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Organizers hold debate without incumbent Rudy Yakym

Two of the three candidates for the 2nd District congressional seat met for a debate Tuesday night.

As political debates go, it was a low-key affair. Democrat Lori Camp and Libertarian William Henry didn’t insult each other or go negative. They gave thoughtful answers on everything from saving Social Security to immigration, often agreeing with each other on issues.

But there was a big thing missing. The incumbent.

Republican Rudy Yakym declined to participate. Both candidates made remarks noting his absence.

"My incumbent is not even here," Camp said. "He is nowhere. I have tried to go everywhere. I've put in over 6,500 miles since I started running. I'm a regular working person and I want to represent the regular working people of the 2nd District."

The debate, organized by IUSB’s American Democracy Project and the League of Women Voters, happened at the WSBT studios. But WSBT didn’t televise it, nor did WNDU. ABC57 televised the debate, and all three stations livestreamed it. WVPE also carried it live.

The 2nd district has a Cook Partisan Voting Index of R+14, meaning it typically votes 14 points more Republican than the national average.

The district hasn’t been competitive since the Republican-controlled Indiana General Assembly redrew boundary lines after 2010 to remove more Democratic-leaning areas of Michigan City and LaPorte County.

Parrott, a longtime public radio fan, comes to WVPE with about 25 years of journalism experience at newspapers in Indiana and Michigan, including 13 years at The South Bend Tribune. He and Kristi live in Granger and have two children currently attending Indiana University in Bloomington. In his free time he enjoys fixing up their home, following his favorite college and professional sports teams, and watching TV (yes that's an acceptable hobby).