No Professionalism in Journalism: The Corydon "Democrat": Why not call it the Tea Party News?

Look at our local newspaper, which for historical reasons calls itself "The Corydon Democrat", but is little more than a repository for Republican and Tea Party ideas. Why not call it the "Corydon Republican" or "Harrison County Tea Party News"? They said they recently won gold ribbons in journalism. From who? The Koch Brothers? If not, we would hate to see what rags they lost to.

Is it professional at a journalistic level that two of the reporters actively like facebook pages of local Republican elected officials and then say they are "objective" reporters on issues involving them? Most newspapers would say no, but this one seems to say yes. Reporters for the Courier-Journal do not like individual candidates they cover on facebook, so why this newspaper? The lack of journalistic ethics is staggering. Maybe their journalists should start attending Republican meetings? No, wait, one already has. Any wonder why this paper is a GOP rag?

For a newspaper that had such local icons as Jackie Carpenter, Randy West, and Denny Huber, this paper is turning into a true rag. One has to wonder whether Frank O'Bannon is rolling over in his grave if he could see what his paper has turned into. In his years in Indianapolis as Senator, Lt. Governor, and Governor, he long had to put up with slanted coverage from the then far-right Indianapolis Star. Could it be that far right slants are now coming from the newspaper he worked to build for most of his life? What a sad state of affairs there. We hope to keep up pressure to stop this.

The people that call themselves "journalists" there have information that would be not so favorable on at least three of the Republican candidates for office running this year. They have been provided this information or offered it, but they either refuse to print or investigate. We have learned this through the new feature on our website for things this paper refuses to publish, for fear of hurting the GOP. Investigative journalism involves more than printing press releases from local Republican officials or printing their exact words without seeing if they are true. Remember the famous misleading headline that the county budget is in the black, but failing to mention it was only after the County Council bailed out the budget?

Since it seems they won't look into these issues and candidates, we will have to. Stay tuned for a lot of breaking news. Sad that we have to do so, instead of our local newspaper. 

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from the Harrison County Democratic Party!

Let's hope the new year brings us a better next election in 2016!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from the Harrison County Democratic Party!

Heidi Sellers Party for Harrison County Democrats

Heidi Sellers wants to thank Democrats in District 70 for all their help this year. She will be having a get together on December 26 at 4:00 PM. The address is at 2916 Glendale Court, Memphis, Indiana. Let's get behind Heidi early. And hold on to any of those Heidi signs. 2014 was a bad year for Democrats, but 2016 will be a lot better. We may not have been able to send Heidi to Indianapolis in 2014, but we may be able to in 2016!

Hold onto those signs.

Please help us. If you have signs out your way, please pick them up and save them.

We need to clean up the signs, however, we want to keep them.

You may bring them to our next meeting or get them to Jim Kincaid.

Thanks for any help you can offer.

A Thank You and Message from Jim Kincaid

Fellow Democrats,

I want to first thank everyone that helped with this election cycle. Whether you volunteered for a candidate, made phone calls, attended events, worked the polls, or most importantly VOTED. These duties are crucial in the election process and a lot of times overlooked by so many so again THANK YOU!

As everyone knows by now we took a beating not only in our county but all over Southern Indiana. It is now time for us to keep our heads up and continue to give the people of Harrison County a choice every election day.

While we came up short in most of our races, we did see Rena Stepro reelected as County Assessor, and Kyle Nix won a seat on the County Council in District 1. Donnie Hussung came up short only 19 votes. Dennis Byrd and Terry Miller came up just a couple points short as well. We just could not overcome the national tide against Democrats and the straight ticket votes. 

Thanks to every candidate that made the decision to put the time, effort, and money into running for office. I enjoyed working with you and also getting to know you. I have a lot of respect for anyone who puts it all on the line and runs for office. I think it is safe to say that all of our candidates ran good clean campaigns.

The fact of the matter is that 2014 just wasn't our year. I look forward to learning from this election and continue our effort in giving people of Harrison County a choice every election cycle.

I had several thoughts after all the votes were counted. I think the thing that is most important is how we as a county party start to learn, build, and get better as a party. I have laid out a very basic plan to start our rebuilding process. I look forward to working on this plan in the coming months. As always I am more than open to suggestions, ideas, or anything constructive.

Thanks again for all of your work and also allowing me to be your County Chairman! Get some rest for now 2016 is right around the corner and with a certain lady named Hillary likely to be at the top of the ticket, we should do a lot better then!

