McLaughlin College will host two former congressmen to offer insight into the heated U.S. presidential election.
On Sept. 26, former Republican U.S. representative Steven Kuykendall from California and former Democratic U.S. representative Martin Lancaster from North Carolina will speak at “Perspectives on the Upcoming U.S. Presidential Election,” part of McLaughlin’s popular Lunch Talk series.
“For anyone curious about this U.S. election, this is an unprecedented opportunity to hear, and ask questions of, political insiders,” says political science Professor David Leyton-Brown, master of McLaughlin College. “This is a chance to get behind the news filters of media coverage, and hear from people who have been there and done that.”
The two representatives are sponsored by the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Mission to Canada, the Consulate General of the United States in Toronto and the Association of Former Members of Congress’ “Congress to Campus” program.
Lancaster and Kuykendall will share their political opinions and personal analysis of November's election, providing their unique perspectives from the Republican and Democratic parties.
“To have both a democrat and a republican offers us the opportunity to hear perspectives from the two parties, and thus to avoid any intentional or inadvertent selective shaping of the story,” says Leyton-Brown. “We would be delighted to have either one of these former congressmen speaking, but having both together should be greater than the sum of its parts.”
Lancaster is a former assistant secretary of the U.S. Army, judge advocate in the U.S. Navy, member of the North Carolina House of Representatives and president of the North Carolina Community College System. Kuykendall is the former mayor of the City of Rancho Palo Verdes, member of the California State Assembly, and president and founder of Lockheed Mortgage Corporation.
“McLaughlin College is dedicated to the understanding and critical analysis of public policy," says Leyton-Brown. "The U.S. presidential election has enormous policy implications, not only for the United States but also for Canada and the entire world. In cooperation with the Department of Political Science, we will be presenting a number of panels of York experts commenting on various aspects of the election. We are delighted to bring to York through the Congress to Campus program two former U.S. congressmen to share their insights on the U.S. electoral process and this fascinating election.”
The talk, which is open to everyone at York University, will be held on Monday, Sept. 26, from noon to 1:30pm in the Senior Common Room, 140 McLaughlin College.
For more on the Lunch Talk series, email Vicky Carnevale at vcarneva@yorku.ca.