Candidate forums: One way to avoid voting for a clown

One of the true joys of living in Nevada is that you can meet political candidates up close and personal. And you should.

There are plenty of opportunities for you to judge whether a candidate is a solid policy wonk with a strong work ethic or a gadfly running in hopes of getting invited to more parties.

Often I say the most important group of candidates are those in Family Court because they’re the ones you’re most likely to end up standing in front of as they make decisions about your divorce and child custody, the most contentious and significant issues many will ever face. It’s the court that gets the least publicity unless there’s a dramatic case such as the stripping of parental rights because of neglect.

This might be a column worth clipping, not for my profundities, but to remind yourself to check out the candidates.

Today there is a Clark County Commissioner Debate and Candidates Faire. The League of Women Voters is the primary sponsor. Show up at 2 p.m. at the College of Southern Nevada’s Cheyenne Campus Horn Theatre, 3200 E. Cheyenne, and you can meet many of the candidates running for offices in Clark County, including the judicial candidates. At 3 p.m. candidates running for County Commission will debate as public radio host Dave Berns moderates.

The league also has a Web site with candidate information at www.lwvlasvegasvalley.org. The voter information includes all the candidates on the Clark County ballot, from president on down, their top three priorities and their Web sites.

On Oct. 4 there’s a program called You Be the Judge: A Judicial Candidate Forum. Mediators of Southern Nevada, the Saltman Center for Conflict Resolution and the Boyd School of Law are sponsoring this event at UNLV at the law school. From 10 a.m. to noon, the family court candidates will answer questions, and from 1-3 p.m. the District Court and Justice Court candidates will be featured. Call 631-2790 for further information.

Both events are open to anyone and both appear to be solid and reputable.

For sloths who prefer to see the candidates on television, Vegas PBS and the Las Vegas Review-Journal are sponsoring two Judicial Town Hall meetings airing on KLVX-TV, Channel 10 on Thursday and Oct. 9, both starting at 8:30 p.m. Mitch Fox moderates both town hall meetings and hosts a state Senate and county commission debate Oct. 16 and a congressional debate Oct. 23. The PBS schedule is on the Web site www.vegaspbs.org.

Jon Ralston’s “Face to Face” on Cox Cable Channel 19 has a schedule of debates for a wide range of offices — including the judges — and it can be found at www.lasvegassun.com under Executive Producer Dana Gentry’s blog.

Berns, host of “State of Nevada” on KNPR-FM radio 88.9 will have candidate debates and conversations beginning the second week of October. That schedule isn’t finalized.

Groups sponsor many other opportunities for access, but because they focus on their own members, they can get the word out. But some of them are excellent.

For those who rely on the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s handy dandy political guide to supplement daily news coverage, it will be published Oct. 19. (One practical tip: If the Review-Journal and the Las Vegas Sun both endorse the same candidate, as philosophically opposed as their respective editorial boards are, he or she is probably the best candidate in that race.)

Of the local television stations, KLAS-TV, Channel 8 has the best, most complete candidate information for local races at www.lasvegasnow.com with photos, age, educational experience and other information provided by the candidates.

That list is by no means all encompassing but provides for reliable sources of information.

You’ll wish you’d paid more attention to the Family Court races when you’re standing in court and muttering, “How’d this bozo get elected?”

Judge Bozo was elected because voters knew so little about the candidate.

I receive calls from people with cases in Family Court. While there are some excellent judges, there also are some of the weakest judges on the Nevada bench.

Pay attention now or live forever with your regrets.

Jane Ann Morrison’s column appears Monday, Thursday and Saturday. E-mail her at Jane@reviewjournal.com or call (702) 383-0275.