Wanda English Burnett, Editor

Candidates responded to a myriad of questions before a good crowd at the Meet Your Candidate Night held Monday, October 27 at the South Ripley Elementary Cafeteria.

The event, sponsored by the Ripley County Chamber of Commerce, was moderated by Cathy May, who gave each of the 17 candidates, a time limit to give a short statement about themselves, and then respond to a question they had been given upon arrival. Later in the forum, the candidates were asked questions from the crowd.

US Representative District 9
Mike Sodrel, Republican, is challenging incumbent Democrat Baron Hill, who did not attend the event. When asked what he thought about bailing out the failing banks, Sodrel said, “I think it’s a bad idea. Congress has borrowed so much now it is breath taking.” He spoke to a debt that is escalating daily and could well be over $11 trillion. He said this election is about future generations. Eric Schansberg, Libertarian candidate, a professor of economics at Indiana University, Albany, noted that he is the “only fiscal conservative in the race.” He likened the economy to a car going in the wrong direction (fast) and said it makes sense to send an economics professor to Washington.

State Representative -
District 67
Incumbent Republican Cleo Duncan was asked if she would support Indiana joining other surrounding states in going ‘smoke’ free. In the short time allotted each candidate, Duncan explained that she would have to look at how the law was written. She cited the recent ban in Greensburg that included private clubs, saying “for the government to say they can’t smoke was bad.” She continued by saying, “I’m torn, because I feel people feel they have a right to smoke and of course people have the right to breathe clean air.” She noted that Indiana is the only state in the “black” among surrounding states. “We have an AAA bond rating,” she noted, adding other bi-partisan legislation that had been passed while she has been in office. “I will work my heart out for you,” she promised.

Mike Keller, Democrat challenger introduced himself saying he wanted to eliminate the fee students pay for school books, along with the sales tax on gasoline. He was asked what his opinion was on selling or leasing parts of Indiana to foreign companies. He responded by saying he was opposed, saying we lose control of assets. He said he was a friend of agriculture and will protect farmers. He said he was bound to the voters and would fight for them.

Voters have yet another choice in this race with Marty Voegele running on the Independent ticket. He was asked, “In this hard economic time, what will you do to help our small mom and pop businesses to stay afloat?” He said since his parents owned Voegele Auto Supply in Batesville for a number of years, he could well relate to the small business owner. He believed the latest effort to have the constitution amended was “neither uniform nor fair” when referring to the cap on property taxes. He thanked Duncan and Keller for running a clean campaign.

State Representative -
District 68

Incumbent Democrat Bob Bischoff, who has served a total of 30 years - 28 as a representative and two as a senator, said, “The quality of life has improved immensely in Southeastern Indiana.” He said property taxes for homeowners had decreased by 37.5% this year. He referred to the good things that have taken place in the area recently including the opening of the new Honda plant and what the spin-off companies from that will be.

Challenging Bischoff is newcomer Jud McMillan, Republican, who was asked what his opinion was of the state trying to take over local government. He said he was against it, noting, “I’m for a smaller, smarter government.” He noted that Indianapolis doesn’t pay attention to Southeastern Indiana.

State Representative -
District 69
Floyd Coates is running on the Republican ticket against incumbent David Cheatham (who did not attend the event). Coates said, “I’m for putting the Federal government on a diet.” When asked about government loans, he said it was a complex question that would take him more than an hour to answer. He did say briefly, “government aid is like a blood transfusion from one arm to the other.” He said he felt Southeastern Indiana was an “island away from Indianapolis.”

Superior Court Judge
Incumbent Republican Judge James (Jim) Morris was asked what he could do to improve the relationship between the prosecutor’s office, probation department and law enforcement. Judge Morris answered that he wasn’t aware of any issues between the agencies and said they worked together. He noted if there was a problem, his style would be to “sit down with people and work things out.” He noted that he takes his position seriously, saying, “My decisions affect people’s lives. I see many good men and women who make bad decisions.” He noted of the more than 17,000 criminal cases he’s heard, none have been reversed.

Lynnette (Lynn) Fledderman is the Democrat challenger for the seat. She introduced herself saying she was a lifelong resident of Ripley County. “I believe government should be effective and efficient.” When asked what in her background makes her a good candidate for judge she cited her years of experience in practicing law, successfully prosecuting murderers, child molesters and abusers. She said she has a varying background, and that is key. She noted that she has a track record of proven results and intends to continue that pattern. She promised fair, non-partisan decisions.

Clerk for Circuit Court
Mary Ann McCoy is running on the Republican ticket. When asked what changes she would make to the office to make the election process more efficient, she said, “We have a very good election system already.” She said she enjoyed working with the public and strives to do the best job possible. David Forwalt is also running for the office on the Democrat ticket, but was not in attendance at the event.

