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Democratic, Libertarian Congressional Candidates Participate In Forum In Wichita

Carla Eckels
/
KMUW
Chris Rockhold, left, and James Thompson participate in a forum Sunday as Wichita City Councilwoman Lavonta Williams moderates.

A forum was held Sunday at St. Mark United Methodist Church in Wichita between two of the three candidates looking to fill the seat former congressman and current CIA director Mike Pompeo vacated in Kansas' 4th District.

Democrat James Thompson and Libertarian Chris Rockhold participated. Republican Ron Estes, although he had confirmed to take part, was absent due to a conflict.

The candidates commented on the budget, school funding, race issues and the Affordable Care Act.

Thompson said lawmakers should focus on controlling high health care costs, including pharmaceuticals. Rockhold said coverage for pre-existing conditions should remain.

Sixty-four-year-old Pastor Titus James attended the forum and said after he still hasn’t decided who he'll vote for.

“ If I’m not careful half my annual income will be for health care and that’s not right for an old man so I’m going to see how they will handle that --how they will try to work with fairness and parity for all people with that," he said.

Thompson and Rockhold both stressed the importance of being accessible to their constituents and the top priority of voting in the special election on April 11.

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Carla Eckels is assistant news director and the host of Soulsations. Follow her on Twitter@Eckels.

To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.

Carla Eckels is Director of Organizational Culture at KMUW. She produces and hosts the R&B and gospel show Soulsations and brings stories of race and culture to The Range with the monthly segment In the Mix. Carla was inducted into The Kansas African American Museum's Trailblazers Hall of Fame in 2020 for her work in broadcast/journalism.