor, councillors and school trustees, more than 190 candidates are in the running. With incumbent Mayor Naheed Nenshi, BComm’93, stepping down, the mayoral race alone includes at least 29 candidates.

On Thursday, Sept. 23 from 4 to 6 p.m., the UCalgary Students’ Union (SU) will be hosting a mayoral candidate forum at MacEwan Hall to a virtual audience. Ten mayoral candidates have been invited to provide an overview of their platforms and answer questions in a moderated debate.

The forum will be MC'd by Rob Brown from CBC and will be a public event that students, staff, and members of the campus community will be able to watch live, online. Questions can be submitted at any time and will be read by the moderator as time permits. 

“This will be a chance for our student community to get an inside look at the candidates and their platforms,” says SU Vice-President External Marley Gillies. “It will allow an important demographic, students, to make a more informed decision at the polls on Oct. 18.”

As a non-partisan corporate citizen, UCalgary Students’ Union is hosting this event as an opportunity for students, faculty, staff, and the community to have exposure to a wide variety of candidates. The student leaders involved in the planning and execution of the forum have built on already-strong relationships with the university in support of the shared goal of creating more opportunities to engage in democratic processes.

The event will be livestreamed on the Students’ Union YouTube channel and a recording will be available afterward.

View the livestream at https://www.youtube.com/suuofc

Find more information on the UCalgary Students’ Union. Find more information about the Mayoral Forum.