As part of our continuing partnership with Connecticut Public, and in recognition of the Connecticut League of Women Voters (LWVCT) and its efforts to promote civic-mindedness, The Newtown Bee is proud to announce we will be co-presenting a series of political debate webcasts produced by these two organizations.

The series kicks off Thursday, September 15, and will conclude on October 27. All readers need to do is click on the video screen below and tune in.

Following the September 15 debut featuring Secretary of the State challengers, The Bee, Connecticut Public and the League of Women Voters of Connecticut (LWVCT) will continue with these webcasts on select Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8 pm.

For anyone interested in watching via webcast, or attending in-person, the dates along with locations and moderators for for the remaining series of debates are scheduled as follows:

Thursday, September 15: Secretary of the State (University of Hartford, Lincoln Theater, West Hartford), moderated by Walter Smith Randolph;

Thursday, September 29: 2nd Congressional District (Eastern Connecticut State University, Fine Arts Instructional Center Concert Hall, Willimantic), moderated by Catherine Shen;

Tuesday, October 11: 1st Congressional District (Manchester Community College, SBM Charitable Foundation Auditorium, Manchester), moderated by Ray Hardman;

Thursday, October 13: 4th Congressional District (Norwalk Community College, David Levinson Theater, Norwalk), moderated by Dr. Khalilah Brown-Dean;

Thursday, October 20: 5th Congressional District (Central Connecticut State University, Torp Theatre, New Britain), moderated by Frankie Graziano;

Tuesday, October 25: United States Senate (Fairfield University, Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts, Fairfield), moderated by John Henry Smith; and

Thursday, October 27: Governor (Fairfield University, Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts, Fairfield), moderated by Lucy Nalpathanchil.

The location of the congressional debates at colleges and universities in the districts was designed with the goal of including as many students and young people as possible in the debate process.

Each debate will feature a live audience and will be broadcast and streamed on Connecticut Public platforms, including CPTV, ctpublic.org, YouTube and Facebook Live, as well as the LWVCT website and YouTube channel.

The debates will also be simulcast on Connecticut Public Radio (WNPR 90.5, WEDW and WVOF 88.5, WPKT 89.1 and streaming at ctpublic.org).

Each debate will be moderated by Connecticut Public journalists. The debate series will also be produced as podcasts, accessible via the App Store, Google Play, and other common podcast platforms.

“We are thrilled for the opportunity to collaborate with the League of Women Voters to bring these debates to the people of Connecticut, '' said Tim Rasmussen, Chief Content Officer of Connecticut Public. “This ambitious, comprehensive debate series will provide voters with direct access to candidates — something that is essential for a healthy democracy and building trust in our election process. As Connecticut’s non-profit public media source, Connecticut Public and our journalists are highly trusted by our viewers and listeners, and we are pleased to be able to help inform and educate our electorate and hold our elected representatives accountable.”

”The League is very excited to partner with Connecticut Public to bring these debates to the public,” said Laura Smits, president of the League of Women Voters of Connecticut. “We both share a vision of offering voters direct access to the candidates in a straightforward and non-partisan way. Right now, in a world with so much access to information, it’s important that voters can hear from voices they can trust. Connecticut Public’s reputation for solid journalism combined with our expertise in hosting fair debates is a terrific combination and should give voters confidence that, in the century-old tradition of the League, we will ensure the fairness and transparency of the electoral process.”

Editor John Voket said, "The Newtown Bee has had a great relationship with Connecticut Public, which serves as one of our our partners providing both State House and statewide coverage of issues that Newtown residents and our readers should know about."

Voket said The Bee has also partnered in the past with the regional LWV chapter, and he is pleased that "Newtown's hyper-local newspaper is stepping up to help further promote this important organization that works so hard encouraging informed and active participation in government."