Peachtree Corners Political Forums ... Part 1

As most of you are aware, the long awaited political forums, hosted by the UPCCA, began Monday night at Christ the King Lutheran Church.

As many of you remember, my pre-candidate life on the Patch used to be that of an quasi-opinion writer.  So, for a brief period I will return to that role and share my observations on the first forum.

- The forum was more heavily attended than many people anticipated.  This forum was primarily for District One voters.  Voting statistics over the last 10 years bear out that District One normally votes at a much lower percentage than the other two districts and in particular during the cityhood campaign turnout was barely 10 percent.  As a result, many observers were expecting a light turnout.  Instead almost every seat was full.  A good sign for the level of interest people have in being involved in the new city regardless of where they live.

- Many candidates were very well prepared in terms of the "merchandising/marketing" of their campaigns at the respective tables they were given to use by the forum organizers.  I suspect the 'lessons learned' from Monday night will result in more elaborate measures Tuesday night and next Monday night as an 'arms race' of sort develops in an effort to impress voters. 

- As would be expected, there was a good deal of nervousness during the first round of questions.  However, I detected a certain level of understanding by both the audience and the other candidates when a candidate had some initial stumbles because of nerves.  Everyone seemed to realize that each person speaking was new to the world of politics and as such they should be cut a certain amount of slack.  I found that to be a very positive sign.

- There was good representation in attendance from both the the old 'yes' and 'no' leadership.  In spite of the animosity in November, I did not detect any lingering hard feelings about the outcome.  Yet another good omen for the future of the city. 

- The slate of candidates there tonight (10 at large and 2 geographic) represented a very diverse cross section of the city's population in terms of age, gender and race.  The spectrum of views on issues impacting the city were all very similar and tended to be fairly conservative.  The issues raised were really 'blocking and tackling' type issues such as zoning, code enforcement, economic development, etc. which often do not reflect larger political leanings (i.e. having smart zoning is not normally considered either a Republican or Democrat position).

All in all I would have to say the first forum was a rousing success.  There was a palatable sense of excitement in the room both before, during and after the forum that we all were witnessing something new and exciting.  Not quite the birth of a new city, but something close to it.  Maybe the birth of the democratic process of our new city.

District Two candidates (Jay Lowe and Stephen Peet) will have their say Tuesday night in addition to the return of the 10 at-large candidates for a repeat performance.  Jay Lowe has been running quite a marketing buzz saw the last month while Stephen Peet seems to be operating a more behind the scenes campaign so far.  Many people are anxious to see these two seemingly contrasting styles on stage together.  District Two has historically had very, very high voter participation so I would expect a really big crowd for this second forum.  I would strongly recommend arriving early to ensure you get a seat.

In summary I just want to say GREAT JOB to all the candidates in the first forum!!  All of you did very well.

Also, a big thanks to the UPCCA for all the organization, logistics, marketing, etc. that goes into pulling this type of event off.