Congressional Hopefuls Gather for 'Roundtable Discussion' Tonight

The political season in Forsyth County continues to heat up with tonight's roundtable discussion featuring the Republican and Democratic nominees for U.S. House of Representatives.

The event, hosted by the Forsyth County Tea Party Patriots Alliance (FCTPPA), features the candidates for Districts 7 and 9 appearing on the Nov. 6 ballot.

Scheduled to appear tonight, Republican incumbent Rob Woodall and his opponent Democrat Steve Reilly. They are vying for the District 7 seat, which includes the southern half of Forsyth.

In District 9, which includes the northern part of Forsyth County, attendees will hear from Republican Doug Collins and Democrat Jody Cooley. The two are hoping to be the candidate chosen by voters for that seat.

As a result of redistricting, incumbent Woodall's district includes nearly half of Forsyth County and a swath of Gwinnett, as stated an e-mail by the FCTPPA. It previously included just a small part of south Forsyth. 

The northern half of the county is in District 9, which is no longer represented by Tom Graves who is now running in District 14, which covers much of northwest Georgia. 

Graves was invited to attend but had to cancel due to a conflicting family event, according to the FCTPPA.

The roundtable event is being promoted as a "discussion" and not a debate with each candidate discussing a topic posed to them by the political party and the audience.

"It's going to give the people in the audience a better picture of that person as a candidate than the typical old thing that you get in a debate of spin this and spin that and shoot a barb at the other guy," said Bob Frey spokesperson for the FCTPPA. "That's what we are trying to avoid."

The goal for tonight's discussion is to get the candidates to talk about current topics and what their personal opinion is on that topic.

Frey said the FCTPPA has 12 topics to share with the candidates but is unsure if there will be enough time to discuss all of them during the roundtable.

"I don't know if this [roundtable discussion] has ever been tried in Forsyth County, but it's going to be quite an experience if we can pull it off," he said.

Attendees of the event will also have an opportunity to ask the candidates questions.

The FCTPPA is expecting a full house and if you are going - plan to be there early.

The roundtable discussion will be held in the Forsyth County Administration Building, second floor, located at 110 E. Main Street in downtown Cumming. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the event begins at 7 p.m.

You might also be interested in reading:

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Forsyth County Candidates Speak Out Post-Election



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