The local branch of the NAACP will give Suffolk voters chances prior to the November elections to hear from their local candidates for public office.

All six people appearing on the ballot for the mayor’s position, as well as those in the running for School Board and City Council seats, have been invited to forums set for the final weeks of October.

The Nansemond-Suffolk branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is sponsoring two different forums in coming weeks. City Council and School Board candidates will gather Oct. 21, and candidates for the mayor’s seat will answer questions Oct. 28. Both events will begin at 7 p.m. at Tabernacle Christian Church, 2500 E. Washington St.

For the mayor’s race, the candidates are Andy Damiani, Michael Debranski, incumbent Linda Johnson, Roger Leonard, Dwight Nixon and Tom Powell. Deborah Wahlstrom, a write-in candidate, was not invited.

In the Nansemond Borough, incumbent Leroy Bennett is facing off against challenger Trisha James for a City Council seat. Thelma Hinton and Marion Matthews are running for a School Board seat currently filled by an interim member.

In the Sleepy Hole Borough, Robert Barclay IV is running unopposed for City Council. For School Board, Vice Chairman James Perkinson is running against challenger Diane Foster.

In the Whaleyville Borough, Vice Mayor Curtis Milteer Sr. is running against Jay Quigley for a City Council seat. Incumbent Sharon Harris faces challenger Phyllis Byrum for a School Board position.