Yet Karger is the only potential candidate being excluded from the forum. In fact, IFFC President Steve Scheffler has gone further, saying in an email that “I will work overtime to help ensure that your political aspirations are aborted right here in Iowa.” Why? Because Fred Karger is gay. According to Scheffler, Karger cannot participate in the forum because Karger does not really want to be President. Instead, according to Scheffler, “you [Karger] and the radical homosexual community want to harass supporters of REAL marriage.”

Attention to fairness is expected of all tax exempt organizations when they engage in the act of informing voters. Federal law requires objective criteria to be used. Scheffler’s inference that because Karger is gay, he “is not a legitimate candidate” for President, violates federal law. By excluding Fred Karger solely because he is gay, the IFFC and Scheffler intend to break the law by seeking to influence rather than inform voters.

“The actions of the IFFC and Steve Scheffler violate federal election laws restricting express advocacy by tax-exempt organizations. I commend and support Fred Karger for his courage to stand up in defense of free, fair, and transparent elections,” said Christina Tobin, Free & Equal Founder and President.

Fred Karger has filed a complaint with the FEC. He has also set up a website, www.letfredin.com for people who want to protect Iowa’s reputation for free and equal elections.

“WLS ABC Channel 7 should follow the example set by WFLD Fox Channel 32, which during the gubernatorial race hosted a truly inclusive debate, including all six candidates,” said Christina Tobin, Founder and Chair of the Free and Equal Elections Foundation.

Free & Equal also criticized WTTW Channel 11, which is facing a half-million dollar lawsuit as a result of holding a similar non-inclusive gubernatorial debate in 2010. Rich Whitney, candidate for governor, and LeAlan Jones, candidate for US Senator, were excluded from debates broadcast by WTTW last fall, after repeated requests for inclusion were denied.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting funds and oversees the programming at WTTW and is a defendant, along with Daniel Schmidt, WTTW’s CEO. The lawsuit alleges that by selecting certain candidates and giving them free air time, they were engaged in partisan political activity, in violation of the IRS tax code and FCC regulations.

“As a licensed broadcaster, WLS has an obligation to operate in the public interest. They abrogate this responsibility by limiting the debate to exclude ballot qualified candidates,” said Tobin.

The questions asked of the candidates were as follows:

1) Proposition 19, to legalize, tax and regulate Cannabis, is a hot-button issue facing California voters this election for many reasons. Do you support or oppose the legalization of Marijuana and why? How do you feel this issue relates to U.S. military presence in Costa Rica, a non-military nation? What could you add to the discussion of our presence in non-military nations?

2) California’s new Top Two primary system, which passed in June of this year, essentially sets up a system of two general elections per season, benefiting the most heavily funded candidates. What is your feeling on a system of proportional representation for Americans and do Third Party and independent candidates have a responsibility to assist each other in being visible to the voting public?

3) Immigration is a huge issue in California. Do you feel there are solutions we haven’t tried, that perhaps, the Top Two parties are unable to consider? Could you share one or two of these ideas?

4) The current political climate is possibly as ugly as it has ever been, on both state and national levels. How do you feel we can steer political discourse back toward civility? The Top Two candidates have bombarded California voters with attack ads and junk mail. What would you say to voters who are fed up with this style of campaigning?

All ballot qualified candidates have been invited to participate in the event, which is the last leg of a nationwide all-inclusive debate tour supporting the right of voters to hear from all candidates on an equal playing field, and is sponsored by the campus chapter of Students for Liberty and The Free and Equal Elections Foundation.

Peace and Freedom Party candidate Carlos Alvarez, American Independent Party candidate Chelene Nightingale, Libertarian Party candidate Dale Ogden and Green Party candidate Laura Wells, all vying to become the next governor of California, have agreed to participate in the debate. Democratic candidate Jerry Brown and Republican candidate Meg Whitman also have been invited to participate but have not yet responded.

Recently, Wells led a protest demanding all-inclusive candidate debates, prior to the gubernatorial candidate debate at Dominican University of California, which included only Brown and Whitman. After protesters made their way to the so-called “free speech zone” near Angelico Hall, where the debate was hosted, a spokeswoman said, Wells was given a ticket to attend the debate as a spectator but was arrested after passing the first security check point. Video footage of Wells’ arrest can be viewed on the KCRA website.

