Coffee with the Candidates, Saturdays and Sundays in March, 10a.m. and 1p.m.!

Free coffee and candidate conversation Saturdays and Sundays in March, 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., at Counterpath (7935 East 14th Ave.). All events free and open to the public. See schedule below!

The new Denver City Council District 8 consists of a combination of the key neighborhoods of Northeast Park Hill, Montbello, and East Colfax. The 2023 municipal elections will produce a representative for these newly linked areas for the very first time, as well as two At Large council members and a mayor charged with representing this same common cause, which many see as fighting involuntary displacement.

We are lucky to have a historically high number of candidates running for each office, with a handful of candidate forums in the works. But we also want to ask, what happens to our public discourse when we have so many voices, so many platforms, so much information to take in? In our busy lives, how do we slow down enough to actually listen to each other, know a little better who is in front of us, and why they are inspired to serve the public? How do we get a sense that the range of truly urgent issues in our communities is being looked after and addressed?

To support more in-depth conversation and one-on-one interaction with candidates running for office in the 2023 elections, Counterpath is hosting a series of “Coffee with the Candidates” mini town halls that invite all candidates (including write-ins) but that include, at each gathering, only a limited number of people, two to three, who are running for a particular seat (District 8, At Large, Mayor, Auditor, Clerk & Recorder). Each candidate will be able to substantively introduce themselves, engage in real-time dialogue, and field questions directly from the audience and each other. We will avoid “yes or no” or “raise your hand” questions, as important as those can sometimes be. Moderators will be journalists and community members.

The schedule (in process) for these conversations is listed here and we hope everyone will attend in-person as many as possible. Conversations will also be videoed and carried on Facebook Live on the Counterpath page, though in-person questions and conversation will have priority. Light refreshments at each event, and free coffee!

Saturday, March 4, 10a.m., At Large: Travis Leiker, Serena Gonzalez-Gutierrez, Sarah Parady. Moderated by Roger Cobb

Saturday, March 4, 1p.m., District 8: Christian Steward, Leslie Twarogowski. Moderated by LaMone Noles

Sunday, March 5, 10a.m., At Large: Jeff Walker, Marty Zimmerman, Dominic Diaz

Sunday, March 5, 1p.m., Mayor: Thomas Wolf, Robert Treta, Lisa Calderón, Chris Hansen. Moderated by Jeff Fard

_______________________

Saturday, March 18, 10a.m., Mayor: Jesse Parris, James Walsh, Leslie Herod, Aurelio Martinez. Moderated by Jeff Fard

Saturday, March 18, 1p.m., At Large: Will Chan, Tim Hoffman, Penfield Tate. Moderated by Hashim Coates

Sunday, March 19, 10a.m., Mayor: Ean Tafoya, Kwame Spearman, Kelly Brough, Mike Johnston. Moderated by Jeff Fard

Sunday, March 19, 1p.m., Auditor: Erik Clarke, Timothy O’Brien. Moderated by Hashim Coates

_______________________

Saturday, March 25, 1p.m., Mayor: Andy Rougeot, Trinidad Rodriguez, Ken Simpson. Moderated by Jeff Fard

Sunday, March 26, 10a.m., District 8: Brad Revare, Tyler Drum, Shontel Lewis, Rita Lewis. Moderated by LaMone Noles

Sunday, March 26, 1p.m., Mayor: Al Gardner, Paul Fiorino. Moderated by Jeff Fard