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Independent Candidates Criticize Format Of Louisville Mayoral Forum

Some of the seven independent candidates for Louisville mayor are raising concerns about the format of a mayoral candidates’ forum to be held next week at Louisville Public Media.

Tuesday’s event will begin at 7 p.m. with a debate between Democratic incumbent Greg Fischer and Republican challenger Angela Leet. It will be broadcast live on WFPL and on WAVE 3 News.

The second part of the forum, featuring independent candidates, begins at 8:15 p.m. It will be recorded by WFPL and posted online as part of the station’s voter guide.

At a news conference Thursday, three of those candidates, Jackie Green, Sean Vandevander and Chris Thieneman said they should be given the opportunity to debate the major party candidates.

“We all represent thousands of voters and we feel like those are thousands of voices being denied the right to be heard, especially in a public debate,” Vandevander said.

In a statement, Louisville Public Media President Stephen George said, “We’re proud to provide an opportunity for every candidate in this race to inform the public about their views of our city’s future.”

The forum is being organized by the League of Women Voters.

This story has been corrected to give proper attribution to Sean Vandevander for the quote above. A previous version incorrectly attributed the quote to Chris Thieneman.

Rick Howlett was midday host and the host of LPM's weekly talk show, "In Conversation." He was with LPM from 2001-2023 and held many different titles, including Morning Edition host, Assignment Editor and Interim News Director. He died in August 2023. Read a remembrance of Rick here.