For Immediate Release

 

Contact:         Maryjane Briant
                        News and Media Relations Director
                        Galloway, N.J. 08205
                        Maryjane.Briant@stockton.edu
                        (609) 652-4593
                        stockton.edu/media

Galloway, N.J. - Stockton University is offering the public the opportunity to suggest questions for participating candidates and request tickets online for two New Jersey gubernatorial primary debates to be held Tuesday, May 9 at the Galloway, N.J. campus.

Stockton will stream the Republican and Democratic primary debates live on stockton.edu/governordebates as well as on Facebook Live. Signing for the hearing impaired and a Spanish translation will be provided in the feed.

The public may request a limited number of tickets to the entire event in the Campus Center Theatre via links on the web page. Tickets to view the debates in a Campus Center simulcast room that seats 350 are also available online.

The university’s William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy will host the N.J. Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC) debates at 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m. in the Campus Center Theatre on Stockton’s main campus, located at 101 Vera King Farris Drive in Galloway, N.J.  Sharon Schulman, executive director of the Hughes Center, will moderate.

“Civic engagement has always been a guiding principle of Stockton University. Political debates like these bring immediacy and relevance to the democratic process for our community and region,” said Stockton President Harvey Kesselman.

Schulman added: “I believe one reason Stockton was chosen by ELEC as a debate sponsor was to provide a chance for the candidates to speak directly to residents of southern New Jersey.”

Schulman said she encourages the public to propose questions that may be put to the gubernatorial candidates who qualified for the debates by using the form online.

Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno and Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli of the 16th District, which includes municipalities in Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex and Somerset counties, will face off for the GOP at 6:30 p.m. for one hour. There will be a 30-minute break between the two debates.

Phil Murphy, a former ambassador to Germany and a financier; state Sen. Ray Lesniak, of the 20th District, which includes several Union County municipalities; Jim Johnson, an attorney and activist who was formerly an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury and Under Secretary of the Treasury for Enforcement; and Assemblyman John Wisniewski, of the 19th District, which includes five Middlesex County municipalities, will debate in the Democratic contest beginning at 8 p.m.

Previously, Stockton University has hosted debates including legislative, congressional and senatorial debates. Its mission includes enabling the citizens of southern New Jersey to connect with their leaders on the local, state and national levels.

 

About the Hughes Center

The William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University serves as a catalyst for research, analysis and innovative policy solutions on the economic, social and cultural issues facing New Jersey, and promotes the civic life of New Jersey through engagement, education and research. The center is named for William J. Hughes, whose distinguished career includes service in the U.S. House of Representatives, Ambassador to Panama and as a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Stockton. The Hughes Center can be found on Facebook and can be followed on Twitter @hughescenter.