mayors race research for future article
Democrats seized the U.S. House, but that momentum hasn’t reached Evansville.
Here, it’s going in the opposite direction.
In 2008, 56 percent of Vanderburgh County voters went straight-ticket Democrat. Ten years later, in last month’s election, that dropped to 45 percent – about 3,000 voters less. In that same time span, Republicans went from 42 percent to 53 percent – or about 4,000 more.
That’s just one problem the local party faces as the 2019 election looms. The biggest? They don’t have a candidate for mayor.
A recent story by the Courier & Press’ Tom Langhorne featured a long list of prominent Democrats saying “no†to a possible run against Lloyd Winnecke.
State representative Ryan Hatfield? No. County commissioner Ben Shoulders? Pass. City Councilman Jonathan Weaver? Don’t think so.
Those creepy nutcrackers standing amid the Christmas decorations on Main Street? They didn’t seem interested either.
Local Democratic chairman Scott Danks claims the party will find a strong candidate. But he admitted it won’t be easy.
After all, Winnecke has steamrolled his last two opponents. And as of 2017, he had at least $500,000 in campaign funds. That number has only grown since then, and there’s no telling what kind of cash he’ll have to work with by the time November rolls in.
A Democratic win would be a huge upset no matter who steps forward. But even if the party can’t win, the 2019 election presents a giant opportunity.
Now is the time to find a candidate who speaks to Evansville voters who usually sit out of city elections. Only 20 percent of voters cast a ballot in 2015 – that’s a gargantuan slab of untapped potential.
You could get a lot of those folks on your side in a few easy ways.
Protect their wallets
Vectren – soon to be CenterPoint – charges the highest residential electrical rates in the state. Yet the company has been immune from political criticism for years thanks to its healthy campaign contributions and status as a major area employer.
But Evansville residents are drowning in bills. It would be nice for a mayoral candidate to acknowledge that and vow to oppose any future rate hikes.
Just do anything to speak to the army of city residents who are struggling financially – 21 percent of whom are living in poverty.
I doubt any of those people care in the slightest about a swanky Downtown hotel in which they could never afford to stay.
Find an outsider candidate
It’s all the rage, man.
Every person who turned down possible mayoral runs were white men who are already ensconced in area government.
Evansville has never had a non-white, non-dude top executive. It’s time to change that.
Address neglected areas
Downtown Evansville has seen a lot of improvements under Winnecke. But most city residents don’t live there. And I’ll bet there are a lot of voters who feel like their neighborhoods have been ignored.
Talk with folks in Center City or Howell. See what people in the Diamond-Stringtown area have to say.
There are loads of unheard voices in this city. Act as their megaphone.
Find a way around the money
Granted, in American politics, that might be like asking a gunshot victim to find a way around the bullet.
University of Evansville political scientist Robert Dion summed it up this way.
“People typically don’t want to give big contributions to somebody who has no money,†he told the Courier & Press. “To get off the ground is a challenge, because to get those big donors early on, you have to have a really compelling case. And it’s hard to have a compelling case when you don’t have any money.â€
Essentially, to get money, you need money. Otherwise, you’ll never have the money you need to get more money. Who says the system is broken?
The only thing that could overcome a mound of dollars is a major surge of voter excitement.
Eighty percent of registered voters in Evansville felt like there was no point in voting in the 2015 election. Show them they’re wrong, and you might have a shot.
Know Before You Go – Security Protocol For Sound Of Music
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VANDERBURGH COUNTY FELONY CHARGES
 Below are the felony cases to be filed by the Vanderburgh County Prosecutor’s Office today.
Lucas James Pace: Possession of methamphetamine (Level 6 Felony), False informing (Class B misdemeanor)
Demanio Lamont Morris Moss: Operating a vehicle while intoxicated (Level 6 Felony), Driving while suspended (Class A misdemeanor)
Teiha Ann Bechtel: Possession of methamphetamine (Level 6 Felony), Possession of paraphernalia (Class C misdemeanor)
Dylan Cody Alan Anderson: Possession of synthetic drug or synthetic drug lookalike substance (Level 6 Felony)
IS IT TRUE JANUARY 30, 2018
We hope that today’s “IS IT TRUEâ€Â will provoke honest and open dialogue concerning issues that we, as responsible citizens of this community, need to address in a rational and responsible way?â€
IS IT TRUE we are told that the search for the next Chamber Of Commerce CEO has been completed?  …the list of candidates that applied for this position was extremely impressive?  …applicants for this position pulled out all stops to get the attention of the search committee?  …one candidate even had Mayor Winnecke, the Governor of the State of Indiana and a Federal officeholder to lobbied in his behalf?  …it would be great if this job went to someone locally?
