West Central Indiana incumbents were favored in Tuesday’s 2022 midterm elections.
Democrat Chris Campbell kept her seat in the race for House District 26, defeating Republican Fred Duttlinger. The district primarily covers the city of West Lafayette, with its western boundary following along the Wabash River.
Campbell was first elected in 2018 and ran unopposed in 2020. She almost ran unopposed again in 2022, until Duttlinger announced his run just before the filing deadline. He currently serves as the Assistant Director of Civics Literacy at Purdue University.
“I’m just so honored to have the support of our community,” Campbell said. “I will continue to work as hard as I can.”
Campbell said she has “a lot of work” to do at the state level.
“When it comes to making sure we’re fully funding our traditional public schools, addressing mental health throughout the state,” she said. “Just so many issues that not only affect our community but affect those across the state.”
Republican Spencer Deery won the race for Senate District 23, which covers Fountain, Warren, Vermillion, and Parke counties along with sections of both Montgomery and Tippecanoe counties.
The Statehouse seat was left empty last year, after Republican Sen. Phil Boots (R-Crawfordsville) announced his retirement.
Deery has worked as a member of Purdue University’s leadership team since 2011, and touts his work alongside Purdue President Mitch Daniels.
Deery says working as a policy wonk at Purdue University he believed that qualified, everyday people could win elections.
“I’m just grateful to everyone that took a chance on me, who worked, who volunteered, who went out and waited at the polls to support me,” he said. “We couldn’t have done it without them, and I’m not going to let you down.”
Deery’s opponent was Democrat David Sanders, a Purdue professor and current member of West Lafayette’s City Council.
In the race for House District 41, Republican Mark Genda defeated Democrat Greg Woods. Genda, a Clinton County resident, is the owner of Genda Funeral Homes.
The district includes portions of Tippecanoe, Montgomery, Clinton, and Boone counties. The seat is currently held by Rep. Tim Brown (R-Crawfordsville), who announced his retirement after the district was redrawn in 2021.
Rep. Sheila Klinker (D-Lafayette) kept her seat in House District 27. Sen. Ron Alting (R-Lafayette), Rep. Heath VanNatter (R-Kokomo) and Rep Sharon Negele (R-Attica), who ran unopposed, also retained their seats.
