The Santa Barbara News-Press & CalMatters will host Ballots & Bites, a public election workshop from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., this Wednesday, Oct. 28 at the Louise Lowry Davis Center, 111 W. Victoria St.

The Ballots & Bites workshop is part of CalMatters’ statewide effort to partner with local newsrooms on voter education ahead of the election. 

There are 14 statewide propositions and 8 local measures impacting different areas of Santa Barbara County, all on the Nov. 3 ballot.

The event will run about 90 minutes and feature presentations by CalMatters CEO, Neil Chase and News-Press General Manager, Will Belfiore, followed by an interactive workshop in which attendees will discuss statewide and local matters in small mixed groups.

The non-partisan voter education event series will allow people to get together in person and engage in civic dialogue about the issues that matter to them as Californians.

“We’ve designed it as a ‘one-stop-shop’ event for voters, drawing on information about countywide elections and ballot measures from our local News-Press Voter Guide, and pairing that with the CalMatters Voter Guide for state-wide elections and propositions. It’s a cool opportunity to meet the newsroom — with food,” Belfiore said.

The News-Press event is part of more than 45 VotingMatters events around the state in September and October.

The event is free but please RSVP here.

Joshua Molina is editor of the News-Press and an award-winning journalist with more than 25 years of reporting across the South Coast. He is a professor of journalism at Santa Barbara City College and host of local news show SB Talks with Josh Molina.