The Free and Equal debate will provide an equal platform for all ballot qualified candidates to discuss issues facing Californians this election season including Proposition 19 to legalize, tax and regulate cannabis in California, Proposition 8 for equal rights, war and proportional representation in addition to the those questions that plague the minds of Californians and Americans across the board.

The debate will follow a cumulative format, moderated by Christina Tobin, founder and chair of Free and Equal, and Libertarian candidate for Secretary of State of California. National Public Radio (NPR), The New York Times, The Washington Post, Huffington Post, Chicago Sun-Times, The Sacramento Bee, the Associated Press and other prominent media outlets typically cover Free and Equal events, and Free and Equal expects this debate to garner similar media coverage. This debate, like all Free and Equal sponsored debates, will be streamed live and archived on the Free and Equal website.

“These debates will demonstrate that it is not an undue burden, or even difficult, to include all ballot-qualified candidates,” Tobin said. “The other organizations planning on holding debates should fulfill their civic responsibility and also invite all ballot qualified candidates to participate.”

In order to help voters and potential voters make their voices heard on this issue, Free and Equal has launched an online petition calling for open, all-inclusive debates.

The debates are free and open to the public. Free and Equal asks that all media professionals planning to cover this event submit their requests for media credentials to Kaylee Campbell Burton, public relations director for Free and Equal, via email to kaylee@freeandequal.org, or by phone or text to 405.295.5420.

Watch Free & Equal’s fourth Illinois Gubernatorial debate here:

Watch Free & Equal’s Illinois Senatorial Debate here:

All ballot qualified candidates have been invited to participate in the event, which is part of a nationwide all-inclusive debate tour supporting the right of voters to hear from all candidates on an equal playing field, and is sponsored by Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, National Taxpayers United of Illinois, Restore the Republic (RTR.org) and The Free and Equal Elections Foundation. Christina Tobin, founder and chair of Free and Equal and candidate for Secretary of State in California will moderate the event.

National Public Radio (NPR), The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Huffington Post, and other prominent media outlets typically cover Free and Equal events, and Free and Equal expects this debate to garner similar media coverage. WTVO, Channel 17; WIFR, Channel 23; and WREX, Channel 13, all in Rockford, Ill., have said they will cover the debates. Radio stations WZOK, WBLK and WNIJ public radio, and newspapers Daily Herald and Northern Star Press also have said they will cover the event. These debates, like all Free and Equal sponsored debates, will be streamed live and archived on the Free and Equal website

The debates are free and open to the public. Free and Equal asks that all media professionals planning to cover this event submit their requests for media credentials to Kaylee Campbell Burton, public relations director for Free and Equal, via email to kaylee@freeandequal.org, or by phone or text to 405.295.5420.

Watch Free & Equal’s Connecticut debate here on www.freeandequal.org.

All ballot qualified candidates have been invited to participate in the event, which is part of a nationwide all-inclusive debate tour supporting the right of voters to hear from all candidates on an equal playing field, and is sponsored by Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, National Taxpayers United of Illinois, Restore the Republic (RTR.org) and The Free and Equal Elections Foundation.

In the race for a U.S. Senate seat, Green Party candidate LeAlan Jones, Libertarian Party candidate Mike Labno and Independent candidate William Boyd, who is running as a write-in candidate after being removed from the November 2^nd ballot despite collecting more than 25,000 signatures, have agreed to participate in the Free and Equal U.S. Senate debate from 6 – 7:30 p.m. CDT.

Republican Party candidate Mark Kirk, has yet to respond, and Democratic candidate Alexi Giannoulias will be unable to attend the debate for reasons unbeknown to his campaign scheduler, other than the candidate will not be in the DeKalb area October 21, his scheduler said.

The Daily Caller, in a September 22 report, has Labno quoted as saying, “Alexi should be extending an invitation to me to be on the stage with him, to debate,” he said. “The way I see it, if he thinks it’s going to help him, then it can only help him much more if, if I’m sitting on the stage next to him and battling against Mark Kirk.” Free and Equal supports this invitation and continues to extend it to Giannoulias and Kirk.

