Incumbent faces challenger in Indiana District 71 race

Oct. 26—SOUTHERN INDIANA — Incumbent Rita Fleming is facing challenger Scott Hawkins in the race for District 71 of the Indiana House of Representatives.

Fleming, a Democrat and retired obstetrician from Jeffersonville, has served for four years as state representative. Hawkins, a Republican and public school teacher from Jeffersonville, is serving his second term on the Jeffersonville City Council.

District 71 covers Jeffersonville, Clarksville and parts of Utica and New Albany.

RITA FLEMING

Fleming said she is seeking her third term in office "because there's still so much work to do." She said her experience over the past four years has provided "invaluable insight into how state government works."

"I have a very strong bipartisan record because I don't hesitate to reach across the aisle, and I have open, meaningful discussions with all the members in the House, as well as the Senate," she said. "Those types of relationships take a long time to nurture and develop a good sense of trust between the members."

As a representative, Fleming serves on the Public Health, Small Business/Commerce and Natural Resources committees in the Indiana House. She said improving healthcare in Indiana is one of her top priorities, and she has heard from many constituents about their concerns.

"They tell me about medications that they can't afford or that they're not able to obtain," she said. "They tell me they've had delays in care and procedures, and there's a lot of red tape and middlemen there that as a legislature I think we can address."

In regard to education, she notes that she has supported better pay for teachers during her tenure as a state representative.

Fleming also touts her record in supporting business and economic development in the state, saying she "works very hard to get kids interested in manufacturing and the skilled trades because there's such a bright future there."

She voted against the near-total abortion ban passed by the Indiana legislature this year, and she wishes "we had given it more thought" and "really looked at everyone impacted."

"I'm an obstetrician, and I have a strong pro-life record in the House, but when this was approached with such haste and without really carefully listening to the witnesses, I think nobody came away with that satisfied with the end result," Fleming said. "There were just some worrisome things there. Although as an obstetrician I want to take care of unborn babies — that was always my goal — but I also realized we have to look more carefully at the repercussions and always do the best possible under very difficult circumstances."

She emphasizes her support for expanded access to contraceptives in the state, saying that would be a major step in decreasing abortions in Indiana. She has pushed for changes in birth control access for the past four years, and she will continue to prioritize the issue if re-elected.

SCOTT HAWKINS

Hawkins has served for 27 years as a government and history teacher in Southern Indiana, including Jeffersonville High School and Clarksville High School. In addition to serving on the Jeffersonville City Council, he is the president of the Jeffersonville Redevelopment Commission.

"I'm running for a state representative really for the same reason that 30 years ago I decided to become a teacher, and that's just to help young people in their families and try to make my community a better place," Hawkins said.

He touts his experience serving with the City of Jeffersonville, saying his record includes passing seven consecutive balanced budgets and supporting projects such as Jeffersonville Promise, a program paying full tuition at Ivy Tech Sellersburg to Jeffersonville High School graduates.

He feels the state needs to make progress in areas of education and workforce development.

He wants to see increased teacher compensation and funding for public education, saying "we have to either commit more money or be more careful with our dollars and get them into the classrooms." He also wants to see more incentives to support a skilled and educated workforce.

"If those types of jobs — police, nurses, teachers, the people who take care of other people — if those aren't addressed, then we are going to have much larger problems on the horizon because of those shortages," Hawkins said.

Hawkins describes himself as a "pro-life" candidate who supports the exceptions outlined in the abortion ban passed by the Indiana legislature. These include exceptions for rape, incest, fatal fetal anomalies and cases where the pregnancy threatens the life of the mother.

He said he is "glad" the legislation was passed, "but it's not perfect." He would have preferred to see a broader package focused on family issues.

"They were in a time crunch, but I would like to see in the future, if we are going to pass that pro-life legislation, I think we also need to recognize that we also need to supplement that with adoptions and look into that system and see how we can make that more effective," Hawkins said. "And family planning — I think we need to make birth control available to people more readily."