The local election season is heating up around here.

Candidates have qualified are out on the campaign trail seeking to earn a seat on the city council or in the mayor’s office.

We have been encouraged by the number of letters we have received from folks enthusiastically supporting candidates they feel will help move our community forward.

It’s clear to us that the majority of the community understands just how important this election is.

Those who are elected will be our leaders. They will set the tone for our community.

You are much more likely to spot our next mayor at the grocery store than Donald Trump or Hilary Clinton.

If a pothole develops on your street, you’ll probably call city hall to get it fixed.

When a traffic accident happens in town, an officer of our local police department will probably be the first responder on the scene.

Parents put their kids on the school bus in the morning so they can go to our local schools.

In August, our community will hold municipal elections to choose the mayor you see in the grocery store and the city council that approves the budget for public works. These elections are important.

For that reason, we will continue to publish letters to the editor leading up to the election. However, when we initially published our guidelines regarding election coverage and letters from supporters, we failed to anticipate so many letters coming from those outside the community.

While it’s nice to see an interest from those who perhaps once lived here before moving on for other opportunities, we feel it is important to save this space for those who still call our community home. They are the stakeholders that will have to live with the decision that is made on Aug. 23.

This space is for their voices.

While we will strive to publish all the letters we receive from those in the community, our space is limited. Because of that fact, we will not publish letters from supporters who are not current residents of the community.

Readers, including friends and family of the candidates who are residents of our community, are invited to write letters to the editor about the upcoming race, as well as purchasing advertising on behalf of their respective candidate to guarantee they are able to share their message. We do ask that those who choose to write letters stick to the issues and avoid personal attacks.

We will not publish letters bashing another candidate or letters from the candidate themselves.

We will only publish letters containing provable facts, not speculation or untruths.

No letters regarding the election will be published the week of the election.

If any candidate or supporters have questions about the policies listed above, they can contact Journal Editor Beth Hyatt at beth.hyatt@greenvilleadvocate.com or by calling (334) 335-3541.