Local Tax Protest Movement Produces Just One Serious Candidate

The Star's Brendan O'Shaughnessy has a good run down of local political races today. One item of note is the only race I can identify where a serious candidate has stepped forward from last year's property tax protest movement to challenge an incumbent legislator. I'm, of course, speaking of Ken Morgan, who is running against Sen. Teresa Lubbers. O'Shaughnessy writes:

Another race that will be watched is that of Sen. Teresa Lubbers, R-Indianapolis. Lubbers is endorsed by the Marion County Republican Party, but her northern Marion County district was among the hardest hit by soaring property tax bills last year.

It was that issue that prompted Ken Morgan, a retired federal employee, to run against her in the primary.

"I had no interest in being a politician at all," Morgan said. "Two things set me off. One of them is property taxes and, second, the lack of a truly open, democratic process."

While Lubbers is heavily favored to win, Morgan said the same was said of Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson before November's election put Republican Greg Ballard into office.

The anger that helped elect Ballard is still there, Morgan said, and he believes it will only get worse once people get their new property tax bills.

Lubbers said that "nothing is more important" in the part of the district where both she and Morgan live than property taxes. It's why she has made the issue her focus "every day since the property tax bills hit the mail boxes" last year, she said.

During last year's property tax protests, many people who contacted Sen. Lubbers found her to be arrogant and indifferent towards their concerns. I know she has also been a disappointment to others within the party who thought she would stake out more socially moderate positions in the Indiana Senate like those of former Sen. Virginia Blankenbaker, the last female Republican legislator in Indianapolis who strayed from the far right's religious dogma. Instead, Lubbers votes down the line with Eric Miller on almost every issue, which is clearly out of step with many of the Republicans in her district. Morgan could also make an issue of how much money her husband socked away for their family's household as a six-figure paid media flack for Gov. Daniels. And remember that DNA testing lab Indianapolis Public Safety Director Scott Newman made bucco bucks helping to start up? Lubbers' husband, Mark, had a piece of that action as well. Strand Analytical Laboratories won a big contract with the Indiana State Police while Mark Lubbers was pulling down $126,000 a year as an outside consultant for Gov. Daniels.