Commissioners
Mark Busching is running for the District 2 seat and was asked about his thoughts on a confined animal operation. He said his concern would be that it met the county’s planning and zoning codes. Running for the same position is Michael Baker on the Democrat ticket. He noted that with two vacancies on a three seat commission, he felt the race was very important. As a business owner for several years he noted, “I will make smart business decisions for the county.”

Running for the District 3 seat is Gary Stutler, Republican. He was asked if elected if he would continue to support the Economic Development Corporation through the EDIT funds. He said the economic development division was important saying new industry such as Belletech, means new residents and that means new money in the county. Tim Taylor is running for the same seat on the Democrat ticket. When asked if rural landowners should have the right to reject or accept a utility, he said it would depend. He said he couldn’t make a snap decision without knowing the facts. He would need to see an impact study, documentation.

County Council
There are five candidates running for County Council At-Large seats. Donald Dunbar and William (Bill) Warren are both on the Republican ticket and were in attendance at the event.

Dunbar, who is an incumbent, noted it “has been an honor to serve the county.” He was posed the question of how the tightening of funds would affect non-profit entities that the county now helps. He said some may get a small cut, saying the council has been advised to cut the budget, which is $6.9 million, by $300,000. Bill Warren was asked about how roads and bridges could be kept in good repair with possible budget cuts. He said getting the budgets lined up was the key. He said he loved to see growth in the county and told those in attendance he was the only candidate running for office who had never served on the council. Benjamin Peetz, presently serving on the county and running again on the Republican ticket, was not present, but sent a note saying he couldn’t be at the event because of work duties.

Neither Democrat candidate, E. George Ammerman, Jr. nor William (Bill) Dramann, were at the event
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South Ripley School Board
Denise (DeDe) Fields is challenging the seat that Randel McIntosh is again running for on the school board for District 3. Fields said over the years she has put a lot of energy into her career and now wants to serve her community. She noted that as an employer she interviews students from all of the local schools. She believes it would be beneficial if the senior project would be on balancing a checkbook, compiling a resume and how to interview for a job. “Just for the record, flip-flops are not appropriate apparel,” she noted, getting positive response from the audience. Randy McIntosh spoke saying there had been major transformations at South Ripley this past year. “We’re trying to change the attitude,” he noted.

Keith Mathews, who is presently on the school board (District 7) said he has enjoyed serving, has children in the school system and is very active in his community, serving others through his work as an Elder at the Versailles Church of Christ. Marvin (Jerry) Gilpin, is challenging this position. He said he believes “our schools are in trouble”, and he’s not afraid to stand up for the kids. “Kids are the basis of our community, they’re our future.”

For District 6 Charles (Richard) Gambrel is running for the seat that Gil Landwehr now holds. Gambrel said he retired from the corporation after teaching for 33 years. He said he misses being a part of the school and wants to have a voice in the hiring process. He also said he wants to keep electives for all of the students. Gil Landwehr was not in attendance due to a family emergency.

The candidates were then given questions from the audience to answer “off the cuff.” This left Cleo Duncan trying to explain why farmers saw an increase in their property taxes while homeowners taxes went down. In a two minutes, it was hard to explain, but she noted, “Everybody’s property taxes should be going down next year.” She noted that they were trying to make the tax system more fair.

Jerry Gilpin was asked why he is running for school board when his children do not attend South Ripley schools. He said, “My kids weren’t learning what they needed.” He noted that he has four children, two of which have already gone to college. He said the school didn’t prepare the older children for college. He further noted that his other two are attending a private school mostly because his son was abused, bullied. He referred to a recent incident, and said the administration allowed the bullying for years, standing by, doing nothing.

DeDe Fields was asked what motivated her to run for school board. She noted that at a recent Boston University School of Management she attended, that it was impressed on her that the next generation needs to be ready to take care of “us.” She said an art teacher teaching an engineering class is an example that needed changed.

When Jud McMillan was asked to distinguish himself from his opponent, he noted that while Bob Bischoff has 30 years experience in the government process, he has experience too. The 31-year-old has a law degree, he obtained at the age of 25, has been a prosecutor and an attorney. Gaining his law degree in a short period of time, while playing sports, shows he has the energy and drive to get things done. He said his opponent has given good representation, but the position needs someone to look at it in a different way. He said he doesn’t want to extinguish the torch that Bischoff has lit, but pick it up, run, and light it even more.

Editor’s note: See a complete listing of candidates inside today’s paper on the sample ballots.

WANDA BURNETT PHOTOS ABOVE: The candidates gathered around to hear final instruction from Cathy May, who moderated the Meet Your Candidate Night held October 27 at the South Ripley Elementary Cafeteria. The night was sponsored by the Ripley County Chamber of Commerce and gave the public the opportunity to meet candidates and hear their views. BELOW: Marty Voegele, left, Independent candidate for US Representative District 9, was talking with Eric Schansberg, right, Liberterian candidate for US Representative District 9, after the event. Also pictured are Jeff French, back left, and Ed Armbrecht, right back.