Independent candidate Scott Lee Cohen, Libertarian Party candidate Lex Green, Constitution Party candidate Michael White and Green Party candidate Rich Whitney, all vying to become the next governor of Illinois, have agreed to debate from 8 – 9:30 p.m. CDT.

Democratic candidate Pat Quinn and Republican candidate Bill Brady have yet to respond.

The debates will follow a cumulative format, moderated by Christina Tobin, founder and chair of Free and Equal and candidate for Secretary of State in California. National Public Radio (NPR), The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Huffington Post, and other prominent media outlets typically cover Free and Equal events, and Free and Equal expects this debate to garner similar media coverage. WTVO Channel 17 in Rockford, Ill., and Daily Herald officials have said they will cover the event. This debate, like all Free and Equal sponsored debates, will be streamed live and archived on the Free and Equal website.

“These debates will demonstrate that it is not an undue burden, or even difficult, to include all ballot-qualified candidates,” Tobin said. “The other organizations planning on holding debates should fulfill their civic responsibility and also invite all ballot qualified candidates to participate.”

The debates are free and open to the public. Free and Equal asks that all media professionals planning to cover this event submit their requests for media credentials to Kaylee Campbell Burton, public relations director for Free and Equal, via email to kaylee@freeandequal.org, or by phone or text to 405.295.5420.

The two remaining candidates on the November 2^nd ballot, Democrat Richard Blumenthal and Republican Linda McMahon, have been invited but not yet responded.

The three candidates vying to be the next governor of Connecticut have been invited to participate in a separate debate on the Storrs Campus, the same evening, hosted and presented by the University of Connecticut administration. The Independent Party candidate, Tom Marsh, has agreed to participate, however if neither of the other candidates participate, causing the debate to be canceled, Marsh agreed to participate in a 30 minute question and answer segment with the audience following the Free and Equal U.S. Senate debate.

The U.S. Senate debate will be moderated by Christina Tobin, founder and chair of Free and Equal and candidate for Secretary of State in California. National Public Radio (NPR), The New York Times, The Washington Post, the Huffington Post, and other prominent media outlets typically cover Free and Equal events, and Free and Equal expects this debate to garner similar media coverage. This debate, like all Free and Equal sponsored debates, will be streamed live and archived on the Free and Equal website.

The event is free and open to the public. Free and Equal asks that all media professionals planning to cover this event submit their requests for media credentials to Kaylee Campbell Burton, public relations director for Free and Equal, via email to kaylee@freeandequal.org, or by phone or text to 405.295.5420.

The Free and Equal Debate Tour kicks off Wednesday, October 20, 2010 with the Connecticut U.S. Senate Debate. The event will run from 8:30 – 9:30 p.m. EDT and will be held in the Student Union Ballroom (Room 330) at the University of Connecticut, Storrs Campus. This debate is sponsored by the student organization Idealists United and Free and Equal.

The second debate, a back-to-back event for Illinois gubernatorial and U.S. Senate candidates, is scheduled for Thursday, October 21, 2010, at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. The debate will take place in the Carl Sandburg Auditorium in Holmes Student Center. U.S. Senate candidates will be heard first from 6 – 7:30 p.m. CDT, followed by the gubernatorial debate from 8 – 9:30 p.m. This debate is sponsored by the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity and Free and Equal.

California State University, Sacramento will host the final debate of the series for California’s gubernatorial candidates. The event will take place Thursday, October 28, 2010, time and venue to be announced. This debate is sponsored by Students for Liberty and Free and Equal.

A scheduled back-to-back debate for Oklahoma’s gubernatorial and U.S. Senate candidates was canceled recently, due in large part to lack of response from candidates. Even as the noose begins to tighten on what little access third-party candidates have to the electoral process, apathy toward this issue remains a problem.  Oklahoma candidates were unresponsive to the call for an open, all-inclusive debate, causing the event to be placed on hold indefinitely.

“As corporations funnel record amounts of money into our country’s two dominant political parties, it couldn’t be a more vital time to protect our right to open and inclusive political discourse.  All voices deserve to be heard, not just those speaking on behalf of multi-national corporate interests,” said Christina Tobin, founder and chair of Free and Equal, and Libertarian candidate for California secretary of state.

