Incumbents Little, Bauer lose positions
Ripley County Primary shows small turnout
Mary Margaret Moorhead - Staff Writer

Ripley County's Primary Election provided more attention than usual although out of 19,975 registered voters, only 3,679 actually made their way to the polls to vote on Tuesday, May 4.

With ballots from all 27 precincts in Ripley County Clerk Ginger Bradford's office by 7:15 p.m., the results were completed and election summaries published by 7:25 p.m.

Republican results:

Ripley County Commissioner John Little lost his bid for reelection to Lawrence Nickell, who garnered 1,147 votes to Little's 894 for District 3 Commissioner in the Republican Primary Election on Tuesday, May 4.

Republican races that appeared to attract the most interest included District 2 Commissioner with Incumbent Charles J. Folz (748 votes) defeating William Warren (698), Daniel K. Meisberger (388) and Richard M. Smith (342).

For the three positions of County Council At Large, the top vote recipients were Mark Busching with 1,108 votes, Benjamin W. Peetz with 982, and Donald E. Dunbar with 950.

They defeated Joe Menchhofer, who had 884 votes, Lee Mathews, Jr. with 807 votes, Incumbent Juanita Bauer with 718 votes, and Bernard H. Sieverding with 663 votes.

In the Republican race for Indiana Governor, Mitch Daniels won over Eric Miller with 1,492 votes to Miller's 621. For District 69 State Representative, Billy Bright defeated Ben P. Newell, 127-57.

Uncontested races on the Republican side saw George W. Bush collect 2,084 votes for President of the United States; Marvin Scott receive 1,692 votes for Senator; Mike Sodrel get 1,907 votes for District 9 Congressman.

Also, Cleo Duncan received 1,454 votes for District 67 State Representative; Ginger Bradford received 1,843 votes for Ripley County Clerk; Tammy D. Borgman had 1,855 votes for Ripley County Recorder; Earline Copeland, 1,812 votes for Ripley County Treasurer; Eric Karsteter, 1,960 votes for Ripley County Coroner.

Democrat results

On the Democrat side of the Primary Election, the biggest race was for District 3 Commissioner. Although he led through most of the precinct results, Tim Taylor lost in the final count to Charles E. Cook by only 63 votes: 691-628.

In the race for President of the United States, John F. Kerry received 907 votes or nearly 72% over five other candidates. The closest was John Edwards, who received 191 votes.

Incumbent District 9 United States Congressman Baron Hill won easily over Lendall B. Terry with a vote of 1,146 to 195.

Representing the Democrat Party in the fall election for District 2 Commissioner will be Tim Howder, who was unopposed; three County Council at Large: Ray Raney, Harland Delap, and Ray Doane.

Unopposed on the Democrat ticket were United States Senator Evan Bayh, who received 1,265 votes; Indiana Governor Joe Kernan, who received 1,170 votes; District 68 State Representative Robert J. Bischoff with 275 votes; and District 69 State Representative Markt Lytle with 127 votes.

School board elections

Both Edward Amberger and David W. Voss ran unopposed for the Milan Community School Board, collecting 576 and 575 votes respectively.

Charles Hughes, who also ran unopposed, will continue as a member of the Jac-Cen-Del School Board with a total of 646 votes.

Paul C. Hardy defeated Jonathan L. Brison and Timothy T. Wolff to retain his position as an at-large member of the Jac-Cen-Del School board. Hardy received 471 votes to Brison's 212 and Wolff's 108.

Candidates' comments

Both winners and losers were willing to comment on what they felt had been a good experience.

Tim Taylor, who lost by only 63 votes to Ripley County Democrat Chairman Charles Cook, said, "I am overwhelmed. I did better than I had anticipated. I worked hard, and I worked honestly. I wish the younger people would become more involved in politics. I hope they will come out in the fall election and vote.

"It was a good learning experience, and I want to thank all who helped me. I work in this county and I live here. Instead of complaining, I decided I would do something to improve conditions. I believe we need younger people who know how to use our technology and can make a difference."

Ben Peetz, who at 25 years of age is the youngest candidate for Ripley County Council, said, "I didn't do it alone. I had a lot of help from a lot of people. I'm hoping people will look to me for new leadership and fresh vision. I hope I can be an example for a lot more young people to get involved in county government and on the state level."

Chuck Folz, who defeated three others going after his position as District 2 County Commissioner, said, "I ran against three good men. I knew the voting would be close, and it was. I was proud to run against men of this quality. I want to thank everyone who helped me in the election. I'll see you in the fall."

Other Primary Election results

In Indiana, both President George W. Bush and his challenger from the Democrat side - Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts - won easy victories. Bush was unopposed on the Republican ballot, while Kerry had five opponents on the Democratic ballot.

According to The Indianapolis Star, "all but Kucinich and LaRouche had dropped out of the race, and Kerry already has enough delegates in other states' primaries to clinch his party's nomination at its convention this summer in Boston."

Candidates for three statewide offices - lieutenant governor, attorney general, and superintendent of public instruction - are chosen at the Republican and Democrat state conventions. The Republican state convention is June 7-8 at the Indiana Convention Center, while Democrats will meet June 12 at the Murat Theater.

In the race for governor, Republicans in almost every county in Indiana chose Mitch Daniels over Eric Miller by a large majority. Incumbent Governor Joe Kernan had no opposition on the Democrat ballot.

Also throughout District 9, Incumbent U.S. Representative Baron Hill easily defeated challenger Lendall B. Terry, whom The Indianapolis Star dubbed "a political unknown from Versailles."

Neither Republican Marvin Scott nor Democrat Evan Bayh faced opposition for the United States Senate seat, which Bayh now holds. Judged by the votes he accumulated in the 1998 election, Bayh is "the state's most popular Democrat."

The Indianapolis Star calls Marvin Scott a "long-shot candidate to unseat Democratic. U.S. Senator Evan Bayh this year."