Ten candidates running to become Denver’s next mayor squared off on Friday for a forum covering a bevy of issues, from crime and housing to homelessness and affordability.

Although more people are running for mayor, the 10 were invited because current fundraising levels suggest they are the most viable, organizers said. PBS12, the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and Denver Labor Unions hosted the forum.

Watch the conversation: Denver Mayoral forum

Attending were Ean Tafoya, Leslie Herod, Debbie Ortega, Trinidad Rodriguez, Andy Rougeot, Kwame Spearman, Kelly Brough, Lisa Calderon, Chris Hansen and Mike Johnston.

The forum kicked off with the panel asking for candidates’ takes on recent polling that indicates 60% of voters are undecided in the mayor’s race and that no candidate has more than 10% support.

To some, like Johnston, the polling meant voters are just now starting to pay attention. Other candidates – such as Calderon and Ortega – cast doubt on the poll’s credibility and said it did not capture a diverse or broad group of Denver voices. Herod suspects voters are taking their time to thoroughly research all of the 17 candidates, a long list of names for residents to vet, she said.

Candidates how they would respond to rising crime in Denver, issues with safety and challenges facing law enforcement.

Spearman vowed to enforce city laws and called on the city to think critically about the effects of current policies on crime trends. Rougeot called local crime trends out of control and said he would increase funding for police training and strive to reduce 9-1-1 call wait times.

Herod agreed that vacancies are posing significant challenges to Denver’s law enforcement agencies and said the issue should be addressed alongside better officer training.

“We are at unsafe conditions right now within the sheriff’s office and the police are also understaffed,” she said.

Calderon spoke about youth gun violence and noted many programs are geared toward young children or older adults but that a key demographic needing support are 16- to 24-year-olds, adding she supports stricter gun laws.

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Johnston suggested attracting more police officers, rebuilding police culture and holding those who break community trust accountable as the ways he would look to mitigate the burden taxpayers are feeling by paying off settlements reached in police misconduct cases.

Ortega urged a revival of strong community policing programs that build close relationships between officers and local neighborhoods, to stave off future settlement scandals. In discussing the most pressing issues facing youth, she said some students recently asked for school resource officers and that the city council, mayor and school district must prioritize youth and community voices.

Candidates were cautioned against direct attacks on their competitors, who moderators said would be given a chance to respond, and therefore, they quipped, more time to have the floor. Some candidates’ platforms took indirect heat nonetheless.

Spearman routinely said the people running Denver, including numerous candidates for mayor, have been failing the city and that voters want new leadership.

Brough has previously commented that, as a “last resort,” she would urge the arrest of homeless people who are violating Denver’s urban camping ban but do not wish to accept city resources, such as shelter or behavioral health treatment. The city can also use mental health holds on people who are a threat to themselves or others, she said in recent days.

Calderon would increase the reach of crisis intervention teams and use the whole gavel of tools to provide homeless people support, she said, such as rent eviction assistance and social housing.

“It is not compassionate to threaten to arrest people or to involuntarily commit them,” Calderon said.

Brough said on Friday that she sees addressing homelessness as a goal that helps all city residents – housed or homeless. She reiterated her campaign promise to end unsanctioned camping in her first year as mayor if elected and said her priority would be getting people indoors while the city heightens its supply of housing and shelter space throughout the region.

Calderon, Tafoya and Herod said they would not seek to enforce the city’s camping ban if elected.

Denver has become too expensive for most families to call home, Herod said. The city must control the housing affordability crisis, she said, touting her work on the Middle Income Housing Authority.

Tiny home villages with wraparound supportive services appeal to Johnston. Spearman derided the city’s approach as making Denver a magnet for chronically homeless.

“I don’t think everyone is just going to walk into a housing option or a shelter if we give them that option,” he said.

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