WINONA LAKE — Democrats had a big turnout at Noah Noah Wood Grill in Winona Lake Saturday night, with speeches from four candidates.

Among those were Beau Bayh, who's running for Secretary of State, and Kelly Thompson, who will likely face Republican Congressman Marlin Stutzman in the general election for the 3rd District seat.

Beau Bayh is the son of former Indiana Gov. Evan Bayh and the grandson of former U.S. Senator Birch Bayh.

Bayh talked with News Now Warsaw before the dinner and was highly critical of Indiana's Republican Secretary of State Diego Morales.

"We have someone who's currently filling that role who has bought luxury vehicles, $92,000 of the taxpayer money; when he's hired his family members and pays them six-figure salaries; when he's taking trips all over the world and he's given out millions of dollars in no-bid contracts to his largest campaign donors," Bayh said.

"That's breaking down the trust in that office, and we've got to rebuild that trust, so my first priority is going to be to clean up the corruption by opening an independent audit," he said.

He also spoke about improving voter turnout in Indiana, which remains low compared to many other states.

He's calling for expanded voting hours and the elimination of straight-ticket voting.

Indiana is only one of six states that allow straight-ticket voting.

He also supports a change to the state constitution to allow for what he calls "citizen-led statewide ballot referendums."

Morales is expected to face challenges from Libertarian candidate Lauri Shillings and independent candidate Greg Ballard.

In the Democratic Party, Bayh will face Blythe Potter, who also spoke at the Winona Lake dinner.

Potter, a veteran and small business owner in Bargersville, said she wants to see the secretary of state's office return to traditional roles with fewer headlines.

“My first work is going to be sure that we are empowering Hoosier voters. Many state already have a statewide ballot book, and Indiana has next to nothing,” Potter said.

She said she envisions it as becoming the most comprehensive ballot guide compared to other states.

Potter also pointed out that she's running to be Indiana's first female Democrat to serve as secretary of state.

Bayh is heavily outraising Potter in campaign fundraising.

Thompson, of North Webster, gave an energized speech on a wide variety of topics that repeatedly focused on affordability issues, including the right to health care.

She talked about conversations she's had with pharmacists who are sometimes unable to provide prescriptions because of the price.

“They tell me that they watch people put medications back because we, in the richest country in the history of the world, can’t provide … what we deserve, which is access to affordable health care."

Thompson, on the subject of abortion, said she'd like to see the number of abortions decline as low as possible, but said a new approach is needed

"Maybe the men in power think that the only way to fix this is to outlaw it, but I have news for you," Thompson said. 

"Let's help women who don't want to get pregnant, not get pregnant. We need to have access to birth control like so many other states in this country already do. You want to know what else we could do? We could make sure that there is OBGYN care for women who might get pregnant in these states — We could make sure that women who get pregnant know that they're going to be able to afford diapers and formula and a roof over their head."

"Give them some child care!" she added.

Jamee Decio, a congressional candidate for the 2nd District Congressional seat, also spoke.

She's an Elkhart native and a lawyer who has worked to provide legal aid.

Decio called on Congress to develop a policy that can provide a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants who have a clean record.

"Together we can make America great for the next generation," Decio said.

Several awards were presented by party leadership, including the Salute to Service Award, which was given to Paul and Kay Croyle, who have been the leading supporters of the annual event in recent years. 

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