Last Updated on October 1, 2018 by cassnetwork
LOGANSPORT — At a press conference Monday morning, Logansport Mayor Dave Kitchell announced his endorsement in the open seat congressional race in Indiana’s 4th District.
Kitchell endorsed Democrat Tobi Beck of Avon, who emerged from a crowded field to win the primary. She is in a race to succeed Todd Rokita who chose not to seek reelection. The mayor said many constituents in the 4th would be hard-pressed to name their representative in Congress, recognize him on the street or relate any significant legislation or accomplishment that helped them.
“It’s time to stand behind someone who not only will be recognized by us, but will recognize that the real needs of Indiana residents in this part of the state go beyond maintaining a majority for one party and not the other,” Kitchell said in the Logansport City Building.
“I think (Logansport voters) will vote for someone who, like former Reps. Chris Chocola and Joe Donnelly, a Republican and a Democrat, will put a congressional office back in Logansport so that area residents can have local access to them and their staff. They will vote for someone who is a veteran and understands how important securing a new C-46 wing for Grissom Air Reserve Base will be for rural Cass County and north central Indiana’s economy.
“They will vote for someone who will work across the aisle and with our own state leaders to see that our application for a federal opportunity zone will be heard and approved and not fall on deaf ears in Washington and Indianapolis. They will vote for someone who can help our police and court system fight the opiod epidemic and support families with foster children — because she’s a foster parent herself. They will vote for someone who wants our college attainment rate to catch up with the rest of the country and will support federal student loan initiatives to train a 21st century workforce. They will support someone who will be a fiscal conservative and vote for legislation that’s practical and bipartisan in advancing our nation.”
Kitchell was in attendance in a 1986 news conference in Logansport when former State Rep. John Davis, a two-term mayor here, endorsed the late Jim Jontz. Later that year, Jontz won the first of three terms in the House and secured funding for the Hoosier Heartland Corridor and the expansion of Head Start in the city for the first time.
“We have to do better, we have to have stronger and we have to stand up for our fair share of our own tax dollars in Washington for the future of our communities, our manufacturing sector, our farms, our military — and most importantly our families,” Kitchell said.
Beck appeared in the city council chambers at the press conference.
SOURCE: News release from the Office of Logansport Mayor Dave Kitchell
Editor’s note: Beck’s opponent is Republican Jim Baird.