This post was provided by News Now Warsaw
By Dan Spalding
News Now Warsaw
WARSAW — Republicans were swept to victory across Kosciusko County and much of northern Indiana Tuesday night, but Democrats scored two big victories in Indiana.
Democrat Beau Bayh won the race for Indiana Secretary of State by defeating Republican Max Engling and two others.
Bayh, the son of former Indiana Governor and US Senator Evan Bayh, won with more than 51 percent of the vote, including 71 percent in Marion County, according to Network Indiana.
“My hardworking staff are volunteers. My God has given me more blessings than I can count. But most of all, the voters that have placed their trust in me,” Bayh said afterward. “I am honored and humbled.”
Engling conceded late Tuesday night.
“The voters have made their decision, and it’s not what we wanted. It’s not what we were pushing for, but we fully respect that decision,” Engling said.
Nationally, Republicans lost control of Congress with losses in some of the most high-profile races where President Donald Trump had campaigned in the final weeks ahead of the vote.
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One of the many key losses in the House happened northeast of Indianapolis, where Democratic State Sen. J.D. Ford defeated incumbent Republican Victoria Spartz in Indiana’s 5th Congressional District.
As a result, the district will be represented by a Democrat for the first time in 30 years.
“Hoosiers made history, and they sent a message that will be heard far beyond Indiana’s 5th District,” Ford said.
Meanwhile, Kosciusko County voters led nine county-level Republican incumbents, including Sheriff Jim Smith and Prosecutor Brad Voelz, to re-election.
In local congressional races, incumbents Rudy Yakym in the Second District and Marlin Stutzman in the Third District were re-elected, with both receiving upward of sixty-six percent of the vote.
Election day in Kosciusko County was highlighted by surprisingly strong voter turnout. Election officials reported long lines out the door at many of the vote centers and wait times of more than an hour.
“We’re hearing of lines between a half an hour, 45 minutes, and sometimes an hour,” said Kosciusko County Clerk Melissa Boggs early Tuesday night.
Kosciusko County Republican Chair Mike Ragan was pleased with the turnout.
“It was pretty amazing,” Ragan said Tuesday night.
News Now Warsaw talked with three people in line at the Center Lake vote Center in Warsaw who were a bit awestruck with the turnout.
They were standing behind more than 20 other people in line early Tueday afternoon.
All three sounded enthused and hinted that the turnout was in response to the emergence of the Democrat Socialists across parts of the country.
One man said he wanted to see Republicans prevent “the other side” from taking over in a reflexive move against President Donald Trump.
“Leave it alone and leave Trump out of it and he’ll be gone in another couple of years, and then we can go on, but I don’t think we should throw the baby out with the bathwater yet,” he said.
