Rep. Joe Simitian answers questions in a special online meeting
Share this pageAt his latest town hall meeting, state Sen. Joe Simitian used a different kind of platform to inform his constituents about what’s going on in Sacramento.
In the senate’s first-ever online town hall meeting, Simitian’s live broadcast from the state capitol on May 13 enabled viewers to follow along and submit questions. Simitian, who represents the 11th Senate District that includes Campbell, took questions from residents all over the Bay Area.
Questions were submitted prior to and during the online meeting through the senator’s website. Some people even submitted video questions.
Preliminary figures show that close to 80 people logged on to “E-Upd@te With State Senator Joe Simitian” and about 70 questions were submitted, according to a Simitian aide. Questions that were similar in nature were answered together.
“Elected officials need to stay in touch with their constituents on a regular basis,” said Simitian, who routinely goes out to local farmers markets for his “sidewalk office hours.” “I want to keep folks up to date with what I’m working on, and even more important, hear from them. A town hall is participatory democracy in its purest form.” But unlike conventional town hall meetings, Simitian was not actually in “town hall,” though he promised that each person who submitted a question would get an answer, either during the one-hour program or afterward via e-mail.
Full story on the Mercury News website.