Party bosses want us voters to stay in our lane. Let’s not.

Photo: WRTV

By Linda Heitzman and Adrianne Slash

Linda Heitzman, a Democrat, and Adrianne Slash, a Republican, are members of the ReCenter Indiana political action committee.

ReCenter Indiana has riled up the political establishment with our campaign advising

Hoosiers that “even Democrats can vote in the Republican primary.”

According to the pushback, our campaign:

• Confuses voters;

• Is deceptive;

• Is sponsored by a Democratic organization;

• Won’t get Democrats to cross over because nothing will;

• Is election manipulation;

• Won’t work; and

• Will hurt future political candidates who, under Indiana law, are required to have voted in two consecutive primaries of the party they seek to run in.

First, let’s cut some slack for any non-Republicans who are planning to run for office later on. Also for any non-Republicans who care about a rare competitive race in their own party’s primary.

Second, let’s set aside the fact that some of the criticisms of our campaign contradict each other.

Third, what we are proposing has worked already – in Carmel, Indiana’s fifth largest city. In the 2023 Republican primary for mayor, about 1,200 Democrats chose Republican ballots. Their votes helped decide a close race among three Republican candidates. The most centrist of the three, Sue Finkam, won that nomination and now is Carmel’s mayor.

ReCenter Indiana is bipartisan. We think collaboration is better than polarization. And in Hamilton County, we’ve already succeeded in bringing together two opposing party chairs. Republican Mario Massillamany and Democrat Jocelyn Vare joined hands to denounce what we’re doing.

As reported by a Noblesville newspaper:

“I want Democratic voters to vote in the Democratic primary and Mario wants Republicans to vote in the Republican primary,” Vare said. “We were in alignment when we had a conversation about how we want people to vote genuinely … .”

“We want people to come out and vote,” Massillamany said. “Democrats vote in theirs. Republicans vote in ours.”

What does it mean to vote “genuinely”? Shouldn’t all of us Hoosiers be able to have a voice in elections that directly impact our lives?

We both are members of ReCenter’s political action committee, and we genuinely want a governor who sees his job as serving all Hoosiers.

Recent history tells us that our next governor is all but certain to be whoever wins this spring’s Republican primary. So if we want our votes to count, the Republican primary is the election that matters the most.

The political establishment wants voters to pick a party and stay in their lane. But how do we ever solve problems collaboratively if we dismiss the other side? Or if we invest all our hopes in a general election whose outcome was determined in the primary?

Our goal at ReCenter Indiana is to elect officials who reflect the values of a majority of Hoosiers, not just the extremes at either end of the spectrum.

We’re happy that our campaign has created a buzz. We’re hoping it will inspire more Hoosiers, whatever their party affiliation, to participate in the Republican primary May 7. Early voting has already started!