Democratically yours,

Jim Kincaid

What You Will Need to Vote

As you probably know, Indiana was the very state in the Republican strategy of voter suppression with our state's strict photo I.D. requirement in order to vote. Many other states have pushed forward with this discriminatory policy since then to try to keep people from exercising their right to vote as well. That being said, you will need a photo I.D. in order to vote, and the identification must meet specific conditions.

From the Indiana Secretary of State, here are the requirements:

Your photo ID must meet 4 criteria to be acceptable for voting purposes. It Must:

1. Display your photo

2. Display your name, and the name must conform to your voter registration record. Conform does not mean identical. Below are examples of names that would conform to "Robert John Crew"

• Robert John Crew
• Robert J. Crew
• Robert Crew
• R. John Crew
• R. J. Crew

• Bob John Crew
• Bob J. Crew
• Bob Crew
• John Crew

3. Display an expiration date and either be current or have expired sometime after the date of the last General Election (November 6, 2012)

• NOTE: An ID issued by the US Department of Defense, a branch of the uniformed services, the Merchant Marine, or the Indiana National Guard is not required to have an expiration date, or may state that the document has an "Indefinite" expiration date.

4. Be issued by the State of Indiana or the U.S. government

In most cases, an Indiana driver license, Indiana photo ID card, Military ID or U.S. Passport is sufficient.
A student ID from an Indiana State school may only be used if it meets all of the 4 criteria specified above. A student ID from a private institution may not be used for voting purposes. For more Information for College Students click here.

If you are unable or unwilling to present ID meeting these requirements, you may cast a provisional ballot. If you cast a provisional ballot, you have until noon 10 days after the election to follow up with the county election board and either provide the necessary documentation or affirm one of the law’s exemptions applies to you.


Frequently Asked Questions

• How do I get an ID?
• Are there exemptions?

Where to Vote on Election Day

We are less than two weeks before Election Primary Day on Tuesday, May 6. Polls will be open from 6:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. Those in line before 6:00 P.M. will still be allowed to vote. You may want to note that election officials changed polling locations in Franklin, Heth, Jackson, Morgan, Taylor, and Webster Townships from where you may have voted in 2012. Many of these changes were to polling locations were you may have voted for decades, and many of the new locations may not be as convenient for you to vote. Also, some precincts have been clustered together, which for the precincts at schools, may be traffic nightmares around the time that the buses are coming in and out. This may not be a big problem in the primary when turnout is lower, but with a general election in November it could become a problem. Just as an example- so many precincts were packed into the buildings around the Government Center (the Old Hospital), the police had to direct traffic in the November 2012 Election. We do not want to see voters discouraged from voting because they cannot find a place to park their car. Of course, if you want to avoid these potential problems, check out our post on early and absentee voting: Absentee and Early Voting There is still time to voting absentee and early, but the time is running out!

Here is the new list of precinct locations, along with a map of the precincts in Harrison County. Precincts that have moved are highlighted. 

