Culver Crescent announces 2026 Crescent Candidate Series

Culver Crescent — an online news publication dedicated to nonpartisan, in-depth reporting on news in Culver City — is pleased to announce the 2026 Crescent Candidate Series, which will enable Culver City residents to hear from candidates for open seats on the City Council and the Culver City Unified School District Board of Education ahead of the 2026 General Election on November 3.

The series will include moderated discussions in several forms to allow candidates to express their views and beliefs on how to make Culver City a better place for its residents and students. It will be broken down into three main components, providing Culver City residents with multiple angles for both input and education ahead of the 2026 General Election.

Chat with the Crescent

Starting this Saturday, May 30, Publisher Christian May-Suzuki will be visiting parks and coffee shops around Culver City to gather information on the community's concerns. Residents and community members are invited to share the questions they would like answered and the concerns they would like addressed before deciding who to vote for on November 3.

“While I have my own ideas of questions to ask both the Culver City Council and Board of Education candidates, this information is informed by my understanding of resident concerns,” May-Suzuki said. “The feedback received from the community at these sessions will directly influence questions asked during the rest of the election season.”

The first Chat with the Crescent will be held this Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Cafe Luxxe in Downtown Culver City. It will be an informal affair — just people sitting at a table talking about the city we all love. Look out for a Culver Crescent shirt or a small sign at a table at the venue, and feel free to simply walk up or sit down and share your thoughts.

All events will be held from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The following is a tentative schedule for Chat with the Crescent:

• Cafe Luxxe (9718 Washington Blvd.): May 30
• Culver City Park (Lower Tables): June 6
• Raintree Starbucks (10772 Jefferson Blvd.): June 13
• Tellefson Park (Back Table Space): June 20
• Fox Hills Park (Buckingham Parkway Tables): June 27
• Tanner’s Coffee (4342 Sepulveda Blvd.): July 11
• Culver Slauson Park: July 18
• Jackson Market (4065 Jackson Ave.): July 25
• Millcross Coffee (11050 Washington Blvd.): August 1

Candidate Interviews

Culver Crescent will soon begin reaching out to candidates for interviews, which will be recorded and published on the Culver Crescent website. These interviews will give residents a way to hear from candidates on a broad range of topics and serve as an outlet for candidates to clearly outline and pitch their individual platforms.

Feedback from the Chat with the Crescent events will help shape the questions asked in this interview. Candidates will also be given the opportunity to distinguish themselves from their contemporaries through an opening statement, where they will be asked to convey the message most integral to their campaign.

Interviews will be recorded and posted alongside a polished transcript before August 17, when applicable, contingent on individual candidates' responses.

2026 Culver Crescent Candidate Forums

Early planning for several candidate forums, which will give residents an opportunity to meet candidates in person and hear them speak directly, is currently underway. For those who prefer to hear from their candidates in person rather than through a screen or those who feel traditionally excluded from participating in Culver City’s politics, these are meant to serve you.

These forums will be targeted, focusing on topics based on the specific communities in which they will be held. Additional Q&A time will also be reserved for attendees of these forums to share concerns not addressed by the questions in the moderated section, which will include questions directly influenced by community feedback.

Please stay tuned for more details as we get closer to election time. If you are a candidate for the Culver City City Council or Board of Education races who is interested in participating but has not been contacted directly, please reach out to Publisher Christian May-Suzuki at christian@culvercrescent.com to receive additional information.