Our Invitation to the Candidates
In May, volunteers from the Fourth Ward Cleaver magazine staff sent out a forum invitation to candidates in the following races:
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The letters of invitation that went out to candidates in four local races on May 13th.
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You can read the invitation below.
The twenty-eight letters were hand-addressed and sent in Priority Mail envelopes so they would in no way resemble junk mail. The addresses used were supplied by the Hancock County Circuit Clerk's office (with the exception of the State 122 race). Through Priority Mail tracking, the post office confirmed that all were delivered to those addresses.
Our volunteers followed up with at least one phone call to the candidates (to the number listed on the candidate information sheet given to us by the county). If the candidate could not be reached, a voice mail was left, offering to answer any questions they might have about the forum.
Fourteen of the candidates responded and participated in Part One. The participating candidates' bios and photos were posted on this site in the middle of June.
The twenty-eight letters were hand-addressed and sent in Priority Mail envelopes so they would in no way resemble junk mail. The addresses used were supplied by the Hancock County Circuit Clerk's office (with the exception of the State 122 race). Through Priority Mail tracking, the post office confirmed that all were delivered to those addresses.
Our volunteers followed up with at least one phone call to the candidates (to the number listed on the candidate information sheet given to us by the county). If the candidate could not be reached, a voice mail was left, offering to answer any questions they might have about the forum.
Fourteen of the candidates responded and participated in Part One. The participating candidates' bios and photos were posted on this site in the middle of June.
Why these races?
Some Hancock County offices this year aren't being contested, like Tax Assessor, Sheriff, and Justice Court Judge Places 1 & 3. This first year of the forum, our volunteers won't have enough time to give full attention to Constable, Coroner and Superintendent races, although you'll find the full slate of candidates here.
We'll consider adding candidates for major state races after the primaries in August.
We'll consider adding candidates for major state races after the primaries in August.
The Letter
Note: Due to technical difficulties, the time-line for sending out questions to participating forum candidates was pushed forward two weeks.
Dear Candidate,
The Bay St. Louis Fourth Ward Cleaver (www.bslfourthward.com) is an online lifestyle magazine that has over 1000 subscribers and 6,000+ viewers each month – and we’re growing every day.
The Cleaver would like to offer you a unique, free way to reach hundreds of potential voters.
Cleaver volunteers have set up a non-partisan website to facilitate and encourage local voters. The address is www.servehancock.com. The Serve Hancock website contains lots of voter information, including maps, how to register, important dates and a list of all local candidates.
On the Serve Hancock website, candidates in several races will have two opportunities to reach thousands of voters - at no cost.
· MS State House of Representatives - District 122
Why these races? Some Hancock County offices this year aren't being contested, like Tax Assessor, Sheriff, and Justice Court Judge Places 1 & 3. This first year of the forum, our volunteers won't have enough time to give full attention to Constable, Coroner and Superintendent races.
To participate is free and easy! Here’s how it works:
Part One
1. E-MAIL US before JUNE 1st, with your name, phone number and e-mail address. You’ll find detailed instructions at the end of this letter.
2. Include with that email a digital photo and introductory statement. See the end of this letter for detailed instructions.
3. All bios and photos will be posted on the Serve Hancock site in mid-June. Detailed instructions at end of this letter.
4. Participation in Part One of the Forum automatically qualifies candidates for Part Two. Candidates who don’t participate in Part One will not be eligible to participate in Part Two.
Part Two
1. In the first week of June, all participating Serve Hancock Forum candidates will be emailed a list of questions, which have been compiled with input from community leaders and residents.
2. You'll have two weeks to respond. Then we’ll post all candidates’ answers online (at the same time, in the interest of fairness) before July 1st.
3. When the answers from all participating candidates have been entered onto the website, we’ll launch a major social media and press campaign to publicize the site’s availability.
Our goal is to encourage voters to base decisions on information rather than advertising.
A few notes:
· Serve Hancock will NOT endorse any candidate.
· Any candidate who chooses not to participate will remain on the list of candidates currently posted on our website with a note stating “Chose not to participate.” Any participating candidate who doesn’t return answers to questions before deadline will be listed with the explanation of “no response before deadline.”
· Information received from candidates will not be edited. In the interest of accuracy, we’ll be copying and pasting exactly what we receive from you onto the website.
· After the election, the winners will remain on the website, giving you more connection with the community you’ve chosen to serve.
THIS IS A FREE COMMUNITY SERVICE
We're hoping for 100% participation from candidates. After all, who can afford to pass up an opportunity to get your views out to hundreds of active voters at no cost?
Thank you for your consideration,
The Serve Hancock Volunteers
Details on Participating in the Serve Hancock Online Forum
Part One:
· Send an email with your name, phone number and email address to: info@bslfourthward.com
· Include a short statement that introduces you to voters and explains why you feel you’re the right person for the job.
· The statement should be 150 words max. That’s about three short paragraphs. USE A COUNTER ON A WORD PROCESSING PROGRAM TO MAKE SURE YOU DON’T GO OVER THE LIMIT. Entries over 150 words will be disqualified in the interest of fairness to all candidates.