This appears to be a prescient time to address these issues.  California Green Party gubernatorial candidate, Laura Wells, was arrested Tuesday, October 12, 2010 when she attempted to attend the gubernatorial debate held at Dominican University of California in San Rafael. Wells and the three other minor party candidates for California governor were not invited to participate in the debate, which featured only the Democratic candidate, Jerry Brown, and the Republican candidate, Meg Whitman, despite all six candidates being ballot qualified for the general election. According to media reports, both Wells and her spokeswoman, Marnie Glickman, had tickets and were merely trying to attend the event as spectators. After initially being accepted into the debate, both women were asked to step away from the building and Wells was arrested and removed from the premises in a police squad car.

Protesters will gather at 4:00 p.m. at the corner of Acacia Avenue and Grand Avenue in San Rafael, before making their way to the so-called “free speech zone” near Angelico Hall, where the debate will be hosted.

Wells, Nightingale and Ogden united on the state capital steps for the first time, Wednesday, October 6, to speak out against the exclusion of minor party candidates from debates and promote awareness of the importance of all-inclusive debates. Alvarez regretfully had transportation issues and was unable to attend the press conference. The rally was covered by the Sacramento Bee.

True to form, The Free and Equal Elections Foundation will sponsor an all-partisan gubernatorial candidate debate, October 28, at California State University, Sacramento. All four minor party candidates have confirmed to participate in the debate, however neither Brown or Whitman have responded to their invitations. Christina Tobin, Libertarian candidate for California secretary of state and Free and Equal’s founder and chair, will moderate the event.

Tobin also is scheduled to moderate a U.S. Senate debate at University of Connecticut, October 20th, and a back-to-back U.S. Senate and gubernatorial debate at Northern Illinois University, October 21st. Free and Equal will stream all three debates live at www.freeandequal.org, and will archive the videos for future access.

Free and Equal recently launched an online petition that calls for all-inclusive debates nationwide and allows candidates, voters and potential voters to easily voice their opinion on the issue.

Candidates Carlos Alvarez of California’s Peace and Freedom Party, Dale Ogden of the Libertarian Party and Laura Wells of the Green Party will speak about all-inclusive candidate debates, proportional representation, Proposition 19 and war, at the “Sushi, Sake, Socialize” fundraiser, Saturday, October 9, 2010, 6:00 – 10:00 p.m. at 114 Inez Place, Mill Valley, Calif.

Chelene Nightingale of the Constitution Party, Democrat Jerry Brown, and Republican Meg Whitman have also been invited. Brown and Whitman have not responded to date.

Additional speakers will include Gerald Murray, national youth coordinator for Laura Chinchilla’s 2010 Costa Rica presidential campaign and international relations liaison for Free and Equal, who will speak about conflict currently underway in Costa Rica and how Proposition 19 will impact the country, and Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan, who will discuss war. Both will publicly endorse Christina Tobin in her race for California’s Secretary of State.

The fundraiser follows Free and Equal’s Wednesday press conference which was covered by Channel 10 News, Sacramento and The Sacramento Bee.

All-inclusive Candidate Debates

Tobin, in her official duties as founder and chair of Free and Equal, will moderate an all-inclusive gubernatorial and U.S. senatorial candidate debate at California State University in Sacramento, Thursday, October 28, 2010. She also will moderate debates at universities in Connecticut, Illinois and Oklahoma during October. Free and Equal intends to host additional debates in Kentucky and elsewhere during the next election cycles. Tobin and Free and Equal have a history of providing voters more voices and more choices, organizing forums for all ballot-qualified candidates since 2008.

Free and Equal recently launched an online petition that calls for all-inclusive debates nationwide and allows candidates, voters and potential voters to easily voice their opinion on the issue.

• University and Media Hosted Debates Continue to Exclude Alternative Candidates Despite Responsibility to Maintain a Free Marketplace of Ideas.
• California Gubernatorial Candidate Laura Wells to Host Protest for Inclusion in Candidate Debates.
• John Mertens to Use Multimedia Technology to Debate Candidates Despite Exclusion from the Official Debate, October 4th. (Conn.)

Proposition 19 Takes California and the Nation by Storm.

Proposition 19, the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010, has garnered nationwide attention and is expected to be a highlighted topic at the fundraiser.

