The first forum is set down for the Wattle Room of the Ex-Services Club on Monday, August 21 while a second forum will take place at the Gundagai District Services Club on Thursday, August 24.

Both forums will run from 6.30pm until 8.30pm. 

Former Cootamundra mayor Paul Braybrooks will be on hand to facilitate the Cootamundra forum, while former Gundagai councillor Mason Crane has agreed to be facilitator in Gundagai. 

All councillor candidates with the exception of a group of seven headed by Dennis Palmer have accepted the invitation to attend and meet and speak with community members. 

The forum was coordinated by first-time candidate Leigh Bowden. 

At this month’s council meeting, she queried administrator Stephen Sykes on whether council would host a forum for people to meet those 28 people running to which Mr Sykes responded that council could not as they could not be seen to be influencing people’s votes. 

He recommended that a community group take on the running of a forum, however Ms Bowden, an event coordinator by profession, decided she would pull together all of the candidates herself. 

As a candidate, Ms Bowden has been using the slogan ‘Making it happen’ and she told the Cootamundra Herald this week she was pleased to ensure a forum, which she felt was important to residents, did happen. 

A candidate forum is something new to Cootamundra, however Ms Bowden said she felt it was particularly vital that one was held this election as people from Cootamundra or Gundagai may not necessarily know who the candidates from the other town are. 

“We have never had an amalgamation before, or this many candidates,” Ms Bowden said. 

As a candidate, she also said it was also very important that anyone selected for one of the nine seats on council know what their colleagues stand for as a mayor and deputy mayor will need to be voted on at the initial meeting.

The forum will give individual candidates two minutes each to outline their platform and groups four minutes. 

This will be followed by questions from the floor for one or all candidates.