Democratic Congressional candidate Melody Shekari challenged Representative Chuck Fleischmann to several debates on Tuesday. Citing previous years’ inadequate debates, Ms. Shekari requested at least four debates, one in each of the two most populous counties and at least two before polling begins in October.
“The people will be making a choice in November and we should provide them with the information needed to make that choice” Ms.
Shekari said. “This election is fraught with slogans, rhetoric, and empty political promises – we should give the people substantive debates so they can make an informed choice.”
In 2014, Rep. Fleischmann debated challenger Mary Headrick, but it was the week before the election and most of the early votes had already been cast. In 2012, the two debated but the only debate was held in Bradley County. Ms. Shekari noted that the district is in two media markets, has 11 counties, and hundreds of thousands of voters who get their news from myriad venues. More debates would help provide people with a better comparison to make a choice.
“This is pretty simple – if you want someone to vote for you over someone else then you should be willing to stand in comparison with that person and let the voter decide.” Ms. Shekari said. “If we want to have a healthy congress, we need to have a healthy debate. So, I’m asking our representative to meet me face-to-face and talk about issues that matter to Tennesseans.”
Congressional nominee Melody Shekari was raised in Chattanooga. She received a bachelor’s degree in business and economics from Bentley College in Massachusetts, a master’s in Public Administration from the University of Washington in Seattle, and a law degree from the University of Southern California. Recently, she completed a fellowship working for the City of Chattanooga and now is focused on representing the people of East Tennessee.