“Proposition 19 is a hot-button issue,” Tobin said. “Candidates, businesses and voters seem to be split down the middle in their opinions of the Act, but a number of polls in the last few months suggest a growing momentum of support for Prop 19.”

“Marijuana prohibition is one of our nation’s – and world’s – greatest propaganda campaigns,” Tobin added. “The U.S. government has been pulling the wool over the eyes of the American and global public for more than 70 years when it comes to marijuana. Proposition 19 is a chance for California voters to fight back.

Chair of the national Libertarian party, and California voter Mark Hinkle recently released his official endorsement of Proposition 19, stating, “the War on Drugs has created tremendous damage in California and throughout America, and this will help stop that damage.”

Gubernatorial candidates Alvarez, Ogden and Wells all publicly favor Proposition 19. Nightingale is currently neutral. Despite numerous attempts by Free and Equal representatives, Brown and Whitman have been unavailable, or unwilling, to comment regarding Proposition 19 and all-inclusive debates.

National advocacy organizations including Americans for Safe Access (ASA), Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) and the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) have been working on behalf of those affected by Marijuana prohibition for decades.

“The Marijuana Policy Project has largely sat out the campaign to end marijuana prohibition in California this election cycle, but the recent escalation of infighting among allies who claim to support marijuana legalization has inspired me to speak out, and firmly,” said Rob Kampia, executive director of MPP, in a recent column published by The Huffington Post. “… unfortunately, some anti-prohibitionists are choosing to advocate for prohibition, because Prop. 19 isn’t ‘perfect enough,’ they imply.”

The opposition to Proposition 19 is well funded, often by organizations that stand to see a negative effect on the bottom lines of their organizations and those who believe that the private prison system needs to be filled to capacity if the proposition passes, not people who are concerned about society or schools. A position, that some say, does little more than align opponents with the views and goals of drug cartels. Interestingly, history has shown that illegal sales cease to be profitable once a substance is legalized, take alcohol prohibition for instance.

According to the California Secretary of State’s office, Public Safety First, a project of People Against Prop. 5 Deception, has received at least $10,000 from the California Beverage Distributors Association, $16,000 from the California Hospital Association, $20,500 from the California Narcotic Officers’ Association and $30,000 from the California Police Chief’s Association. These are just four of the largest donations made to the organization, which is the main opposition group against the passage of Proposition 19.

People Against Prop. 5 Deception was financed, to a large extent, by the California Republican Party ($238,000), Meg Whitman ($250,000), California Correctional Peace Officers ($1,000,000) and the California Beverage Distributors ($100,000). Proposition 5 was intended to lessen sentences for non-violent criminals and remove prison sentences for most marijuana related offenses.

The fundraiser is free for media representatives with a Free and Equal press pass. Those may be obtained by emailing Christina Tobin at christina@freeandequal.org, by 5:00 p.m. PST, Friday, October 8. More information regarding this fundraiser is available on the Free and Equal website.

You can watch the video of Free & Equal’s Oct 6 Press Conference, held at the West Steps of the State Capitol in Sacramento, here:

Using multimedia technologies to show the televised debate and candidates Blumenthal and McMahon’s answers (live), Mertens and his team will pause to allow candidate Mertens to answer each question before resuming the televised broadcast, giving equal voice to all three candidates. Olwen Logan, publisher of three online local news publications, writer and PR consultant, will be moderating the event.

“John Mertens’ broadcast is a brilliantly creative way of using technology to push back against the duopoly which continues to exclude him and other alternative voices from being heard,” said Christina Tobin, founder and chair of The Free and Equal Elections Foundation. “Voters everywhere deserve to hear from all candidates for public office so they can make educated decisions at the polls.”

“We’re inviting the audience to be citizen journalists during the debate through twitter, and to stay after to connect and discuss issues,” Mertens said.

The schedule is as follows:

Monday, October 4, 2010 @ Anna Liffey’s New Haven
6:00-6:45 pm: Meet John and friends
6:45-8:15 pm: People’s Debate
8:15 onward: Socials (talk with us about anything) and MNF
Livestream details on website and via @Mertens4Senate and #CTSen.

Southwestern Community College Goes One Step Further, Censors Student Journalists.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Universities and media outlets across California are excluding alternative candidates from participating in the debates they sponsor. The September 28 debate held at the University of California at Davis and co-sponsored by The Sacramento Bee included Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman, but excluded all the other candidates. Other universities and media outlets have followed suit.

