From Indiana Public Broadcasting

At a recent debate held at the State Fair, all three candidates for Indiana Lieutenant Governor—Republican Micah Beckwith, Democrat Terry Goodin, and Libertarian Tonya Hudson—were vocal in their critiques of the current Republican state government leadership. The debate focused on issues impacting rural and agricultural communities in Indiana.

Terry Goodin, the Democratic candidate, repeatedly emphasized that the state’s challenges stem from prolonged Republican control. He argued that Indiana’s government has been non-transparent and has relied on ineffective, short-term solutions. “We’ve had a non-transparent government, a government that does not let folks know what’s going on in our state. So, in other words, what we have is when we have fixes, we have band-aid fixes that don’t work,” Goodin stated.

Libertarian candidate Tonya Hudson advocated for a significant reduction in the size and scope of government, calling for the elimination of property taxes and a rollback of regulations. “We need to roll back the rules and regulations, cut taxes. Property taxes need to be abolished,” she asserted.

Republican candidate Micah Beckwith stressed the need to overhaul the state’s economic development strategy, particularly focusing on revitalizing small towns. “We can expand broadband; we can make sure that they have access to a global marketplace. And you’re going to see not only farms but small businesses in these communities come back to life,” Beckwith said.

The debate highlighted the differing perspectives on how to address the issues facing rural Indiana, with each candidate offering distinct solutions.