The Monroe County Republican Party was devastated over the results of this year’s election.
The party won big with Donald Trump, Rep. Todd Young, R-Ind. and Trey Hollingsworth on the national level, and Lt. Gov. Eric Holcomb on the state level. However, locally, the Republican Party did not win a single election.
William Ellis, chairman of the Monroe County Republican Party, said he was heartbroken over the results.
“I really thought Monroe County, the people living here, were better than that,” Ellis said. “Their votes signified a vote for corruption and signified a vote for the status quo.”
Ann Collins, the Republican candidate for treasurer in the 2016 election, said she and all of the other Republican candidates knew going into election day they were the underdogs. However, the local party worked hard to educate people on the issues, and they had received good feedback, she said.
“I knew we all wouldn’t win, but I thought we would be a heck of a lot closer,” Collins said on the election results.
Many Monroe County residents are educated, critical thinkers, Ellis said, so he is disappointed to see them go into the ballot box and vote along party lines rather than educate themselves and to see who actually is the more qualified candidate.
It takes effort and energy to get informed on local politics, Collins said. She added, she relates to this because no one, including herself, has time to read the newspaper from front to back.
However, ignorance also plays a role, she said. People are scared to educate themselves because they don’t want to feel guilty for not acting upon wrongs in local government, Collins said.
“It is just easier not knowing,” Colllins said.
Unlike the Democratic Party, Ellis said area Republicans are the only ones focused on local issues.
“They were making calls for Evan Bayh and Hillary Clinton,” Ellis said of the Democrats. “We were the only ones fighting against the corruption and still are.”
Monroe County residents concerned about the issues that affect them most — those on a local level — should turn to the local Republican Party for support, Ellis said.
Mark Fraley, chair of the Monroe County Democratic Party, said he respects the local Republican Party, but these claims that the Democrats do not care about Monroe County are not true.
Of course the Monroe County Democratic Party cares about the national elections because the results of these will affect how elected officials can govern in Monroe County, Ellis said.
Whether the party is working on fair housing, budgets or ending discrimination, the Democrats have delivered, Fraley said. He added, the people of Monroe County have noticed, which is why the party continues to maintain leadership locally.
“We’re very proud of the community that we live in, which I think is very much tied to our Democratic leadership,” Fraley said.
Because of this, the local Republican Party does not have a path forward right now, Ellis said. He added, as chairman, his job is to find the path to win in elections, but he is not 100 percent sure there is one.
Ellis said a lack of volunteer hours and contributions from local Republicans may be to blame for the huge local losses. Many party members would rather sit on the sidelines and say the Republicans cannot win in Monroe County, he said.
If the party is able to turn this attitude around and work harder than ever to get out the party message, they may be able to win, Ellis said.
Collins said she does not know what will be her path forward.
“My heart is still with Monroe County,” Collins said. “Not sure exactly what my next steps will be, but I won’t back down on trying to make Monroe County a better place.”
Issues most important to Monroe County Republicans:
Ending corruption in local government
The two previous auditors, Steve Saulter and Amy Gerstman, both Democrats, were charged with fraud for personal use of government credit cards during their time in office. Ann Collins, the Republican candidate for treasurer in the 2016 election, focused her campaign around ending this corruption. Her billboard advertisement, which went viral on Reddit, read “I know not to steal and I know how to count.” William Ellis, chairman of the Monroe County Republican Party, said the Republican Party worked hard during this election to educate voters on the corruption that has occurred in local government. Lack of funding was a major issue for many of the campaigns, Collins said. Only two candidates, including Collins, had enough money to finance a commercial.
Balancing the budget to cut out wasteful spending
A major platform of the Republican Party this election was to cut wasteful spending across all government departments. Count commissioner candidates Nelson Shaffer and Paul White Sr., in particular, emphasized smart budgeting as a duty of the government. County council at large candidate Hal Turner also pushed this as a major part of his campaign.