While colleges already suppress dissenting voices in the student population, they are also suppressing them in vital public debates.  Once bastions of intellectual freedom, many of our nation’s universities have created a repressive environment, hindering tomorrow’s leaders from absorbing ideas from anyone but the leading Republican and Democratic candidates. And the media has continued the censorship through their coverage of only the top funded candidates.

The next debate will take place at California State University at Fresno, Saturday, October 2.  As with previous debates, Fresno has proven its lack of courage and fairness to the candidates and their student population by excluding all gubernatorial candidates except for Brown and Whitman.

“Voters deserve to hear from all candidates in an open and fair debate, not just the leading Republican and Democrat,” said Christina Tobin, founder and chair of The Free and Equal Elections Foundation. “On behalf of Free and Equal, I urge Americans everywhere to contact California State University, Fresno, to let them know you don’t approve of candidate censorship.”

Mainstream media is supported by the welfare of large corporations that fund the top Republican and Democratic candidates as well as the top-funded candidates themselves. Voters have become disillusioned by the media and their bias. However, taxpayer-funded universities should not be used to exclude candidates.

In a separate but related issue, the Southwestern Community College governing board has threatened the school newspaper, The Sun, to not print its first edition. The paper has been critical of some board members, and the board wants to halt printing until after the elections. The board threatened the paper and staff and attempted to arrest some students.

“The United States of America was established with a Declaration of Independence followed by a Bill of Rights ensuring our unalienable rights including freedom of speech. To hear that a college which is supposed to teach free ideas and encourage independence is suppressing free press and ideas is alarming,” said Chelene Nightingale, the Constitution Party’s gubernatorial candidate for California. “Every student, in fact every American, needs to stand up now and defend liberty, especially now during the election process.  If our election process is compromised and every voice is not heard, we the people will suffer the consequences of oppression. John Adams once stated, ‘once liberty is lost, it is gone forever.’”

“Californians are thoroughly disgusted with both Democratic and Republican Parties, and yet candidates from those Titanic Parties are the only ones invited to debate, even when Dominican University in San Rafael calls its debate the Green Debate. When the pollsters ask if people want the independent parties in the debates, the vast majority say ‘Yes!’” said Laura Wells, California’s Green Party gubernatorial candidate. “In a mockery of free speech, the Supreme Court declared that corporate money is ‘free speech’ while our peace officers confine real persons, when we rally for inclusion in the debates, into a fenced-in ‘free speech zone.’ California itself loses the debate when the independent political parties are not at the table to bring in the real issues and the real solutions.”

“It seems that those who have taken over most of our education system no longer believe in free speech and wish to suppress those who dare speak out. We need to put these fools out of business and remind them that free speech is a major cornerstone of democracy,” said Dale Ogden, Libertarian candidate for governor of California.

“We call for the inclusion of all ballot qualified candidates in any debate using public air waves through TV or radio for the statewide elections in which they are running. We also urge all candidates who are running for statewide office to join this call for democratic inclusion of all ballot qualified candidates on all televised and radio debates,” said Carlos Alvarez, California’s Peace and Freedom Party gubernatorial candidate.

Free and Equal will host a press conference in Sacramento, Calif. – specific location to-be-announced – to discuss the vital need for all-inclusive debates, Wednesday, October 6, at 1:00 p.m. The press conference will be followed by a fundraiser, to benefit Free and Equal’s production of all-inclusive candidate debates nationwide, in Mill Valley, Calif., Saturday, October 9.

All six California gubernatorial candidates are invited to both events to speak in support of Free and Equal’s movement to support all-inclusive debates, and Wells, Ogden and Alvarez will speak at both events, with Nightingale joining them for the press conference and tentatively for the fundraiser. Free and Equal also will invite all U.S. senatorial candidates to participate at both the press conference and fundraiser.

During October, Tobin will moderate back-to-back, all-inclusive gubernatorial and U.S. senatorial candidate debates in Illinois, Oklahoma and California.

The candidate forum will be the first non-partisan event of its kind in Kentucky and will include candidates for both the 2010 and 2011 races. Over 90 federal, state and local candidates have been invited to participate, including Democrats, Republicans, Independents and those from all alternative parties, with 25 participants confirmed.

