Virginia Beach Forum: Larry Sabato

When the final Virginia Beach Forum event of the 2013 season begins at 7:30 pm on March 13 at the Sandler Center, emcee Joel Rubin will urge attendees to silence their mobile phones but not turn them off.

That’s because the bulk of the evening’s program will be a lively political talk show, emceed by Rubin, who hosted such debates for 17 years on local television in Hampton Roads, and featuring Dr. Larry Sabato, esteemed UVa government professor, author and national pundit, plus five other wits from the left, right and center. Among the issues they will address will be the November election for Governor. As guests arrive, Forum volunteers will urge them to vote in a straw poll among the prospective candidates for that office with the result to be announced during the show.

Also during the hour-long on-stage “scrum”, Rubin will encourage “tweeters” to send in their own comments and questions. One of the panelists, The Virginian-Pilot’s Kerry Dougherty, an enthusiastic tweeter herself, will screen the input and bring some of the best into the conversation.

Joining Dougherty on the Sandler Center stage, along with Dr. Sabato, who will commence the night’s program with several minutes of his unique Crystal Ball observations and predictions, will be Tony Macrini, the outspoken host of his own morning news/talk show on WNIS 790 AM; Vivian Paige, Hampton Roads columnist and creator of the All Politics is Local blog; Jeff Schapiro, longtime political writer for the Richmond Times-Dispatch and Kate Obenshain, former Virginia GOP chair and conservative author (Divider in Chief).

“This event will be the first of its kind in our region,” says Rubin. “We have some sharp minds in Virginia and when we have them all together in one place, it should be pretty electric. As the emcee, I hope I can keep up with them.”

A limited number of general admissions tickets are available through www.sandlercenter.org or at the box office at $40 for adults, $10 for students (box office only). Guests will be able to meet the panelists after the event in the lobby and sign up there for the 2013-14 Virginia Beach Forum Series, the lineup for which will be announced in the theater at the end of the evening’s program.

For more information, contact Joel Rubin at 757-456-5212
or at joel@rubincommunications.com