The moderators may not have been diverse.

That's the apparent reason why Analilia Mejia declined a League of Women Voters debate with Republican Joe Hathaway.

The debate squabble has given a surprising - and ironic - jolt to the April 16 special election in CD-11.

It was last Friday that the League of Women Voters of the Morris Area along with chapters in the Montclair Area, Livingston, and Mountain Lakes said the group was unable to "reach an agreement with Mejia’s campaign and still maintain the League’s nonpartisan debate policy."

This prompted a Saturday statement from Mejia. Here it is:

A free and fair democracy requires truth and transparency. While I appreciate the League of Women Voters and their effort to create spaces of open discourse, I do not believe neutrality and diversity are ever in opposition. As a candidate seeking to represent a district in which over a third of constituents are people of color, I asked the League to commit to diversity among their proposed moderators. Sadly, they were unable to commit. I look forward to engaging them in the future, when both values can be upheld.

It is clear, however, that there is very little, in fact, to debate between my positions and those of my opponent. I am running to uphold the law, protect our communities, and deliver for working families. My opponent, by contrast, has aligned with those who supported the January 6 insurrection and continues to promote policies that undermine our democracy.
The contrast could not be clearer. I believe in expanding affordable housing; my opponent has worked to weaken it. I am fighting to lower healthcare costs at a time when premiums have doubled and over 40,000 New Jersey residents have lost coverage; my opponent supports policies that put care further out of reach.
This election is about fairness, justice, and truth. Voters understand that contrast - and I trust them to make the right choice.

This League debate that isn't happening likely would have been the only one in the CD-11 race, which is to fill the House seat of Mikie Sherrill. The district ranges over parts of Essex, Passaic and Morris counties.

A point of personal privilege here. As someone who has written about politics for a long time, I have often found League debates lacking.

The format is too structured. Moderators are brought in from outside the relevant area to ensure impartiality. Sometimes, however, they are not as knowledgeable about local issues as they should be.

That aside, in recent years, it's been Republicans in some cases who have refused to engage in League debates because they said the League leans left.

Local Leagues, for instance, support next weekend's No Kings rallies and oppose "unchecked ICE enforcement and harm."

Now, we have a left wing Democrat declining a League debate because of concerns about diversity.

If nothing else, politics continues to be surprising.

One man who saw Mejia's statement was Hathaway. And he came up with a counter offer.

He says Mejia can choose the moderators.

"What matters is showing up for the people we’re asking to represent. I’ll be there, unafraid."