All four candidates on the November ballot for Indiana secretary of state will meet Oct. 7 for an hour-long televised debate in Indianapolis, the Indiana Debate Commission announced Thursday.
The debate runs from 7 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 7, live from the WFYI Public Television studios. It will air on WFYI, stream on the station’s YouTube channel and on the commission’s website, and the feed will be made available to media organizations across the state for broadcast, streaming and embedding.
Republican Max Engling, Democrat Beau Bayh, Libertarian Lauri Shillings and independent/Lincoln Party candidate Greg Ballard have all accepted the commission’s invitation, setting up a rare four-party debate for a statewide office.
Laura Merrifield Wilson will moderate. Wilson is a political science professor at the University of Indianapolis, hosts “Positively Politics” on WICR and is a member of the commission.
Voters can submit questions through Sept. 25 at indianadebatecommission.com using the “Ask Your Question” link on the homepage. Commission members will review the submissions, and Hoosiers whose questions are selected may be invited to ask them by pre-recorded video during the debate. Consistent with commission practice, the candidates will not receive the questions in advance.
The studio itself will be closed to the general public. Attendance is limited to candidates, campaign representatives, credentialed media and authorized event personnel. Credentialed reporters will be able to attend and take part in one-on-one Q&A sessions with each candidate after the broadcast. The commission said complete media details will go out shortly after Labor Day.
Commission President Elizabeth Bennion said the office plays a vital role in Indiana elections and civic life, and that the four-candidate format will give voters a chance to “compare different perspectives on the future of the office.” She credited WFYI and media partners around the state with making the debate available to voters wherever they live.
The secretary of state is Indiana’s chief elections officer and also oversees business services, securities regulation and campaign finance reporting.
The race has drawn more attention than the office usually gets. Engling won the Republican nomination at the party’s June state convention, denying incumbent Diego Morales a second term. Bayh, the son of former governor and U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh, is making his first run for office. Ballard, the two-term former mayor of Indianapolis, is running under the Lincoln Party banner after leaving the GOP. Shillings is the Libertarian nominee.
Founded in 2007, the Indiana Debate Commission is a nonpartisan, statewide volunteer organization that bills itself as the oldest independent, nonpartisan debate commission in the country. It has hosted debates for statewide offices since 2008.
Bennion can be reached at president@indianadebatecommission.com or 574-520-4128.
