Hoosiers should have at least a modest expectation that their priorities will be heeded by elected state officials.
Let’s hope — and that is really all Indiana residents have in a state under single- party control — that the people’s voices are heard during the upcoming 2025 session of the Indiana General Assembly.
Those voices can be heard within the results of the 2024 Hoosier Survey, a well-regarded annual poll of Indiana residents, conducted by the nonpartisan Bowen Center for Public Affairs at Ball State University. That center is named for the late former Republican Gov. Otis Bowen.
Notably, several issues most pressing on Hoosiers’ minds included agreement across political party preferences. Republicans and Democrats alike consider school safety (70%) a “very important” priority. Public safety is “very important” to nearly the same percentage, according to the survey. Likewise, health care was “very important” to 68% of survey respondents, who included 615 adults contacted Nov. 6 and 7 by the Bowen Center.
School safety led the priority list and is “a concern that resonates universally,” Kevin Smith, the Bowen Center’s interim director, said in a summary released last week. “These findings indicate that Hoosiers want to ensure their communities and schools are secure, regardless of political differences.”
Indeed, legislators increased the state budget funds for the Indiana Secured School Safety Grant Fund, raising it to $24.6 million annually, a yearly increase of $5 million, the Indiana Capital Chronicle reported. That allows for additional resources, such as school protection officers in Vigo County and elsewhere.
The survey also illuminates areas where the Legislature’s priorities diverge from those of Hoosiers.
Take the legalization of marijuana, for example. Republicans, who dominate the General Assembly and other statewide offices, have blocked legalization in the past. Residents are not so resistant. Sixty-two percent favor full legalization of marijuana, both for recreational and medicinal purposes. There is a slight chance for change, though, in Indiana, which is surrounded by neighboring states with more open marijuana laws. The Chronicle reported that a new group, Safe and Regulated Indiana, is lobbying for less restrictive laws and — most importantly — is being led by Republicans, who clearly sense the state’s backward status.
Thus, marijuana for medicinal use, only, may happen. Baby steps.
Hoosiers also take a more nuanced approach to the complex issue of abortion than most of their lawmakers. Eighty percent of survey respondents say abortion should be legal in cases involving threats to the mother’s life, rape, incest, or lethal fetal anomalies, and those exceptions are currently allowed in Indiana’s ban. A smaller, but significant amount, two-thirds of respondents, say abortions should be legal through the first trimester. Most respondents oppose later-stage abortions.
Education reveals a gap between residents and lawmakers. Survey respondents were asked to prioritize 15 different issues, and improving K-12 education ranked fifth highest. By contrast, school choice ranked next-to-last, in terms of the number of respondents labeling it “very important.” Anyone who has followed the actions taken by the Legislature through the past 20 years can see the ruling Republican party is obsessed with expanding school choice.
Hoosiers’ best chance to get their priorities heard by the incoming governor, lieutenant governor and state senators and representatives is to continue raising their views. That may mean writing letters to the editor, attending public forums or contacting elected officials by email or phone. The 2025 legislative session begins Jan. 8. Let your voice be heard.
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