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THE OFFICIAL STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF INDIANAPOLIS • FOUNDED 1922 VOL.
103 I S S UE 4
OCTOBER 30, 2024
reflector.uindy.edu
SPOTLIGHTING DEMOCRACY The Reflector's Editor-in-Chief sits down with Democratic Candidate Jennifer McCormick
Photo by Allison Cook
Republican Candidate for Governor Mike Braun at the Indiana Gubernatorial debate on Oct. 24 in downtown Indianapolis. The event was hosted by the Indiana Debate Commission at WFYI.
By Mia Lehmkuhl
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF & NEWS EDITOR Hoosiers have six days to cast their ballots — marking the end of election season as voters all over the country watch to see who will lead their states, counties and country in the coming years. In an effort to better inform voters at the University of Indianapolis’ campus, Editorin-Chief of "The Reflector" Mia Lehmkuhl sat down with Democratic Candidate for Governor Jennifer McCormick to ask about her stances on popular issues and her plans if she is elected. United States Senator and Republic an Candidate for Governor Mike Braun did not respond to requests for an interview. Why sit down on-on-one with a student journalist? “It's incredibly important that we inform Hoosiers and that they go and inform others. And there's so much at stake this year from the federal level, from the state level, even the local level, that there is no opportunity here and no room for anyone to sit this out. But I know it's a matter of getting to that voter and doing everything we can, through social media, through TV, through any interviews we can get to make sure people are informed.” According to your campaign website, you list “commonsense” plans for Indiana. W hy “commonsense?” “We've been without common sense for too long. So when I was at the state house, I served as the last elected state superintendent of public instruction, and when I was there for four years, it was a four-year term, I saw a lot of things that were being done with the absence or the lack of common sense. And so, for me, Indiana prides itself on strong
Hoosier values, and one of those is we are common sense oriented, and we just get things done. But we use a lot of what makes sense and what's practical and what's reliable in order to do that. So that's common sense, and it just makes sense that we're trying to bring that back to the state house.” A 2022 study f rom the Indiana Chamber of Commerce found that nearly 40% of Indiana college graduates will move out of state within a year of graduation. Over half will leave within five years. How can Indiana keep and attract younger generations? “Young people, that's our biggest export. It really is because, you know, we call it brain drain. We call it a lot of different things. And the goal is to make sure that we have very talented individuals, and we hang on to all of them, but
We've been without common sense for too long." we've not talked about it, but we're not doing anything in order to make that happen. So a lot of it is making sure, being diligent in creating jobs that are good, paying jobs. You have affordable housing, that you have access to healthcare, but you also have costs that you can manage. Then there's such a bigger piece of the puzzle than just saying, ‘Hey, we're business friendly’ and assuming everybody's going to want to stay here, part of it too. What I hear from young people is that they like diversity. They like inclusion. They like people to get along. They don't like petty infighting. That's just not who young people are, for the most part. And so making sure that we
are creating a state environment in which people want to live here, thrive here, play here, be educated here and work here is incredibly important, but that takes work, and that takes leaders who understand that. You know, a lot of that is our rhetoric, but it's also our actions.” How will you make a splash in a state house that has a red supermajority, given that Indiana has not had a Democratic governor in 20 years? “We've never had a female governor, one of the few [states] that's never had a female governor. We haven't had a Democratic governor for 20 years, and so it's time and making sure that we're doing our due diligence in the responsibility that comes with that, and I'm well aware of that. I was the first female principal in my elementary school. I was one of the few female superintendents in my district. And so I get what that means. … So with that comes a responsibility and to make sure that I'm representing women well, so I take that very, very seriously. But that 20 years has also been an absence of a lot of people's voices. So making sure that we're being diligent in working across the aisle, being very open about bipartisanship, which I have, and that's why we have so many Republicans supporting us and independents, because they like how we're staying true to the issues that really matter to to Hoosiers, but also making sure that we're expressing our interest to work with all not just small pockets of people. And we've done that during a campaign, and we'll stay true to that once we get elected.” In 2016, you ran and won the Indiana superintendent of public instruction election. However, you ran as a Republican and on a GOP platform, earning the endorsement of the Indiana > See McCormick on page 8
Photo by Allison Cook
Democratic Candidate for Governor Jennifer McCormick speaks at the Indiana Gubernatorial debate on Oct. 24 in downtown Indianapolis.
Photo by Allison Cook
Libertarian Candidate for Governor Donald Rainwater speaks at the Indiana Gubernatorial debate on Oct. 24 in downtown Indianapolis.
Photo contributed by Evan Porterfield
“The Reflector” Editor-in-Chief Mia Lehmkuhl sits down for an interview with Democratic Candidate for Governor Jennifer McCormick on Oct. 23.