In the race for Indiana House of Representatives District 93, voters will choose between stability and fresh perspective.
Republican David Frizzell, the incumbent in District 93, has held the office for the past 26 years.
That long tenure is the exact reason Democratic challenger Greg Rathnow is running to take his place.
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For the second election in a row, the two are squaring off in this year’s election for the right to represent District 93. Frizzell believes his 13 consecutive terms proves that voters support the work he’s done and want him to continue on.
Rathnow hopes that a fresh perspective would benefit residents of the district.
“We’ve been represented by the same person for 26 years on the southside, and unfortunately, I feel like in those 26 years, the southside has been left behind,” he said. “Our population has grown exponentially, but we are still serviced by the same infrastructure that was built when the population was half the size.”
District 93 includes the southern portion of Perry Township and Indianapolis in Marion County and a portion of White River Township in Johnson County.
Since he was first elected in 1992, Frizzell has been a constant in the state legislature.
The Perry Township resident was the assistant majority floor leader during last year’s legislative session. He serves on the public health and utilities, energy and telecommunications committees.
As the chair of the family, children and human affairs committee, his major focus has been improving services that keep kids and their families safe and lead to stronger communities.
If reelected, Frizzell wants to continue focusing on improving the department of child services in the state. During the summer, the state legislature reviewed and assessed the department. An evaluation resulted in 20 recommendations, including improving coordination among state agencies that support Indiana families and children, as well as revising internal department policies to serve families and children more efficiently.
“We want to fulfill those to help the children that need the help, as well as those delivering services, the caseworkers, to give them more flexibility,” he said.
Another focus would be on increasing teacher salaries, as well as focusing on the budget to get more money into Indiana classrooms.
During his time in the legislature, Frizzell has contributed to Indiana’s budgetary and financial success, he said. He has been adamant about working with his fellow legislators to keep taxes low, as well as continuing to position Indiana as a business-friendly state driving economic development.
Maintaining a balanced budget has put the state on solid financial footing. The goal is to continue doing that, he said.
“That and other issues are things that we as Republicans have always supported,” he said.
Rathnow, a southside resident, ran as a first-time candidate for District 93 in 2016. Many of his concerns that motivated him to run in the first place are still problems.
One of his main focuses if elected would be to update the infrastructure throughout the southside of Indianapolis to better suit a growing population. Roads have not been updated to meet the massive rise in population, sidewalks are crumbling or non-existent in many areas and storm-sewer drainage is inadequate.
By working together both with the federal government and local city and county governments, Rathnow feels that he could make an impact in the legislature to do good for the district.
“I think there’s an influence that can be played in the statehouse in making sure we have the best roads and sidewalks for kids to walk to school, bike lanes and greenspace,” he said. “I want to bring the southside up to what the northside has. It’s unfortunate we’ve been left behind in this way.”
Another pressing concern that he sees for District 93 — and Indiana as a whole — is the lack of wage growth for workers. The state may be increasingly business-friendly, but that hasn’t translated for better opportunities for working families.
“You have politicians who point to our low unemployment rate, and really try to champion that to say we’re a business-friendly state, but we’re not a working-families-friendly state,” he said. “We need to make sure the median income is increasing. We need to make sure folks don’t have to work two or three jobs. Unfortunately, that’s not happening because of policies the legislature has introduced that incentivize low-wage jobs.”
Rathnow, who works in student recruitment for IUPUI and has been involved in higher education for 15 years, regularly sees students come through who are unprepared for the rigors of college. His goal would be to increase resources for teachers and schools to make sure all students are ready for the next step when they graduate.
He would like to more closely examine the voucher program for charter schools, which is taking away valuable funding from public schools for institutions. He wants to ensure those charter schools meet the same requirements that public schools do before taxpayer funding goes to them, he said.
Other concerns for Rathnow include equal protections for all Indiana residents, and being more visible to constituents if he is elected.
The winner of November’s election will represent District 93 seat for the next two years. As a member of the House of Representatives, they will draft and vote on bills that come before the General Assembly, as well as approve the state’s budget.
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Name: David Frizzell
Party: Republican
Family: Wife, Valda; two children
Home: Perry Township in Marion County
Education: Bachelor’s degree from Loyola College
Employment: Fundraising consultant for the National Guard Association of Indiana
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Greg Rathnow
Party: Democrat
Family: None
Home: Southside Indianapolis
Education: St. Joseph’s College, 2004
Employment: Assistant director of student recruitment at IUPUI Lilly Family School of Philanthropy
[sc:pullout-text-end][sc:pullout-title pullout-title="About the job" ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
State representative
Duties: Draft and vote on bills that come before the Indiana General Assembly; approve the state’s budget
District 93: White River Township; Perry Township in Marion County
Term: 2 years
Salary: $25,945 per year, plus $173 for each day in session or at a committee hearing
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