Eleven of twelve candidates campaigning for the upcoming Baton Rouge mayoral election attended a forum hosted by the Student Government Association Wednesday, September 28 at 6 PM in the University’s Event Center.
The forum was free and open to the public and allowed candidates the opportunity to persuade college students on why it was necessary to earn their vote.
This election is important due to the fact that our University is located in the middle of a predominantly black community and the city needs strong leadership and a voice for the people of Baton Rouge in order to give everyone equal opportunities and a better quality of life.
It is also an historical election due to the turmoil that the city has faced in the last few months such as the flooding and shootings of Alton Sterling and the three Baton Rouge police officers.
Eleven candidates made an appearance for the debate. Those in attendance were Beverly Amador (Independent), R.J. Bourgeois (R), Sharon Weston Broome (D), Rufus Craig (Libertarian), John Delgado (R) Darryl Gissel (Independent), Braylon Hyde (R) Greg LaFleur (D), C. Denise Marcelle (D), Byron Sharper (D), and Cade Williams (independent).
Bodi White (R) was the only candidate that was not in attendance.
This was the first stop for candidates who would like to earn the vote of college students, but instead of just extending an invitation, voters need to make sure that the candidates are here for their interests, and not just the black vote.
This election is also unique due to the fact that two African American women are running.
The debate was moderated by a Southern University student, who asked the candidates a number of questions such their stance on the city of St. George proposition, the revitalization of North Baton Rouge, and how would they promote the interests of Southern University, because without Southern most of us would not have access to higher education.
The candidates were also given time to talk about what interests are important to them.
The three main candidates who stood out most were Sharon Weston Broom, C. Denise Marcelle, who is also an alumnus of Southern University, and Byron Sharper.
Sharon Weston Broome, who has one of the strongest political backgrounds, served a number of years as a Democratic member of the Louisiana Senate, representing District 5. She also served as the Senate President Pro Tempo, and in the Louisiana House of Representatives from 1991-1995. Broom, was also a former news anchor for our local news station, WBRZ, and currently is an adjunct instructor for Southern University and LSU.
When speaking of law enforcement being overly excessive in recent tragedies, Broome told the audience, “Everyone should feel safe in our community and not threatened by public servants.”
C. Denise Marcelle is a strong candidate because she grew up in the Baton Rouge community, and she has also served as a member of the Baton Rouge Metro Council from 2009-2016.
Marcelle has a platform focused on meeting the needs of the city of Baton Rouge, especially the North Baton Rouge area.
Marcelle spoke of how important it is for small business owners to have the opportunity to thrive and own an establishment with the same opportunities as those businesses in prime locations in other parts of town.
“We should have a seat at the table and that seat should have been before those contracts were put out,” Marcelle said.
Byron Sharper is a former metro city council man who was defeated by Marcelle in 2008.
Sharper is also the Vice President of the Baton Rouge branch of the NAACP.
The main campaign themes of these three candidates are basically of the same interest. The big issues on their agendas are crime, traffic congestion, healthcare, education, and the unifying of East Baton Rouge Parish.
Some also spoke of plans of trying to revitalize North Baton Rouge, which should be an important issue for all of us.
As a community, we need to focus on the candidate with the most realistic agenda and who will take the interests of this community seriously. We need to support the candidate that will try to revitalize North Baton Rouge and promote the interests of Southern University.
The most important thing we can do is learn about the candidates, their issues, and actually go out and vote.
Categories:
The Baton Rouge 2016 mayoral campaign and the candidates
October 4, 2016
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