I know I’ve said this a time or two this Primary, but whoo boy, it’s getting hot in here. I’m talking about, of course, the primary contest between Beau Bayh and Blythe Potter. I’m going to be honest, folks. I REALLY don’t like how nasty this has gotten, in NWI and elsewhere. It feels like we’re missing the point of a primary if we can’t have an open discussion about two reasonably accomplished candidates without calling each other MAGAs and Nazis (yes, this is really happening). Whatever Democracy is supposed to look like, it isn’t the ugliness I’m seeing online.
You won’t find any of that here.
MEET YOUR PANELISTS
Our three panelists are elected state delegates and all hail from different parts of NWI and different points on the Democratic spectrum. Each of them shares their perspectives with thought and respect for each other. I’m extremely grateful to them for giving us their time and expertise and trust. They are:
Mary Bonnema
Longtime Region resident Mary Bonnema has transformed from a Republican who voted only in presidential elections to a Democrat who door knocks during primaries and engages at every level of the electoral process. A committed boots-on-the-ground activist, Mary’s focus is on doing what it takes to shift Indiana blue. She’s made a big start by achieving what once seemed impossible: assuming leadership of and resurrecting a Democratic party chapter in Griffith! Mary lives in Griffith.
Yulissa Cruz
Yulissa Cruz is a 26-year-old community advocate from Hammond, Indiana. She serves as Treasurer of the Indiana Latino Democratic Caucus and as a Lake County Democratic Convention Delegate for the 48th District. She is also involved with the Lake County Young Democrats, Indivisible NWI, and More Action for Students (MAS). Passionate about civic engagement, voter participation, and representation, Yulissa regularly volunteers with community organizations, attends local events, and advocates for increased involvement in the democratic process, particularly among young people and underrepresented communities.
Jessica Metros
A longtime Region Blue activist, Jessica is one of the architects behind Crown Points miraculous transformation from a GOP stalwart to a Democratic hub in Lake County. She’s using her 40+ years experience in Democratic politics to promote and support candidates across the state. She’s one of the founders of 4634You, an organization dedicated to flipping Hobart blue, where she currently lives.
CANDIDATE RESOURCES
Now, as a I promised, here are the resources I offered to all three panelists. Hopefully, they will be helpful to other delegates:
Candidate public forum recordings
* Indivisible NWI forum, full recording.
Candidate platforms:
* (Voter engagement and turnout thought-paper)
Thought leadership pieces:
* General overview of the stakes
* Pro-Beau
CANDIDATE STATEMENTS
And finally, here are the answers to the following five questions each candidate provided me.
* How much have you raised to date?
* How many counties have you visited?
* 5-point plan for securing and improving elections
* Short elevator pitch about your unique qualifications to superintend Indiana’s elections.
* Fundraising plan for the general election and projected totals by November
Blythe Potter
Beau Bayh
1. We’ve reported raising just over $2.4 million. 2. We’ve visited 70 counties in 7 months.3.
1 Protect Early Voting 2 Work to expand the hours of election day voting3 Enforce laws currently on the books such as ADA and what remains of the VRA4 End straight ticket voting5 Institute citizen led ballot initiatives. Not all of these are able to be accomplished through this office and some take legislative action. But these are common sense reforms that would get at our voter apathy problem that has support from both sides of the aisle. We have to attack the root cause of low turnout which is voter apathy. The feeling that your vote doesn’t matter. Big fixes like citizen led ballot initiatives are required, and I will use my office to advocate for those changes. 4. Beau Bayh was a Marine Corps infantry officer, where he was in charge of units that included hundreds of Marines. The Marines he led came from all different walks of life, and they certainly did not vote the same way. This type of leadership experience positions him well to lead a bi-partisan election division that is responsible for securing our elections. Furthermore, Beau Bayh is a practicing attorney with experience in our federal court system as a judicial clerk. He has direct professional experience dealing with election law cases at a time where the courts are playing a larger and larger role in our elections. Beau will be able to make sure our voting laws that are already on the books are being enforced and will also be able to respond to any voter intimidation or overreach. 5. We’re not going to make public our fundraising plan or budget projections, but we are learning lessons from past campaigns in 2022 and 2024, where we had quality candidates but were outraised and outspent. We will raise the resources necessary to out-communicate the Republican opponent, Diego Morales, something that a Democrat hasn’t been able to do in Indiana in over a decade. We’ll do this by continuing to raise money from our existing networks which includes thousands of grassroots donors, hundreds of recurring donors, and we will continue to expand our fundraising base as the campaign progresses.
UP NEXT
I’m going to add some context and thoughts of my own on this race shortly. Stay tuned!
