The St. Joseph County Democratic Party is hosting an event at Memory Isle Park in downtown Three Rivers this Sunday. Called “Dems on Mem,” organizers characterize the event as a pre-election rally. It will feature a number of candidates for Federal, state, and local offices, and the schedule will also include live music, speeches, and an informal candidate meet-and-greet.

Watershed Voice sent out questionnaires to over 30 candidates in contested local, state, and national races in St. Joseph County and the surrounding area for the November 3 General Election. In the days leading up to Election Day, Watershed will publish the answers it has received. Jon Hoadley, a Democratic candidate for Michigan’s Sixth District seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, filled out our questionnaire. These are his answers.

“West Michigan is, the candidates will tell you, a vast, layered space filled with the nuances of people’s lives that don’t always make their way onto television and computer screens: a land of religious Democrats who grew up in conservative households, of Republicans who are quick to condemn their party’s stance on climate change, of people who have, at least in the past, split their tickets.”

In Episode 8 of Keep Your Voice Down, Doug and Alek are joined by fellow Watershed Voice Podcaster Michael “Hogey” Hogoboom to discuss last week’s primary election results, what November’s ballot will look like, and of course, Taylor Swift’s new album, which Hogey has plenty of opinions about. The trio also discusses the NBA and NHL bubbles, the Three Rivers DDA, Three Rivers Community Schools’ Board of Education and Charles Thomas’ latest piece on what he misses most about Three Rivers.