· Make sure your statement is free from typos, misspellings, and grammatical errors. We will be copying and pasting this information onto our website and will not be editing. We also won’t be able to make changes once the information is posted.
· Also include a digital image of yourself. Head and shoulder pictures will work best. The higher the resolution, the better (we can size down, but can’t size up). We’ll be cropping all images to 3in X 3in with 125 resolution. You may size your own image before sending to us.
· Make sure that your junk mail filters are set to allow emails from info@bslfourthward.com to reach you.
· All forum candidates are being mailed this letter on the same date via priority mail so we can track delivery.
· Our volunteers will make one attempt to speak with each candidate by phone to answer any questions you may have. Phone numbers of county candidates have been gathered from official sources.
The Bay St. Louis Fourth Ward Cleaver (www.bslfourthward.com) is an online lifestyle magazine that has over 1000 subscribers and 6,000+ viewers each month – and we’re growing every day.
The Cleaver would like to offer you a unique, free way to reach hundreds of potential voters.
Cleaver volunteers have set up a non-partisan website to facilitate and encourage local voters. The address is www.servehancock.com. The Serve Hancock website contains lots of voter information, including maps, how to register, important dates and a list of all local candidates.
On the Serve Hancock website, candidates in several races will have two opportunities to reach thousands of voters - at no cost.
- In Part One, candidates will be able to introduce themselves on this website with a short bio and a photo. They'll also be able to present their platform and explain why they feel they are uniquely qualified to hold the office for which they're campaigning.
- In Part Two, participating candidates will have the opportunity to respond to a set of relevant questions. Their answers will be posted on the website too.
· MS State House of Representatives - District 122
Why these races? Some Hancock County offices this year aren't being contested, like Tax Assessor, Sheriff, and Justice Court Judge Places 1 & 3. This first year of the forum, our volunteers won't have enough time to give full attention to Constable, Coroner and Superintendent races.
To participate is free and easy! Here’s how it works:
Part One
1. E-MAIL US before JUNE 1st, with your name, phone number and e-mail address. You’ll find detailed instructions at the end of this letter.
2. Include with that email a digital photo and introductory statement. See the end of this letter for detailed instructions.
3. All bios and photos will be posted on the Serve Hancock site in mid-June. Detailed instructions at end of this letter.
4. Participation in Part One of the Forum automatically qualifies candidates for Part Two. Candidates who don’t participate in Part One will not be eligible to participate in Part Two.
Part Two
1. In the first week of June, all participating Serve Hancock Forum candidates will be emailed a list of questions, which have been compiled with input from community leaders and residents.
2. You'll have two weeks to respond. Then we’ll post all candidates’ answers online (at the same time, in the interest of fairness) before July 1st.
3. When the answers from all participating candidates have been entered onto the website, we’ll launch a major social media and press campaign to publicize the site’s availability.
Our goal is to encourage voters to base decisions on information rather than advertising.
A few notes:
· Serve Hancock will NOT endorse any candidate.
· Any candidate who chooses not to participate will remain on the list of candidates currently posted on our website with a note stating “Chose not to participate.” Any participating candidate who doesn’t return answers to questions before deadline will be listed with the explanation of “no response before deadline.”
· Information received from candidates will not be edited. In the interest of accuracy, we’ll be copying and pasting exactly what we receive from you onto the website.
· After the election, the winners will remain on the website, giving you more connection with the community you’ve chosen to serve.
THIS IS A FREE COMMUNITY SERVICE
We're hoping for 100% participation from candidates. After all, who can afford to pass up an opportunity to get your views out to hundreds of active voters at no cost?
Thank you for your consideration,
The Serve Hancock Volunteers
Details on Participating in the Serve Hancock Online Forum
Part One:
· Send an email with your name, phone number and email address to: info@bslfourthward.com
· Include a short statement that introduces you to voters and explains why you feel you’re the right person for the job.
· The statement should be 150 words max. That’s about three short paragraphs. USE A COUNTER ON A WORD PROCESSING PROGRAM TO MAKE SURE YOU DON’T GO OVER THE LIMIT. Entries over 150 words will be disqualified in the interest of fairness to all candidates.
· Make sure your statement is free from typos, misspellings, and grammatical errors. We will be copying and pasting this information onto our website and will not be editing. We also won’t be able to make changes once the information is posted.
· Also include a digital image of yourself. Head and shoulder pictures will work best. The higher the resolution, the better (we can size down, but can’t size up). We’ll be cropping all images to 3in X 3in with 125 resolution. You may size your own image before sending to us.
· Make sure that your junk mail filters are set to allow emails from info@bslfourthward.com to reach you.
· All forum candidates are being mailed this letter on the same date via priority mail so we can track delivery.
· Our volunteers will make one attempt to speak with each candidate by phone to answer any questions you may have. Phone numbers of county candidates have been gathered from official sources.
