With the November general election just three weeks away, Mathews County School Board candidates Lorraine Forrest and Mari Gibbs, and two of the three First Congressional District candidates, Democrat Herb Jones and independent David Foster, shared their views on the issues at an NAACP candidate forum Monday night at Emmaus Baptist Church, North. Incumbent Republican Rep. Rob Wittman (R-Montross) declined the invitation to attend.

The forum was moderated by the Rev. Dr. Marcus Stallworth, pastor of Mathews Chapel United Methodist Church. He was introduced by NAACP president Edith Turner. All questions were submitted in writing, and Stallworth read them aloud.

School board candidates

The crowd was generally quiet and respectful throughout the forum, except for one outburst when a supporter of school board candidate Mari Gibbs loudly objected to a question Gibbs was asked regarding how she felt about her candidate signs being placed near a Confederate flag across from Thomas Hu...