This and That: A first Monday of summer edition
Including: Progress on that Amelia Earhart mural downtown. Recount heads into second week in Indiana Senate District 23. And more.
Support for this edition comes from Wabash Riverfest. Celebrate the mighty Wabash River on July 11 with conservation exhibits, float trips, charcoal drawing classes, paddleboard yoga, a birds of prey presentation, kayak tours, photography workshops, and more. Learn more about the festival and sign up for activities: wabashriverfest.com
A few notes heading into a new week …
EARHART MURAL STARTS TO POP: Check out the progress through Sunday afternoon on Detroit-based artist Zach Curtis’ mural of aviator and Purdue legend Amelia Earhart on the west wall of Wanderlust Coffee at 835 Main St.
The project – started last week, featuring portraits of Earhart and the Purdue Research Foundation-funded Lockheed Electra 10-E the pilot was attempting to fly around the globe when she disappeared in 1937 – continued to dodge rain that came through Sunday afternoon and evening.
A mural dedication is set for 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 23, at Wanderlust Coffee, 835 Main St. – though work might continue beyond that.
Here’s more about how the project came about and about Earhart’s role in Purdue history.
DIEGO MORALES BUMPED FOR THE GOP’S NOMINEE FOR SECRETARY OF STATE: Secretary of State Diego Morales, who has found himself a target of his own party and a string of disappearing high-profile endorsements in recent weeks, wound up an also-ran at this weekend’s Indiana Republican convention. Tom Davies, reporting for the Indiana Capital Chronicle, had this: “Indiana Republicans picked Max Engling on Saturday as their secretary of state candidate, capping a 31-day ascent from little-known political staffer to nominee for statewide office. Engling won the nomination on the state GOP convention’s second ballot, finishing ahead of Knox County Clerk David Shelton as incumbent Secretary of State Diego Morales came in a distant third. His victory puts him on the November election ballot against Democrat Beau Bayh, Libertarian Lauri Shillings and a likely independent bid by former Republican Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard. Engling said despite the convention contest he was ready to extend Republican control of the office that oversees statewide voting practices.” Read the rest here: “Engling captures Republican bid for Indiana secretary of state.”
RECOUNT CONTINUES THIS WEEK IN INDIANA SENATE DISTRICT 23: Secretary of State Diego Morales might not be his party’s nominee, but he’s still chair of the Indiana Recount Commission, which is knee deep in a recount of state Sen. Spencer Deery’s three-vote victory over Republican challenger Paula Copenhaver for the GOP nomination in Indiana Senate District 23.
Just to recap: Deery’s margin of victory – 6,337-6,334 – remained the same from the May 5 Republican primary after the recount finished last week in Tippecanoe, Vermillion and Parke counties.
Next up are the three other counties included in Senate District 23: Montgomery County on Monday, June 22; Warren County on June 23; and Fountain County on June 25 and 26.
Last week, Evan Norris, a Zionsville attorney appointed recount director in Senate District 23 and two other races across the state, said he plans to assemble a report of the recount results, along with any disputes, and present that to the three-member Indiana Recount Commission. That hearing date hasn’t been set. Norris said it likely would come after two other recounts are finished by July 1, too.
Still in play: Copenhaver has challenged the results in precincts where her lawyers contend they’ve found evidence of left-leaning voters crossing over to pull a Republican ballot to sabotage her President Trump-backed campaign. Copenhaver’s challenge filed with the Indiana Recount Commission called it “tampering,” subverting a little-known state election law, asking to subpoena up to 14 voters to testify under oath about their votes. Deery’s campaign has called the demand egregious. Voters targeted for potential subpoenas have told Based in Lafayette they’re weighing their options if they are called to testify.
The three-member Indiana Recount Commission would decide what do about Copenhaver’s ballot disputes once this week’s recount is done.
For more on the stakes and the recount so far:
WBAA SIGNAL WILL BE SHARED IN THE REGION: Starting July 6, WBAA’s public radio signal out of West Lafayette will be simulcast with Lakeshore Public Media, based in Merrillville in Northwest Indiana. The move, announced last week, is another in a series of cost-cutting measures as public radio deals with cuts to funding and a 38% drop in revenue for Lakeshore Public Media.
“This simulcast represents a creative and collaborative solution to ensure public radio continues to serve our region,” Nancy Clifford, interim president and CEO of Lakeshore Public Media, said in an announcement posted on Lakeshore Public Media’s site. “While the funding landscape has changed, our mission has not. Partnering with WBAA allows us to maintain essential services while exploring sustainable paths forward.”
WBAA, which has been under WFYI’s umbrella in Indianapolis since Purdue turned over the station, won’t see changes in programming, according the announcement. Read more here.
SCHOOL BOARD AND PARTY LABELS: Last week’s deadline for school board elections in three Greater Lafayette districts didn’t produce the party labels a new state law was designed to nudge candidates to adopt. All candidates in Tippecanoe, Lafayette and West Lafayette school board races will appear with “non-partisan” tags on November ballots, rather than running under Republican, Democratic or Independent labels.
That wasn’t necessarily the case in Indianapolis-based school board races, according a report compiled by MJ Slaby at Chalkbeat. From Slaby’s reporting: “Of the 58 candidates competing for 31 seats on 10 school boards across Marion County, more than half decided to list a party affiliation, with 22 Democrats and 9 Republicans. Seven candidates are Independents and 20 chose to be nonpartisan. For Indianapolis Public Schools, 12 listed Democrat and two are Independents.” Here’s more from Chalkbeat.
And here’s more from a BiL edition from last week on who’s running in LSC, TSC and West Lafayette:
AND, IN CASE YOU MISSED IT …: After years of waiting on the return of the carousel at Lafayette’s Columbian Park, the reviews of the first rides Friday: ‘Glorious.’ Here’s more:
Back around: Columbian Park’s carousel
The new Columbian Park carousel cranked up for public rides for the first time Friday morning, returning a feature last seen in Lafayette’s central park more than a quarter-century ago.
Thanks, again, to Wabash Riverfest for sponsoring today’s edition. Celebrate the mighty Wabash River on July 11 with conservation exhibits, float trips, charcoal drawing classes, paddleboard yoga, a birds of prey presentation, kayak tours, photography workshops, and more. Learn more about the festival and sign up for activities: wabashriverfest.com
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Tips, story ideas? I’m at davebangert1@gmail.com.