Porter County will
see more than a few uncontested races in this year’s General Election.
Today is the last
day for party chairpersons to fill open spots on general election ballots
now that primary election results have been solidified.
With the exception
of the County Prosecutor’s race, Republican Chair Michael Simpson and
Democratic Chair Jeff Chidester failed to recruit challengers at the County
level and concentrated more on township races.
Two Democrat slots
remain empty in the County Council district races, two for County judges,
and one for County Assessor. Chidester ended up only selecting Stacie
Whitten as a candidate for County Prosecutor. Whitten will run against
Republican incumbent Brian Gensel.
Due to the lack of
Democrat candidates, Republicans unopposed in November are County Council
1st District Representative Jim Biggs, County Council 3rd District
Representative Karen Conover, County Assessor Jon Snyder, Circuit Court
Judge Mary Harper and Superior Court 1 Judge Roger Bradford.
In a local race,
Chidester selected Mike Adams candidate for Liberty Twp. Trustee. He will
challenge Republican incumbent Beth Underwood.
The Democratic
caucus also chose Lori Wilkie as candidate for Portage Twp. Board, after one
candidate dropped out.
Republican Simpson
had the chance to find a challenger for Democratic County Council 2nd
District Representative Jeremy Rivas, as well as Superior Court 4 Judge
David Chidester, but none were announced in a press release he sent to the
Chesterton Tribune Wednesday.
Simpson and his
Republican leadership team filled empty spots for Union Twp. Trustee and its
advisory board, along with a Portage Twp. Trustee candidate -- Jill
Thompson.
As for national and
state races, no new names appeared for races that will be on Duneland
ballots.
Running unopposed
in November are State Sen. Karen Tallian, D-Odgen Dunes, and State Rep.
Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City.
Below is the list
of races for the Nov. 4 general election for voters in Duneland (inc.
indicates an incumbent, bold indicates a contested race):
U.S. Representative
District 1: Pete Visclosky (D, inc.), Mark Leyva (R), James L. Johnson, Jr.
(write-in)
State Senator
District 4: Karen Tallian (D, inc.)
State
Representative District 4: Deb Porter (D), Ed Soliday, (R, inc.)
State
Representative District 9: Scott Pelath (D, inc.)
State
Representative District 10: Charles “Chuck” Moseley (D, inc.), James W.
Johnston (R)
Center County
Commissioner: Sylvia Graham (D), Jeff Good (R)
County Council
Member District 1: Jim Biggs (R, inc.)
County Assessor:
Jon Snyder (R)
County Auditor:
Vicki Urbanik (D), Robert “Bob” Wichlinski (R, inc.)
County Clerk: Kathy
Kozuszek (D), Karen Martin (R, inc.)
County Coroner:
Chuck Scheuer (D), Chuck Harris (R, inc.)
County Prosecuting
Attorney: Stacey E. Whitten (D), Brian T. Gensel (R, inc.)
County Recorder:
Scott Williams (D), Jon C. Miller (R, inc.)
County Sheriff:
Dave M. Reynolds (D), Mike Brickner (R)
Judge of Superior
Court 1: Roger Bradford (R, inc.)
Judge of Superior
Court 4: David Chidester (D, inc.)
Judge of the
Circuit Court: Mary R. Harper (R, inc.)
Judge of Superior
Court 1: Roger Bradford (R, inc.)
Judge of the
Circuit Court: Mary R. Harper (R,, inc.)
Liberty Township
Trustee: Mike Adams (D), Beth Underwood (R, inc.)
Liberty Township
Board: Tim Cole (R), Jeffrey E. Larson (R), Jacquelyn M. Sterling (R)
Jackson Township
Trustee: Janice Meyer (D, inc.)
Jackson Township
Board (Vote for Three): C. Diane Bates (D) Judith Guernsey (R), Mark J.
Jaeger (R)
Pine Township
Trustee: Andy Himan Jr. (D, inc.)
Pine Township
Board: (Vote for Three): Tom Lipinski (R), Margaret “Peggy” Richardson (R),
Daniel Timm (R)
Westchester
Township Trustee: Suzanne Philbrick (D, inc.)
Westchester
Township Board: (Vote for Three): Robin Chubb (D), John Canright (R), Cheryl
Evans (R), Barbara J. Stroud (R).
County Council
District Races outside Duneland:
County Council 2nd
District: Jeremy Rivas (D, inc.)
County Council 3rd
District: Karen Conover (R, inc.)
County Council 4th
District: Don Ensign (D), Michael Jessen (R).