Local residents will have the opportunity to meet with the candidates for Western District Commissioner on July 31 at a candidate forum hosted by the Holts Summit Community Betterment Association and the Kingdom of Callaway Chamber of Commerce.
Starting at 5:30 p.m. in the community room at Mid America Bank, incumbent Donald "Doc" Kritzer and challenger Bill Galloway - both Republican candidates who will be battling in the primary race on Aug. 7 - each will have 10 minutes to answer the question, "If you win, what will you do differently to make a difference in the lives of residents in Callaway County?"
The Western District Callaway County Commissioner race is the only primary race for local office that affects the Holts Summit area. With no Democratic candidate filed, this primary will determine which of the two candidates will take office in January.
After Kritzer and Galloway have answered the initial question, they will take questions from the public, with each being given a total of 10 minutes for their responses.
Nancy Lewis, executive director of the Kingdom of Callaway Chamber of Commerce, said the forum offers local voters the opportunity to learn more about their candidates before heading to the polls.
"A lot of people in Holts Summit are not familiar with at least one of the candidates," Lewis said. "At a forum like this, they can see the candidates and hear them talk and that makes it so much better in helping to make a decision like this than just reading a pamphlet."