You’re invited to Denverite’s mayoral forum

The People’s Forum by Denverite will take place at the Carla Madison Rec Center March 7, from 5-7 p.m.
3 min. read

Updated Feb. 27: Tickets for our forum have sold out, but you can still join the waitlist here. We also plan to stream the event on Facebook.


The race for mayor is the talk of the town -- and for good reason. The mayor is described as the most powerful elected official in Colorado given the number of appointments it makes and influence it holds over so many facets of life in Denver.

Your interest in the race has led to us putting a lot energy into covering it as well as the campaigns to represent the city's varied districts at Denver City Council. And for the last two very election-y years, you've told us what matters most to you -- from housing and affordability to crime and the environment.

Your priorities power our reporting. So what're we doing with what you've shared?

We're hosting a forum focused on the issues affecting communities of color in the city. Nonprofits and groups that work directly with communities that have long felt ignored by the power structure in the city, including us -- the media -- have shared their top concerns with us.

The candidates will hear and answer questions crafted directly by these groups, as well as a few based on Denverite's own reporting on issues affecting communities of color in Denver.

Our forum will feature the top seven candidates getting Fair Elections Fund money.

We decided to use this metric because the Fair Elections Fund is a voter-approved mechanism that, to a degree, forces candidates to be on the ground and listening to people. We felt this was in line with the nature of our event.

Here are the invited and confirmed candidates who will be at our forum. They are listed in the order of FEF funds they've received:

Kelly Brough

Leslie Herod

Chris Hansen

Mike Johnston

Debbie Ortega

Kwame Spearman

Lisa Calderón

Originally we planned for the top eight, but as of now, Ean Tafoya has told us he is unable to attend in person. We'll update if that changes.

How can I attend or watch:

If you want to join us in person, you'll need to RSVP. You can reserve your spot by clicking on this link. Space is limited, so we encourage you to register early.

And if you want to watch, right now we plan on streaming the event on our Facebook page, so be sure to go  like and follow it. You can also go to cpr.org/mayor to watch the live stream.

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