“Kentucky voters deserve the right to hear from all candidates, so they can make informed decisions at the voting booth,” said Christina Tobin, Free and Equal founder and chair. “This event is designed to do just that by providing an open forum for all candidates to freely express their position on vital issues facing our nation and the Commonwealth of Kentucky today.”

Tobin is the keynote speaker for this event and an up-to-date list of confirmed speakers is posted on the Kentucky Freedom Digest website.  The event is free and open to the public.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Christi Gillespie, Ky. State Coordinator

+1.859.396.8972

christigillespie@freeandequal.org

In addition, a number of high-profile gubernatorial debates, which exclude all candidates except Democrat Jerry Brown and Republican rival Meg Whitman, have been scheduled throughout California. This non-inclusive debate series will kick off September 28 with a televised debate hosted at the University of California, Davis, and co-sponsored by the Sacramento Bee, to be followed by an October 2 debate at California State University, Fresno, and a Ronn Owens radio debate October 5 on KGO-810 AM. Tom Brokaw has agreed to moderate the final debate, October 12, sponsored and hosted by Dominican University of California.

“Non-inclusive debates are not a new phenomenon,” said Christina Tobin, founder and chair of The Free and Equal Elections Foundation. “However, the true purpose of candidate debates should be to provide a forum for all qualified candidates to discuss the issues and provide voters with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions at the polls.”

Brown has challenged Whitman to a number of joint town hall appearances in addition to the already confirmed debate schedule.

“Every one of these debates is hosted by a credible organization, guaranteeing a fair and open forum,” Brown said in a statement, reported on The Sacramento Bee’s Capital Alert blog. “There is no reason not to participate, no reason not to say what we really mean, and show the voters who we are.”

“Brown’s guarantee of a fair and open forum is severely flawed,” Tobin said. “The only way to make these debates truly fair and open is to include all qualified candidates. They deserve the opportunity to participate, say what they really mean and show the voters who they are as well. If Brown wants to promote fairness, he should start playing fair, himself.”

“Non-inclusive debates do not provide voters with the answers they need to make informed decisions at the polls,” Tobin said. “These faux debates only work with insider candidates and partisan media, providing little if any substantial information.”

Gubernatorial candidates, Chelene Nightingale of the Constitution Party and Laura Wells of the Green Party, along with California Peace & Freedom Party State Chair C.T. Weber, Libertarian National Chair Mark Hinkle, Green Party National Co-Chair Michael Feinstein and Constitution Party National Chair Jim Clymer, have said they agree with Free and Equal’s opposition of all non-inclusive candidate debates.

“All Free and Equal debates follow a strict policy of inviting every eligible candidate,” Tobin said. “Free and Equal is calling on other debate organizers to follow our lead by doing what is right for the people, not favoring the political insiders and biased media.”

“Free & Equal will continue to shine light on this unfair and corrupt practice in addition to hosting truly open and all-inclusive debates across the country,” Tobin said. “Free and Equal is teaming up with student organizations at universities nationwide to produce the all-inclusive debates the public is crying for. The students are our next generation of leaders, and Free and Equal is thrilled to be part of their introduction to civic responsibility, in hopes of providing a much more just future for Americans across the board.”

With university and student support, Free and Equal will produce a string of all-inclusive, back-to-back gubernatorial and U.S. senatorial candidate debates beginning with debates in California, Illinois and Oklahoma, with more states signing on rapidly.

“Students for Sensible Drug Policy chapters are stepping up to the plate in several states and we are anticipating support from other groups such as Students for Liberty, Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity and student governments, among others, to join in and help,” Tobin said.

All Free and Equal debates will be streamed live on freeandequal.org and will cover a number of important issues including economics, war, drugs, election reform and proportional representation in addition to many others.

Principles Over Parties, a pro-liberty, antiwar and free speech rally will take place Saturday, September 4, 2 – 4 p.m. at San Francisco Civic Center and will include prominent speakers including Congressman Ron Paul, candidate for U.S. House John Dennis and former San Francisco supervisor Matt Gonzalez, all of whom have stated they support all-inclusive debates.

