Dear Friends,

Thank you Alex and Kevin for organizing an outstanding forum for the 25th Senate District candidates. I left feeling highly energized and proud to be a Democrat. All four candidates are talented people.

Let me tell you why I am campaigning for Al Weed. In the closing remarks at the forum, Al Weed was the only candidate whostressed: "I hope this will be the beginning of many gatherings where I will LISTEN to you." For Al, listening is not perfunctory or a polite hearing you out. He really listens, he interacts, he learns, he respects our personal experiences.

Secondly, I have discovered that when I ask him where he stands on an issue, he gives me a clear answer. Hurrah! He doesn't dance around the issue, trying primarily to please me or not offend me. In this regard, he has much needed leadership qualities. He is a gentleman, yet he clearly and forcefully and eloquently believes in, states openly and acts upon principles.

Because of these personal qualities, I believe he is the best candidate out of the four who will attract YOUNG and also NEW voters - very badly needed in our party. He will reenergize many who have become disillusioned with politics. He will represent our Democratic values and issues very forcefully and gain respect from everyone. In short, he can win the votes in the upcoming election and also on the Senate floor.

As a parting remark, let me address this issue: some people are saying the candidate must live here in our local area in order to represent us well. I urge you to think in more inclusive terms. It is more important to choose a candidate who understands and will represent both urban and rural problems. Al Weed is running primarily as the candidate who knows we have shared interests, shared risks for our future; both city and rural must be healthy if this whole area is to prosper. That we as Democrats must be an appealing party to both rural and urban voters if we want to win elections.

Al has two grown children who live and work in our C'Ville area. He is personally knowledgeable about issues important to us like our pressing housing needs, our educational needs, our high hopes and high standards, our support for a living wage, our all-important need to face the costs of rampant development and sprawl, and our special commitment to the environment. He will be there for us.

Joyce RePass (electronic mail, November 9, 2001).