IS IT TRUE some people are now speculating that former Evansville Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel may announce that he is will not seek the Democrat nomination for the US House of Representative?  …several people in the political know now feel that Weinzapfel extremely late entry in the race will definitely cause a serious split in the Democratic party?
IS IT TRUE we remember that in 2009 former Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel was routinely referred to as a rock star and thought to be on a path to become Governor of Indiana?…one local luminary, the late and great Larry Aitken actually said on camera that Weinzapfel should be President of the United States?…two years later after the Ford Center was shoved down the taxpayer’s throats without a referendum, a promised hotel without subsidy failed to materialize, and the McCurdy fiasco began, the attempted Homestead Tax credit grab, Weinzapfel decided not to run for re-election?
IS IT TRUE that the only announced Democratic candidate for the 8th District Congressional seat is a well respected Terre Haute attorney with a good political following throughout the 8th Congressional District?  …we have been told that Mr. Weinzapfel personally approached a supporter of Democratic Congressional candidate Willaim Tanoos and asked him to tell him to withdraw from 8th District Congressional primary race?  …Mr. Tanoos response was heck no because he in it to win it?
IS IT TRUE last year Evansville Mayor Lloyd Winnecke announced that he plans to seek a third term as your mayor in the 2019 election?…that this advanced announcement gave Winnecke a long time to raise money to fend off any challengers who decide to toss their hat into the ring?…in his two campaigns for Mayor, Winnecke has proven to be able to raise over a million dollars for an office that only pays around $100,000 per year?…with the apparent popularity that Winnecke enjoys and over a million bucks in his war chest, it will be one formidable task to defeat Winnecke in a general election?…Mayor Winnecke would be well serve to avoid becoming a little dictator because real people do not like hubris?
IS IT TRUE one of the shortcomings of downtown Evansville has been and continues to be the fact that there is no grocery store even close to the residential units that are in the area?…there have been some attempts in the past by local investors like Wesselmans and the Sunshine Market that were on the edge of the downtown but couldn’t get enough traction to survive?…there was recently an attempt at a small grocery section by Stratman’s Pharmacy that was a long time downtown business that did their best to make groceries available to downtown residents?…instead of prospering Stratman’s Pharmacy made the decision to cease downtown operations leaving the downtown with no grocery and no pharmacy?…the reality is that the number of customers who are required to keep such businesses profitable just doesn’t live near the downtown?
IS IT TRUE there is another issue with the building stock in downtown Evansville that makes it difficult to make a profit in any business that competes for dollars with businesses located in new buildings in the population zones?…the age of the buildings and the primitive state of the electrical and insulation systems make the utility bills exorbitant in downtown Evansville?…when a service provider has a $1,000+ utility bill tries to compete with someone in the burbs who has a $150 bill the playing field is not level and often the difference cannot be made up for in pricing and volume?…until something is done to equalize the cost of doing business in downtown Evansville smart businesses will stay away and starry eyed downtown supporters who believe the hype with try and eventually learn the hard way about empty promises?
IS IT TRUE back in June 2017 the City Council voted to allow potbellied pigs as pets in the city limits?…we are wondering what will be allowed next since there are already homes in the city limits with cows, chickens, and at least one donkey?…we are looking forward to hearing a member of the city council bray like a donkey approve East Side Jack as a household pet?  …if City Council would spend more time on things like how to stop runaway deficit spending instead of a  “pot-bellied pigs†issue we wouldn’t be in such a financial mess?
IS IT TRUE last year officials at Henderson Methodist Hospital and Deaconess Hospital discussed issues of economic concerns? …could it be that Deaconess Hospital has a strong interest in purchasing Henderson Methodist Hospital in the very near future? …that Henderson Methodist Hospital is the largest employer in Henderson County and has a major economic impact in the region?  … we wouldn’t be surprised hear that a deal between Deaconess Hospital system and Henderson Methodist Hospital to merge both hospitals may happen later this year?
IS IT TRUE last year Deaconess Hospital-Evansville leadership signed a “Letter of Intent†with Henderson Methodist Community Hospital agreeing that both entities would cooperate in the sharing of physicians and other hospital services?  …we wonder if Deaconess Hospital-Evansville official ever considered a move to help secure a bond debt owed by Henderson’s Methodist Community Hospital to the tune of $25 to $30 million dollars?
IS IT TRUE we feel that Vanderburgh County Sheriff Dave Wedding is doing a very good job? … that Sheriff Wedding has proven to be a “Good Steward Of The Public Trust�
Todays “Readers Poll†question is: Do you feel its time that Mr. Weinzapfel announces his decision if he’s running for Congress or not?
