INDIANAPOLIS — After years of serving the state as state auditor and then lieutenant governor starting in 2017, Suzanne Crouch is seeking the next step up — governor of Indiana for the 2024 election.
As Lt. Governor, Crouch serves as the president of the Indiana Senate and is the executive in charge of state agencies such as the Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA), Office of Community and Rural Affairs (OCRA) and Indiana Destination Development Corporation (IDDC).
Crouch said she also chairs initiatives such as Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Task Force, the Indiana Roundtable on Mental Health, the Civic Education Commission, and the Next Level Veterans Initiative.
Out of all her involvement, Crouch said that one topic she is most passionate about and has made a focal point of her campaign for governor in 2024 is mental health. Since COVID-19, Crouch said that co-founding the Indiana Roundtable on Mental Health has allowed them to focus on how they can get help to those who struggle with mental illness and addiction.
“Since COVID-19, we’ve seen a 20% increase in depression and anxiety among the population,” Crouch said. “But a 60% increase in young people.”
Crouch also said that one-in-seven high school boys and one-in-four high school girl have contemplated suicide in the last six months.
“That’s the future of Indiana,” Crouch said. “So I’m focused on how we can get help to those futures.”
Crouch said that not only affects families but also the workforce, having absences due to mental illness.
Crouch said that the topic of mental illness is also a personal one, having family who have suffered and some members who have not only suffered, but took their own life in the end.
“When you’ve lived with Hoosiers who have struggled because of genes they’ve inherited… you have to do more for them,” Crouch said.
Along those lines, Crouch said a concern for her is who is taking care of the people who are taking care of the people — supporting Indiana police.
Crouch said she wants to ensure that law enforcement officers also have the help and support they need to be taken care of, since some police have been exposed to incredible atrocities.
Crouch said that an initiative that she would want to undertake if elected is a faith-based initiative, something that has recently been undertaken in Tennessee. Crouch said that they have a faith-based initiative housed in the division of mental health and addiction and will partner with churches and faith-based organizations at their request to help provide the right professionals to the people who need help.
Crouch said that approximately 60% of Hoosiers already go to church, so there is already an infrastructure in place that’s in the business of caring for people.
“And, quite honestly, people trust their pastor more than they trust the government,” Crouch said.
Crouch said there is also a national initiative with barbershops that also provide help for those who sit in the shop’s chairs, and said she would like to see them get more engaged.
“We can’t expect people to come to get the help. We somehow have to figure out how to get the help to them,” Crouch said.
Crouch said she also believes the efforts to expand broadband are important, particularly for people who live in rural areas and don’t have access to providers, so that way there can be more telecommunication help for Hoosiers.
Crouch also wants to “Axe the Tax,” eliminating Indiana state income tax and allowing Hoosiers to put that money back into their pockets. Crouch said that while traveling for her campaign she’s been able to visit different communities which have shared that they are struggling.
“We have an opportunity to put thousands of dollars into their pockets every year,” Crouch said. “The Federal Reserve in St. Louis said that the average Hoosier makes $58,000 a year, that $1,900 of their money we can give back to them.”
Crouch said that despite naysayers, as the former vice chair of the ways and means committee and state auditor, it can be done, just not overnight. Crouch says it would have to be phased in and also have triggers in place to help protect against economic downturn.
Crouch said that eliminating the tax would accomplish two things: putting money back into Hoosier’s pockets at a time when they are struggling and making Indiana a state people will want to come to and live.
In comparison to other candidates, Crouch believes she has a great deal of experience to offer.
“No candidate has the experience that I have. I always say, put me on stage with the men I’m running against and there’s one obvious difference — I’ve got red glasses and they don’t,” said Crouch with a laugh. “But really, when you look at the experiences at the local level as a county auditor and county commissioner, and then at the state level as a state representative, auditor of state and now lieutenant governor… in the executive and legislative branches there’s no comparison.”
To learn more about Crouch and her campaign, visit crouchforindiana.com.
