The restaurant owner has invited 10 candidates to join the series, including those running for positions on the Orange County Commission, Orange County School Board, and Supervisor of Elections.
Have you ever thought about combining pizza and politics?
That’s the idea that occurred to Stephen Facella, owner of Playa Pizza in Horizon West, Florida.
RELATED: Everything You Need to Know About Voting in Florida
Facella recently launched Pizza & Politics, an event series to promote voter education as part of the restaurant’s commitment to being a community gathering place.
Now residents of the area have the opportunity to meet local political candidates in a relaxed atmosphere. First, Facella will teach the candidates how to make pizza, and during the process, people will be able to ask the candidates questions.
“This is designed to be a very casual environment. I love this country, and we don’t have a country if we don’t have people voting. We are a representative democracy, so our laws are only as smart as our elected officials. If you have an uneducated populace, then you’ll have an uneducated representative government making uneducated laws. This is the greatest country on the face of this planet, and we have issues, but they’re our issues. They’re not going to improve if we don’t get involved,” Facella told Observer.
Facella has invited 10 candidates to join the series so far, including those running for positions on the Orange County Commission, Orange County School Board, and Supervisor of Elections.
The owner has begun with candidates running in the August primary election, but he plans to invite candidates on the November ballot shortly thereafter.
RELATED: Orange County opens two new early voting sites ahead of August primaries
Orange County District 1 Commissioner Nicole Wilson, who is running for re-election, was the first candidate to participate in the event series.
“Local politics shouldn’t feel as fractured as national politics — it should be transparent and approachable, and there’s no place more approachable than what Stephen has created at Playa Pizza. I’m so grateful for our small-business community and residents who are looking for new ways to get involved and informed. It’s making election season more fun,” Wilson said after the participation.
