I am a moderate independent running on the Democratic ticket.

Before choosing a party, I reached out to both parties in Putnam County. Only one responded.

Before ruling me out over a party label, I ask that you consider my ideas and what led me to step forward. After 12 years under the same officeholder, I believe Putnam County deserves a fresh perspective. My priorities are practical improvements we can agree on and a local government that remembers who it serves. I will work with anyone, of any party, who wants to make Putnam County better. A bridge does not care who voted for it.

I do not believe data centers belong in Putnam County. They take hundreds of acres and enormous amounts of water and electricity, and they give back a handful of permanent jobs. That is not a trade worth making here, and once one is built there is no undoing it. Putnam County should lean into its rural heritage, not pave over it, and the rules on the books should say so before anyone comes asking.

I do not believe industrial-scale solar or wind belongs in Putnam County. Outside companies lock up thousands of acres for thirty years, send the power and the profit somewhere else, and leave us the footprint and the cleanup. The jobs are temporary and the trade is not worth it. The county should decide that now, in its own ordinances, instead of waiting for a developer to force the question.

I am against them. A network of cameras logging where every car goes, with no clear limits on how long it is kept, who can look at it, or what it can be used for, is government overreach. The privacy and oversight problems are bigger than the benefit. If the county has a public safety need, there are ways to meet it that do not mean tracking everyone to catch a few.

A commissioner cannot raise your taxes. In Indiana the county council sets the local income tax rate and the wheel tax, and it has raised the income tax six times since 2014 and the wheel tax by 50%. What commissioners control is the other side of the ledger: what the county builds, what it signs, and whether it is growing the base those taxes come from.

My plan is to grow the pie, not to ask the council for more of your paycheck. The county gets stronger when more is happening here, not when the same residents pay a higher rate for the same services. I will push for growth and spending that stand on their own, and I will say so publicly if the council reaches for another increase instead.

Three commissioners are the county's executive branch. They own and maintain county roads and bridges, sign the county's contracts, oversee county property and operations, adopt plans and ordinances, and set the direction the rest of county government follows. The county council controls the budget, so the two boards have to work together. It is a board of three, so one commissioner who shows up prepared and builds trust with the other two can move a lot.

I’ve always loved history, maps, economics, and understanding how things work and why. Two years ago, that curiosity led me to town council and county commissioner meetings. I went to learn, with no intention of running for office.

As I kept showing up, I saw gaps in long term planning, residents struggling to get straight answers, and a reluctance to move beyond “that’s how we’ve always done it.” I believe local government should welcome new ideas, answer questions clearly, and remember it works for the people.

I’m running because I care about Putnam County and want to help preserve what makes it special while moving it forward.