Please take time and read our articles entitled “STATEHOUSE Files, CHANNEL 44 NEWS, LAW ENFORCEMENT, READERS POLL, BIRTHDAYS, HOT JOBS†and “LOCAL SPORTSâ€.  You now are able to subscribe to get the CCO daily.
If you would like to advertise on the CCO please contact us City-County Observer@live.com.
EDITOR’S FOOTNOTE:  Any comments posted in this column do not represent the views or opinions of the City-County Observer or our advertisers.
House Committee Unanimously Votes to Increase Cigarette Tax, Smoking Age
JANUARY 29TH, 2018Â 
TYRONE MORRISÂ INDIANA
 An Indiana house bill looking to increase the cigarette tax and the smoking age moves out of committee. The House Public Health Committee approved the bill nine to zero.
House Bill 1380 increases the cigarette tax from 99 cents per pack to $2.99 per pack. $1 in revenue from each pack would go toward tobacco use prevention and education.
That same bill also increases the legal age to buy cigarettes and other tobacco products from 18 to 21.
Commentary: Bias Crimes: Hopefully, Taking This Step First Turns Out To Be Enough
By Michael Leppert
michaelleppert.com
Fort Wayne’s La’Kysha Gardner testified before a Senate Committee at the Indiana Statehouse on Tuesday morning. She had a compelling story to tell about an assault on her son, Jason, and what appears to be an under-reaction to it by Allen Superior Court.
Gardner explained to the Senate Corrections and Criminal Law Committee that the assault was racially motivated and that it was a clear example of a hate or bias crime. The committee was considering Senate Bill 418, which is legislation designed to create sentencing aggravators in crimes that occur with an element of bias. One would think she was there to testify in support of the bill. But not so.
“I oppose this bill because it’s just not enough,†Gardner said. Many could argue that she has a point. At least as it pertains to the crime against her son.
I wish that was the dilemma that the General Assembly is facing, but it’s not. The legislature is not struggling with whether passing Senate Bill 418 goes far enough. They are struggling over whether they should do anything on the topic at all.
The bill’s author, Sen. Sue Glick, R-LaGrange, has filed a similar version of the bill three consecutive years. I remember in 2016 with regard to her first bill, when she said something remarkably simple about the whole thing. She said, “this is something we can do.â€
Yes. It is.
So what does it do? The bill would allow for judges to consider the element of bias in the commission of a crime as an aggravating factor at sentencing. That means that if someone is convicted of a Class A misdemeanor, a judge could consider the element of bias through a preponderance of evidence presented when issuing the sentence. The sentence would still need to stay within the statutory sentencing guidelines of Class A misdemeanors.
This “aggravator†can be used if the crime was committed “with the intent to harm or intimidate an individual because of the individual’s perceived or actual†characteristics. The characteristics listed are ones you would expect: race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, disability, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, or ethnicity.
There are no new crimes being established. There are no “thought police†being created. It does not favor whites over blacks, gays over straights, or Jews over Christians. It simply allows a prosecutor to argue, after a conviction, that the sentence should consider bias as an element in any direction within the items on the list.
SB 418 is not a panacea perfectly designed to eradicate hate-based crime from our state. There is no such legislative idea available. While I appreciate the enormity of what Gardner and her family have experienced in the last year, no new law will erase it. Or prevent it from happening again.
I wish there was such an idea.
As Glick said two years ago, what is being proposed is something we can do. Maybe it’s a baby step, or maybe it’s “half a loaf.â€Â But there are some other small measures on big issues in my career that come to mind as transformational.
I think of smoking bans that did not include casinos. I actually quit smoking the very month that Indianapolis’ local ban went into effect. Did it help me quit smoking? Absolutely it did.
Last year, the General Assembly was being lobbied to spend $100 million dollars on pre-kindergarten expansion in its biennial budget. They only coughed up $44 million. Will it help? Absolutely it will.
I have this debate with guns rights people all of the time. I do not believe there is a law that will end gun violence in America. But I do believe there are things we can do to make progress toward that goal. Doing nothing is the most offensive strategy available because the status quo is intolerable.
But Gardner also said in her testimony: “I am a Hoosier but I wish that I wasn’t.†I found myself nodding in the chairs behind her when she said it. I agree the justice system in Indiana did not treat her family right. But I disagree that killing SB 418 is the answer to our state’s shortcomings.
SB 418 is something we can do.
It would be an embarrassment to still be one of five states without a bias crime law when this session ends in March. We might be one of four if Georgia passes a bill that is pending in their statehouse.
Though it may not be enough for La’Kysha and Jason Gardner, passing this law using the momentum of the injustice they have experienced will make many of us glad they are Hoosiers.
Finding a way to convince them to stay here is also something I think we can do. We all should try.
