General election next, so no more yawning

In the wake of Kauai’s ho-hum primary election that slogged to an expectedly

unexciting conclusion last Saturday, any heat generated for the general

election Nov. 7 would be appreciated.

And the American Association of

Retired Persons’ Lihu’e chapter and the Kaua’i County League of Women Voters

are doing their best to help warm things up. They’ll host a public forum Oct. 9

for the 14 County Council candidates who are eagerly anticipating the grand

finale.

There should be comparable voter interest in the run-off, even

without assistance from forums. The biggest reason is because there will be

some drama in the outcome. There was absolutely no suspense in the primary,

since except for a few of the original 16 candidates, there was little question

about who would garner enough votes to advance to the general election. The few

other primary election contests for Kauaians were just as uneventful.

To

help ensure voters’ attention in the remaining weeks before the general

election, the AARP and the League have organized the two-hour forum at Kaua’i

War Memorial Convention Hall. A creditable moderator has been found in Dan

Boylan, a University of Hawai’i history professor and host of “Newsmakers” on

PBS channel 11. Journalists from The Garden Island will help pose questions to

the candidates.

It should be an interesting night.