Republican strategist Randy Pepple and Democratic strategist Cathy Allen, who created and co-teach a UW course on political campaigns, work on the common ground even they have a different political perspective. Pepple and Allen first met in the 1990s, When KUOW invited them to present opposing viewpoints in a radio segment. Strategies the public might view as negative are, in Allen and Pepple’s view, an attempt to provide a contrast between the candidates. “ We challenge students to think about what is an attack and what is contrasting the opponent’s position with your candidate’s position,” Pepple says. In this election season, the contrast between some candidates may seem stark. But in local races, those differences can be more nuanced. Allen and Pepple invite current or former candidates from the Puget Sound region to speak to the class about their campaigns, covering everything from their central message to – more recently – the challenge of addressing coronavirus, racial justice protests, and other controversial issues in the news.