COVID-19 pandemic or not, nine candidates for Honolulu mayor will face off — digitally, anyway — at a Kokua Council “Q&A” forum today.

The public will be able to view the forum live from 1 to 2:30 p.m. at the nonprofit organization’s Facebook page, facebook.com/KokuaCouncil.

With Tuesday’s filing deadline for 2020 Hawaii office-seekers fast approaching and the Aug. 8 primary day looming just beyond, the forum is the first to be held for the race that will determine who will succeed Mayor Kirk Caldwell and guide Honolulu government policy through 2024.

As a result of coronavirus-induced social distancing guidelines, the candidates, moderators and public will participate from remote locations, said Kokua Council President Lila Mower.

Today’s event takes on heightened significance because this year’s Hawaii voting season will be the state’s first-ever “all mail” election. The state Office of Elections said registered voters should be getting their mail-in ballots starting July 21 or in the ensuing days. In other words, campaigns seeking to reach all potential voters need to get their message across by then.

The Kokua Council wanted to hold the forum in March at its traditional location at Harris United Methodist Church on South Vineyard Boulevard. But that plan got scrapped with the social distancing policies, Mower said.

The council held a separate event in March using the Zoom video chat application. It worked well, so the board decided to do the mayoral forum in a similar fashion.

Former state legislator James Shon, a member of the Kokua Council board, said Tuesday that the pandemic and the attention the public is devoting to the topic have upended “the typical texture and pace of a major election — so everybody is starting late.”

Most of the major candidates for Honolulu mayor were beginning to ramp up their campaigns at the beginning of the year but began canceling fundraisers and advertisements as concerns about the outbreak spread. Most of those activities were all but halted by March, but have started up again lately. Several of the candidates have also been helping the needy during the outbreak, including distributing food.

Members of the Kokua Council want to know how the candidates feel about city issues in general, and particularly their views on issues involving seniors, said Shon.

“Tell us how you might govern if you were elected mayor,” Shon said. “Give us a reason to want to look closer at you.”

Forums and debates are essential toward shaping the public’s views on the candidates, he said, and he pointed to the series of televised Democratic presidential debates, which appeared to influence the eventual outcome.

Speaking with friends who, like himself, monitor Hawaii politics closely, none of the mayoral candidates to date have appeared to stand out or inspire action, Shon said.

Those candidates scheduled to appear at today’s forum: businessman and former state high school athletics chief Keith Amemiya; former television station general manager Rick Blangiardi; Chinatown community leader and Kalihi native Ernest Caravalho; former state Sen. John Carroll; Karl Dicks, metal fabricator and advocate for “restoring family, integrity and aloha”; retired businessman and activist Tim Garry; businesswoman and activist Choon James; former U.S. Rep. Colleen Hanabusa; and West Oahu Councilwoman Kym Pine.

The first set of questions the hopefuls will be asked came from the council’s board and members and were sent in advance to the candidates, Mower said.

A second round will begin with questions from the board and members that will be selected randomly and which all nine candidates will be asked, she said. Time permitting, some questions may be fielded from those watching on Facebook.

Under the Honolulu City Charter, elections are held in a nonpartisan manner. Those seeking an elected city office face off on primary election day, Aug. 8. If the top vote-getter does not finish with a majority of the actual votes cast in the election, the top two finishers go head-to-head during the Nov. 3 general election.