24th District congressional candidates to attend forum

The public is invited to a candidate forum for 24th District congressional seat on Friday in Santa Maria. The event, hosted by the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce, will begin at 11:30 a.m. at the Santa Maria Inn.

Five of the 11 candidates running for the congressional seat have been invited and have said they will attend, chamber CEO Glen Morris said. The candidates are Katcho Achadjian, Salud Carbajal, Justin Fareed, Bill Ostrander and Helene Schneider. The 24th District encompasses San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties, and a portion of Ventura County.

The event will begin with lunch at 11:30 a.m., followed by the forum from noon to 1:30 p.m., Morris said. Anyone interested in attending is asked to RSVP by emailing register@santamaria.com. The cost to attend the luncheon is $20, or the public can come just for the forum at noon for free. The Santa Maria Inn is at 801 S. Broadway in Santa Maria.

Morris will moderate the forum, with written questions taken from the audience.

For more information about the forum, call the chamber at 925-2403.

This story was originally published February 17, 2016 at 6:46 PM with the headline "24th District congressional candidates to attend forum."