We need help. I'm not yet speaking of the psychiatric variety (though it's only a matter of time before Amador politics turn me into a bearded street performer blathering about the county's secret plot to secede from California). At least for now, the help we need has to do with a speedily approaching election.

This being my first real election as editor of the Ledger Dispatch (let's conveniently forget about the last two primaries, shall we?), I'm not too sure how this is supposed to go. As of right now, I'm only aware of three candidate forums, two of which have already occurred and centered on the Amador Water Agency Board of Directors. The other, an Oct. 20 forum sponsored by the Amador Child Care Council, will allow candidates from several local and regional races to discuss topics important to children and families, according to manager Joyce Stone.

So what about the rest?

I'd like to encourage anyone with the locale and interest to get in touch with me about sponsoring race-specific forums, or else let me know of the ones already in the works.

Besides a hotly anticipated presidential race, contests for state senate and assembly seats, a U.S. congressional decision and a dozen ballot measures to figure out (not counting the one that asks Amador County voters to decide whether improved fire protection is worth a half-cent sales tax), residents will also be asked to make critical selections in several local races. Those include the water agency, school board and city councils in Plymouth, Ione, Jackson, Sutter Creek and Amador City.

Well, the last two won't be races at all, with the bare minimum running in Sutter Creek and not enough bodies willing to sit behind the Amador City dais. Luckily, the other contests are picking up the slack. Jackson has a departing mayor and an impending battle between two incumbents and some very vocal residents, including three past council members. The choices voters make will chart the course for a city in pronounced economic decline.

Financially speaking, it's not as if Plymouth is doing much better. The city has two approved development projects in a holding pattern until a new pipeline can provide the necessary water, but the pipeline may cost more than anticipated and council members are resisting the idea of rate increases for a depressed community. Enter the Ione Band of Miwok Indians, which is offering to help with the cost if city officials sit down to discuss a municipal services agreement for a proposed casino on 228 acres in and around Plymouth.

That makes this race particularly interesting, with three challengers favoring talks they say could be economically beneficial in the long run, and three incumbents digging in their heels against the endlessly complex Indian gaming issue. A potential casino in Plymouth has been such a political third rail, in fact, that two of the challengers - Gary Colburn and Darlene Estey - are formerly recalled city council members booted four years ago for signing a now-defunct MSA. Whether the community's feelings about the issue have softened enough since 2004 to help them or Maria Nunez will be a central component in this year's race.

Casinos will also cast a shadow over Ione, which sees two incumbents and a planning commissioner vying for two seats. The Buena Vista Band of Me-Wuk Indians is closing in on a fervidly opposed casino project close to town, one that will occur unless the federal government steps in or the five-member tribe and its financial backers fail to secure the necessary permits.

Meanwhile, shifting wastewater pressures, talks of a downtown bypass and an ever skeptical public add compelling storylines

Water, both potable and grimy, is a huge issue for the entire county and the central one in the crowded AWA Board of Directors race. Like the Jackson contest, some are eyeing this election as being between slates of no-growthers and friends of development interests. Nine people are running to fill four of the board's five seats.

To help you make decisions on all these races - including those for Amador County Unified School District and Volcano Community Services District - we intend to run Q&As for the contested elections, stake out the forums, untangle the ballot measures and examine what's at stake.

But we can't do it alone. So keep us in the loop about upcoming forums or debates, send your questions and concerns, and let us know what we can do to make for a better informed public. People get the politicians they deserve. Let's deserve better.