Free & Equal has launched a petition to open all debates to include all qualified candidates and would appreciate your support of our mission by signing the petition and spreading the word.

All qualified candidates will be invited to participate in the debate. This includes candidates on the ballot and any write-in candidates that turned in signatures equivalent to the established party requirement but were removed from the ballot. Free and Equal supports a $500 flat filing fee in lieu of signatures as a ballot access requirement. Two-thirds of our US states use a filing fee system without experiencing problems in their elections.

“Free and Equal is committed to giving all qualified candidates an equal voice in the debate,” said Christina Tobin, CEO and founder of Free and Equal, who will moderate the debate. “Illinois voters deserve a diversity of choices on the ballot.”

Free and Equal’s third Illinois gubernatorial debate, that took place in July, was covered by dozens of media outlets, including public radio stations WBEZ in Chicago, WSIU in Carbondale, and WILL in Champaign, along with the Chicago Sun-Times, Southtown Star, Huffington Post, Dekalb Daily-Chronicle, Chicagoist and the Chicago Tribune Media Group’s ChicagoNow. A live feed of the U.S. Senatorial debate will be available at freeandequal.org.

“The response to the last debate, from people in attendance and from those watching at home on their computers, has been tremendous,” Tobin said. “There is a hunger out there for more discussion and debate about the substantive issues that we all face. Free and Equal is looking to provide Illinois voters with more opportunities to learn about their political choices.”

Free and Equal will continue to organize all-inclusive candidate debates in Illinois and other states throughout this election season. September will kick-off a string of University hosted, student group sponsored and Free and Equal organized candidate debates across California. Additional information regarding California debates will be released as it becomes available.

Update: The date and location of the first U.S. Senatorial candidate debate organized by Free and Equal Elections Foundation will be rescheduled due to unforeseen conflicts with back-to-school activities at Northern Illinois University at DeKalb. Free and Equal is working with the University and sponsor, Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity, to reschedule the event as soon as possible. Tentative dates include: August 24, 25, 26 or September 8.

Kappa Alpha Psi fraternity officials also are accepting additional co-sponsoring organizations to speed along the rescheduling process. Free and Equal previously has organized three gubernatorial debates in Illinois, the most recent of which was sponsored in part by Kappa Alpha Psi at Chicago State University.

“On behalf of Free and Equal, I would like to apologize to the invited candidates, the press and attendees for any confusion or inconvenience this delay has caused,” said Christina Tobin, CEO and founder of Free and Equal Elections Foundation. “Free and Equal hopes to release the new date, time and location for the debate within the next week.”

All candidates who filed enough signatures to appear on the ballot will be invited to participate in the debate, including: Alexi Giannoulias, Democrat; Mark Kirk, Republican; LeAlan Jones, Green; Will Boyd, Independent; Corey Dabney, Independent; Mike Labno, Libertarian; Carl Officer, Practical; and Randy Stufflebeam, Constitution.

“Free and Equal is committed to giving all qualified candidates an equal voice in the debate,” Tobin said. “Illinois voters deserve a diversity of choices on the ballot. This all-partisan debate is meant to show the voters the kinds of choices they could and should have in November.”

Charles Thomas at Chicago’s local ABC affiliate and Sam Hudzik at Chicago Public Radio WBEZ 91.5 reported this week about the struggles some of these candidates still face getting on the ballot.

Free and Equal’s third Illinois gubernatorial debate, that took place in July, was covered by dozens of media outlets, including public radio stations WBEZ in Chicago, WSIU in Carbondale, and WILL in Champaign, along with the Chicago Sun-Times, Southtown Star, Huffington Post, Dekalb Daily-Chronicle, Chicagoist and the Chicago Tribune Media Group’s ChicagoNow. A live stream of the U.S. Senatorial debate will be available at freeandequal.org.

“The response to the last debate, from people in attendance and from those watching at home on their computers, has been tremendous,” Tobin said. “There is a hunger out there for more discussion and debate about the substantive issues that we all face. Free and Equal is looking to provide Illinois voters with more opportunities to learn about their political choices.”

Free and Equal will continue to organize all-inclusive candidate debates in Illinois and other states throughout this election season. September will kick-off a string of University hosted, student group sponsored and Free and Equal organized candidate debates across California. Additional information regarding California debates will be released as it becomes available.