Hofstra prepares for midterm election with a candidate conversation
From right to left, Barbara McFadden, Michael Delray, Kenneth Moore, Kevin Thomas, Lamont Johnson, Skyler Johnson, Anna Kaplan, Charles D. Lavine, Cooper Macco, Laura Gillen and Bridget Fleming discussed their campaigns for the upcoming midterm election and answered audience questions. // Photo courtesy of Nana Phoebe Bjornestad.
Hofstra Votes and the National Coalition of 100 Black Women (NCBW) hosted the 2022 Candidates Forum on Oct. 19 in Monroe Lecture Hall. Fourteen of the candidates who are campaigning for seats in the House of Representatives were invited to explain their policy positions for the upcoming election on Tuesday, Nov. 8. Candidates also answered audience questions during the second part of the forum.
Introductory remarks were made by Susan Poser, the president of Hofstra University, Wendell Holmes, the president of NCBW Long Island chapter and Adrienne Esposito, the executive director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment (CCE). CCE is a nonprofit that advocates for solutions to environmental issues.
Poser congratulated Hofstra Votes on their recent voter drive. “All in all, we completed the voter registration of 500 students,” Poser said.
Holmes began by discussing the history of the NCBW and the importance of the empowerment of Black women and advocacy for public policy. “This is our 40th anniversary year,” Patricia Williams, one of the leaders of NCBW. Williams said. “This chapter has been an advocate in the areas of health, education, and economic empowerment on behalf of black women.”
Alongside Williams’ advocacy for the betterment of public health and the environment, Esposito reminded the attendees that New York’s Proposition 1, the largest environmental protection act of this election, would be on the ballot. According to Esposito, “The clean water, clean air and environmental bond will allocate $4.2 billion for clean water and fighting climate change.”
Following the candidates’ opening remarks, candidates answered questions from the audience on their policy positions on mental health, small businesses, representation in the schooling system and the state of the country.
Mental health has become a very important topic as, according to CNN, “Nine out of 10 adults believe there is a mental health crisis.” Audience members questioned what candidates have done to address this issue. Taylor Darling, running for reelection to the assembly representing District 18, said that she will continue to help raise mental health awareness. “What we are doing in the office is making sure we provide funding every year to the Hispanic Counseling Service ... and [we have] passed legislation to support mental health in schools,” Darling said.
Another crucial topic that was discussed was helping small business recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. According to The Wall Street Journal, 200,000 establishments had closed due to the pandemic. Skyler Johnson, running for the assembly representing District 8, proposed Industrial Development Agencies (IDA) reform as a solution. “A lot of times we have issues with cronyism among these boards ... so I want to make sure that we will put money back in the pockets of small business owners, not large corporations,” Johnson said.
On the notion of investing in small businesses, audience members questioned how candidates would invest in the school system, specifically on how to increase the diversity of teachers. According to Digital Promise, 18% of the country’s teachers are teachers of color. Anna Kaplan, running for reelection to the senate representing District 7, shared that she was in favor of “giving [schools] the tools that they need to succeed, because at the end of the day, we need them to teach our children ... it's absolutely true that children of color need to see people like themselves.” During her second term in 2020, Kaplan increased funding in public schools by 20.2%.
The question and answer session ended with a discussion of the candidates’ thoughts on the overall state of America. Laura Gillen, running for election in the House of Representatives for New York’s 4th Congressional District, discussed the consequences of voter suppression. Gillen asked audience members to consider, “What are the policies that emerge when people don’t have access to the ballot box?”
Two Hofstra students gave their opinions on the event. “I thought it was really cool,” said Paige McLeav, a junior political science major. “It was an outside event held here and we were able, with Hofstra, to combine it with the NCBW.”
“I think it's really important for the sake of voting and democracy to be informed,” said Sarah Holmes, a sophomore public policy and public service and criminology major.
The forum ended with closing remarks by the candidates who reiterated to the audience their positions and the need to vote in the upcoming election.
Athelene Colins, the executive director of the Hofstra Cultural Center and one of the organizers of the event, commented on the importance of these events for students. “This is your first time seeing the candidates,” Colins said. “It gives an opportunity to make an intelligent decision.”