Harrison County Precinct Map

#	PRECINCT	POLLING LOCATION
1	North Blue River	Blue River Baptist Church, 13520 North Rd.NW,  Depauw, 47115
2	South Blue River	Milltown Housing for the Elderly, 115 Spencer St, Depauw, 47115
3	East Boone	Boone Township Fire House, 10850 s. Hwy 11 SE, Laconia 47135
4	West Boone	Boone Township Fire House, 10850 s. Hwy 11 SE, Laconia 47135
5	Central Franklin	New Life Christian Church, 8090 Tandy Rd. NE, Lanesville, 47136
6	North Franklin	New Life Christian Church, 8090 Tandy Rd. NE, Lanesville, 47136
7	South Franklin	New Life Christian Church, 8090 Tandy Rd. NE, Lanesville, 47136
37	West Franklin	New Life Christian Church, 8090 Tandy Rd. NE, Lanesville, 47136
8	East Harrison	Government Center, 245 Atwood St, Corydon 47112 -  Conference Room C
10	Northeast Harrison	Government Center, 245 Atwood St, Corydon 47112 - Surveyor's Office, 2nd floor
36	Northwest Harrison	Government Center, 245 Atwood St, Corydon 47112 - Assessor's Office, 2nd floor
38	South Harrison	Government Center, 245 Atwood St, Corydon 47112 - SBOA Room, 2nd floor
12	Southeast Harrison	Government Center, 245 Atwood St, Corydon 47112 - Veterans Office
11	Corydon West	CCHS Auxiliary Gym, 375 Country Club Rd, Corydon 47112
35	Corydon East	CCHS Auxiliary Gym, 375 Country Club Rd, Corydon 47112
39	Corydon South	CCHS Auxiliary Gym, 375 Country Club Rd, Corydon 47112
9	North Harrison	Health Department, Ground Level, 241 Atwood St, Corydon 47112
13	Southwest Harrison	Health Department, Ground Level, 241 Atwood St, Corydon 47112
14	West Harrison	Health Department, Ground Level, 241 Atwood St, Corydon 47112
15	East Heth	Heth Washington Elementary, 2450 Heth-Wash. Rd. SW, Central 47110
16	West Heth	Heth Washington Elementary, 2450 Heth-Wash. Rd. SW, Central 47110
32	North Jackson	North Harrison Middle School, 1180 Hwy 64 NW, Ramsey 47166
17	Northeast Jackson	North Harrison Middle School, 1180 Hwy 64 NW, Ramsey 47166
18	Northwest Jackson	North Harrison Middle School, 1180 Hwy 64 NW, Ramsey 47166
19	Southeast Jackson	Community Center, 6120 Main St. NE, Crandall, 47114
20	Southwest Jackson	North Harrison Middle School, 1180 Hwy 64 NW, Ramsey 47166
21	Northeast Morgan	Morgan Elementary, 12225 SR 135 NW, Palmyra 47164
22	Northwest Morgan	Morgan Elementary, 12225 SR 135 NW, Palmyra 47164
23	South Morgan	Morgan Elementary, 12225 SR 135 NW, Palmyra 47164
30	Southwest Morgan	Morgan Elementary, 12225 SR 135 NW, Palmyra 47164
24	Northeast Posey	South Harrison Community Development Corp., 5101 Main St, Elizabeth, 47117
25	Southeast Posey	South Harrison Community Development Corp., 5101 Main St, Elizabeth, 47117
26	West Posey	South Harrison Community Development Corp., 5101 Main St, Elizabeth, 47117
27	North Spencer	Frenchtown Community Center, 7663 Hwy 337 NW, Depauw, 47115
28	South Spencer	Frenchtown Community Center, 7663 Hwy 337 NW, Depauw, 47115
29	Taylor	South Harrison Community Development Corp., 5101 Main St, Elizabeth, 47117
31	Washington	New Amsterdam Townhall, 7563 Main St., Central, 47110
33	East Webster	New Middletown Fire House, 4055 Fire Ln., New Middletown, 47160
34	West Webster	New Middletown Fire House, 4055 Fire Ln., New Middletown, 47160

Otto Schalk's Failed Record: Less Cases Filed, More Dismissals

You may have seen Otto Schalk recently trying to spin numbers to his favor by saying he had filed 3,000 criminal cases, but how does that stack up to the previous time period? Well, Otto has done less, a lot less. In the previous administration, more than 3,700 criminal cases were filed in a similar time period. This is a reduction of  over 20% in cases filed. Dismissals? They have went up, way up. He dismissed more cases in two years than the previous administration did in four years. Even when only factoring in only the first three years under Schalk, dismissals have increased by more than 40%, even when the number of new cases has dropped. These are the facts. Check them out for yourselves. It is time for a Prosecutor that will do her job, which is protecting the people not promoting himself.

Sources for Statistics: Trial Court Statistics; https://mycase.in.gov/default.aspx

It is your job!

Monday Morning: Last Chance to Early Vote!

There is one last early voting opportunity- Monday from 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM. There will be no afternoon early voting Monday, only in the morning. This is your last chance before election day. Take advantage of it.

Early Voting This Saturday!

There will be early voting on Saturday at the Harrison County Courthouse from 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM (with no breaks for lunch). Polling places have been consolidated so traffic could be bad. Avoid the lines and vote early!

Early Voting Running Out!

Not much time for early voting! Remember that voting place have been consolidated to discourage voting by making you sit to vote away from your neighborhood precinct by Republicans. Beat them by voting early! It is easy and quick!

Friday, October 31- 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM and 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM
Saturday, November 1- 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM
Sunday, November 2- Clerk's Office Closed
Monday, November 3- 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM

Heidi Sellers for State Representative

Heidi is the clear choice if you want policies to help public education and working families.