OAK HILL, WV (WOAY) – Voices were heard and issues were unpacked during a meet the candidates’ event.
On Tuesday, November 1, approximately one week until the general elections on Tuesday, November 8, the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce was host to the event at their office in Oak Hill.
The meet and greet were the first one of its kind to be held at the chamber in a long time. All of the potential candidates running in Fayette County were invited to attend.
“With some of the changes that we’ve had in the redistricting, it’s important to find out who is in your district, and who you are voting for, so we wanted to offer this opportunity for a casual meet and greet,” President of the Fayette County Chamber of Commerce, Becky Sullivan says.
Also in attendance were, of course, the voters.
They were there ready to ask questions and talk about issues that they are passionate to see change.
It gave the constituents the human element they are looking for in the candidates that may get their vote this election.
“It’s very interesting because I’m hearing things that are, you know, just diametrically different,” a Fayette County voter, Debbie Bush says. “I like that, I like the fact that I’m a voter and I can think for myself, but I want to definitely see the candidates.”
And voters had a lot of concerns on their minds at the event. One such change they hope to see made is handling the county’s substance abuse problem, and reversing that problem at its very root.
“We need to start with education, we need to start working on the cause and the root, and try to prevent rather than deal with,” says Bush.
Following much discussion, the event also gave Fayette County constituents a chance to look at sample ballots leading up to the big day.
The deadline to register to vote was October 18, 2022. You can visit GoVoteWV for more information on how to request an absentee ballot, where the closest polling place is from where you live, among other important information about the election.