HANCOCK COUNTY — A strong slate of five candidates, most with previous political experience, is running to fill three at-large seats on the Hancock County Council.
All are Republicans. No Democrats have filed for office so far.
Keely Butrum
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After three years on the Greenfield City Council, Keely Butrum is hoping to bring her financial expertise and independent voice to the council.
“I really enjoy being an independent thinker, assessing situations and possibilities and alternatives, and trying to be a problem-solver and make the best choices for both the short- and long-term,” Butrum said. “That is a lot of what happens on the city council.”
Her financial expertise, she said, was also a major reason why she wanted to run for county council.
“I really wanted a seat at the table in that discussion,” she said.
Butrum said her accomplishments on the city council included refining the council’s process for allocating funds to nonprofits so that the most essential and operationally stable organizations were receiving funding. That also involved placing a cap on the percentage of the city’s economic development funds that could be granted to nonprofits.
Kent Fisk
Kent Fisk is the only incumbent on the ballot. During his time in office, he said, he’s helped make tough decisions on important issues like the construction of a new county jail.
“When you take an oath to be a councilman, you take an oath to the taxpayers to spend their money to the best of your ability,” Fisk said. “You don’t take an oath to support a specific individual or company. And if you don’t believe as a councilman that the taxpayers’ money is being spent properly, then you have an obligation to not support that.”
Fisk said it is important for the county government to prioritize the services most necessary for residents, starting with ambulances and other emergency services. The county council, he said, has prioritized making sure it can meet those needs for a growing population.
“We not only balance our budget, but we have a very safe community,” he said. “When all of those basics are covered well, then people can have a better life. That’s what, to me, government’s main function is.”
Kirk Jocham
A political newcomer, Kirk Jocham is the only candidate in the race who has not held political office before.
Jocham, an attorney, said his decision to run for county council was motivated in part by wanting to help make Hancock County a place his children, ages 15 and 6, will want to call their permanent home when they are adults.
“Hancock County is growing and growing, both in population and we’re moving up the ladder as far as economics as well,” Jocham said. “Ultimately, our son, he’ll go to college, but we’d like to have a place for him in the future to come back to. This is a great place. And for our daughter, we’d like to have an environment she would like to grow up in and come back to.”
As a member of the council, Jocham said he would want to focus on improving county roads and other infrastructure, as well as attracting business development that provides good jobs and makes sense for the community.
Robin Lowder
Robin Lowder spent 27 years in Hancock County government. After serving for 9½ years as county auditor, she’s looking to get back into the political arena by running for a seat on the county council.
Occupying elective office is not new to her, but as a member of the county council, she would have an opportunity to help set the policy agenda for the first time, she noted.
“All those years in the auditor’s office, there was not a day that went by that I didn’t talk with taxpayers, people in the public, citizens. I spoke with all of those people every day. But I wasn’t in the decision-making… And for the first time in all those years, it will give me an opportunity to possibly make decisions for all those people that I have talked to in 27 years,” Lowder said.
If elected, Lowder said she would want to prioritize infrastructure and keeping the construction of a new county jail on track. She would also want to help set policy to help curb drug addiction in the county and use her experience as auditor to participate in setting the budget.
Ray Richardson
Ray Richardson has an extensive political resume: He spent five decades as Hancock County’s attorney, as well as 24 years as a member of the Indiana General Assembly.
Richardson said he wanted to run for county council largely because he believes the county government does not spend enough time looking for solutions to its problems, especially budgetary ones, and is too quick to raise taxes.
“If the council was working smoothly I wouldn’t run, but they’re not,” he said.
Even after so many years serving as a legislator and a county employee, Richardson said he feels compelled to continue public service.
“That’s just been my passion all of my life, to be in government, to do things for people in government. And I can’t stop. I’m not going to retire onto my couch and watch TV for the rest of my life,” he said. “I’ve got to do something.”