Every time I am asked to be a moderator for a candidate event, I do it, then swear I will never do that again.  Perhaps it is just the passage of time that softens my determination.

The Democratic Party of Hamilton County asked me to moderate a candidate event Tuesday evening at the Fishers Hamilton East Library.  This is part of a state-wide series of such events sponsored by Democrats.

I was torn about whether to accept the invitation.  Democrats did invite Republicans to join in the conversation, but I am told they all declined.  It is not a surprise that Republicans declined to attend a series of events sponsored by Democrats.

But Libertarian Party candidates were also invited and made an appearance at the Fishers event.

So, I accepted the invitation to be the moderator, on the condition that I am doing so as an independent journalist.  Democrats honored that and did not do anything except hand over questions for the candidates submitted by members of the audience.  I decided what questions to ask and how to word each question.

There were times that Libertarian candidates agreed with the Democrats on the stage on an issue like abortion, but there were some sharp differences on the issue of guns.

Other issues discussed included the economy and issues over voting.

It was good to see a large crowd, which indicates there is interest in the upcoming election.

Here are the candidates taking the stage Tuesday night:

United States Senate   

Tom McDermott  –  Democrat

James Sceniak  –  Libertarian

 

United States Congress District 5

Jeannine Lee Lake   –  Democrat

 

Indiana House District 32

Vivtoria Garia Wilburn  –  Democrat

 

Indiana Senate  District 31

Jocelyn Vare  –  Democrat

 

Indiana Secretary of State

Destiny Wells  – Democrat

Jeff Maurer  –  Libertarian