Staff Reports
It wasn’t much of a contest in Bartholomew County after all.
Bartholomew County Republicans took the lead in general election races Tuesday from the outset and never looked back, sweeping every contested race down the ballot handily.
Voters watching returns Tuesday night got a quick idea of where the night was heading as the absentee and early voting results came in at around 6:30 p.m., votes that propelled the GOP delegation into leads they never relinquished though the rest of the vote count from Tuesday’s election.
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One anomaly that might have Democrats scratching their heads were the absentee ballot returns that showed Democratic presidential challenger Joe Biden with more votes than President Donald Trump, and Sixth District Congressional Democrat challenger Jeannine Lee Lake ahead of incumbent Rep. Greg Pence.
The same was true for Democratic state house District 59 challenger Dale Nowlin and Democratic Bartholomew County Council at-large candidates Tiffany Bosley, Olisa Humes and R. Claudette Schroer, who each received more absentee-by-mail votes than their Republican opponents.
But overall early voting and election-day voting wiped out those margins quickly, even though the numbers showed up on the results tally under absentee.
There were 6,700 paper absentee ballots tallied on Tuesday in Bartholomew County, votes that were counted before the polls closed at 6 p.m.
The Bartholomew County Election Board is scheduled to meet Nov. 13 to certify the results.
Here are roundups of contested races, with more results inside:
Lauer wins re-election for District 59
Incumbent Republican State Rep. Ryan Lauer was re-elected to the Indiana House of Representatives District 59 seat, defeating Democratic challenger Dale Nowlin.
Lauer, 43, a first-term Republican from Columbus, received 17,728 votes, or nearly 60% of the vote, against Nowlin, 66, a former Bartholomew Consolidated School Corp. teacher and administrator, who received 11,873 votes, or 40%.
“I’m very humbled at the result and really appreciate our community, and it’s the highest honor to be able to serve the people of Columbus and Bartholomew County and I look forward to continuing to get right back into it and get our economy back to full steam,” Lauer said. “…My focus is on the people who are hurting. There’s still people hurting our there and one thing I want to do is make sure that no matter who you voted for, I want to serve every one of my constituents and Hoosiers.”
This year’s election was a rematch of the 2018 election, when Lauer defeated Nowlin and Libertarian Clyde D. Myers in 2018, receiving 56.8% of the vote. Nowlin received 40.6% of the vote, while Myers received 2.6%.
This was Nowlin’s third unsuccessful bid for the District 59 seat. In 2016, Nowlin lost to Bob Pitman in the Democratic primary by 354 votes, according to state records. Nowlin did not return a phone call seeking comment.
Incumbents easily take council at-large seats
Just as they did in 2018, voters decided to let the GOP dominate the Bartholomew County Council.
With an 8% to 10% advantage over their Democratic opponents, incumbent Republicans William “Bill” Lentz, Matt Miller and Evelyn Pence were all given another four year term on the council.
The Democrat challengers were Tiffany Bosley, Olisa Humes and Claudette Schroer.
Instead of running during the primary in early June, all three were placed on the ballot by having their names submitted in mid-summer by Bartholomew County Democratic chairman Steve Schoettmer.
Schroer was the only Democrat running for council that had previously sought public office. The retired Centra Credit Union employee, who ran an unsuccessful campaign to become Bartholomew County Auditor in 2006, was respectful in regard to her concession Tuesday.
“The voters have spoken and they want to maintain the council that we currently have,” Schroer said. “I appreciate the work that the current council has done. But I would hope that Democrats will get a voice on the council at some point.”
Humes and Bosley did not return calls to The Republic Tuesday night.
The three incumbent Republicans who kept their seats Tuesday are all strong fiscal conservatives. All three voted against a 40% hike in the county’s local income tax in late 2017.
Evelyn Strietelmeier Pence, a council member since 1980, also has a reputation for continuously looking for efficiencies in county government.
Her priorities for the next four years is to cross-train employees, study options for vehicle savings that include electric or hybrid vehicles, using LED lighting where feasible, and studying whether solar energy might be a good fit for generating electricity for county properties.
For Miller, it’s more important than ever to keep taxes low for Bartholomew County residents.
“It would be immoral to ask citizens to pay more taxes in the current conditions,” Miller said last month.
Lentz said it’s unlikely spending cuts will be needed in the immediate future, but if revenues do drop dramatically, the 62-year-old farmer said a tax increase would definitely not be an option he would consider.
At-large county council members are elected during presidential elections, while the three members who represent specific districts are elected during mid-term elections.
Hope Republican joins town council
HOPE — With many voters casting straight GOP party tickets, Hope will have a new town council member in January.
Republican John Walstad won a decisive victory over first-term incumbent Nellie Meek Tuesday in the northeast Bartholomew County of 2,200 residents.
Walstad, 72, who worked in retail management for most of his career, said he began to undertake soft campaigning in the middle of May.
But it was always his intention to hit the campaign trail hard in September and October, despite the pandemic.
“I think I knocked on every door of every house that wasn’t vacant at the time,” Walstad said.
He also said the colors and style of his yard signs left a positive impression on voters.
During the campaign, both Walstad and Meek voiced their support for economic development efforts and improving sidewalks through the northeast Bartholomew County of 2,200 residents.
But other priorities listed by the Republican challenger include attracting a full-service grocery store with fresh fruit and produce to town. He also favors stronger support to Heritage of Hope, Inc., for the annual Hope Heritage Days celebration. The late September celebration, which serves as the major fundraiser for many of the town’s nonprofits, was canceled this year due to the COVID-19 crisis.
Ward 2 is basically the eastern part of historic Hope, running from Maple Street on the west east to the town limits. This is the only contested race in Hope, with council members Ed Johnson and Ohmer Miller, as well as clerk-treasurer Diane Burton, all running unopposed.
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For more on the GOP winners of Tuesday’s general election, see Pages A3 through A6.
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Bartholomew County Council At-Large
(Vote For Three)
William “Bill” Lentz (R); 18,113
Matt Miller (R); 16,541
Evelyn S. Pence (R); 16,840
Tiffany Bosley (D); 9,811
Olisa Humes (D); 9,245
Claudette Schroer (D); 9,690
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Hope Town County – Ward Two
John Walstad (R); 481
Nellie Meek (D); 277
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Indiana House of Representatives District 59
Ryan Lauer (R); 17,728
Dale Nowlin (D); 11,873
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