Footnote: Michael Leppert is a public and governmental affairs consultant in Indianapolis and writes his thoughts about politics, government and anything else that strikes him at Contrariana.com.
Posted by the City county observer without opinion, bias or editing.
Press Freedom Bill For Student Journalists Advances
By Erica Irish
TheStatehouseFile.com
 INDIANAPOLIS — Anu Nattam, editor-in-chief of Plainfield High School’s news magazine, told the House Education Committee Thursday that her staff, for the first time in 20 years, is facing censorship by the school’s administration.
After publishing the first issue of the year, “Plainfield High School’s Dating Survival Guide,†Nattam said there was immediate and unexpected negativity from school leaders.
The current name of the publication — The Shakeout — was not chosen by the staff. After their first issue in October, their principal noted that its original name — The Shakedown — had mafia connotations. He soon ordered them to find a new title.
“So far, they’ve made pretty minor changes,†Nattam said. “But it’s going to be like a snowball effect. If they’re changing this now, what are they going to change later?â€
Though Nattam does not plan on becoming a professional journalist, she said her work still deserves the necessary freedom to capture the truth in student life.
That is why she and dozens of students from Indiana high schools traveled to the Statehouse Thursday to hear and testify on House Bill 1016, authored by Rep. Ed Clere, R-New Albany.
HB 1016, which passed out of the committee by a 9-2 vote, would require administrators and student media advisers to set guidelines for student journalists and their publications.
“This legislation leaves school officials with a high level of control. School officials hire the teachers and make the rules,†Clere said. “All this does is help ensure when students and teachers play by the rules, the important speech will not be censored just because it makes government officials uncomfortable because of the information or topics presented.â€
Clere said student journalists have a special importance to a school community in that they can capture the truth in the experiences of their peers.
In The Shakeout‘s first issue, Nattam said some of these important issues included LGBTQ+ interests, dating violence and how to find a lasting relationship.
“There was really nothing unlawful in that issue,†Nattam said. “But, because a school board member felt uncomfortable about it, now we are under prior review and have to show everything we publish to administrators, people who have no experience in journalism.â€
Plainfield Community Schools declined to comment on Nattam’s testimony.
Rep. Jim Lucas, R-Seymour, told Nattam to be proud of defending her constitutional rights.
Rep. Edward Clere, R-New Albany, listens to testimony on House Bill 1016, which he authored. Photo by Eddie Drews, TheStatehouseFile.com
“I take it the reason you’re up here is that you’re upset your constitutional rights are being infringed,†Lucas said. “It’s good to see you and so many people up here fighting for your constitutional rights.â€
Dr. J.T. Coopman, executive director of the Indiana Association of Public Schools, offered a different perspective.
“School-sponsored publications are a public relations tool, but without the guidance and oversight from the administration, a school-sponsored publication can become a public relations nightmare,†Coopman said.
Lisa Tanselle, general counsel for the Indiana School Boards Association, echoed claims made by other organizations, saying a student’s rights should be limited because there are “alternative avenues†for voicing concerns to an administration, such as through social media.
“We are talking about a balancing act,†Tanselle said. “No right is pure. The court has already struck that balance between the right of a student and the right of a school administrator.â€
Of the school representatives who testified, some said there is a harmonious relationship between administrators and student media in their schools.
David Clark, the principal of Columbus North High School, said journalism programs can only thrive with a trusting administration.
“Everyone believes that students should be responsible, so let’s create an environment where they can learn to do just that. Shouldn’t we proactively educate by creating an environment of thoughtfulness and trust? It works,†he said.
Students of Plainfield High School students are among the many who turned out for HB 1016. Photo by Claire Castillo TheStatehouseFile.com
Though only two members voted against HB 1016, several who voted yes raised concerns.
Rep. Sheila Klinker, D-Lafayette, and Rep. Jack Jordan, R-Bremen, both said they wanted to see more clarification in the bill’s language. Klinker proposed amending the bill to gain more support from administrators currently in opposition to HB 1016.
Rep. Woody Burton, R-Whiteland, and Rep. Tony Cook, R-Cicero, voted no.
While Cook voted yes on last year’s version of the bill, he changed his vote this session after saying HB 1016 does not do enough to unite administrators and student media.
Last session, the bill’s predecessor passed in both the House Education Committee and in the House. It later died in the Senate.
Clere said that HB 1016 is especially relevant this session. The Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier decision turns 30 this month, signaling a decades-long run for the landmark case that put high school journalism under a different set of rules.
For Clare, the consequences of the Hazelwood decision deprive student journalists of a rigorous, real-world environment.
“The stronger the censorship, the weaker the education,†Clere said.
FOOTNOTE: Erica Irish is a reporter for TheStatehouseFile.com, a news website powered by Franklin College journalism students.