Stories

I recently read somewhere that we treat voting as a privilege in this country instead of a right.  A right is not something given by the government, it is inherent to being a citizen and must be defended and exercised at every opportunity, including voting.  Unfortunately here in Indiana, we have a voter turnout problem.  Approximately, 61% of registered voters in Indiana voted in the 2024 presidential general election.  In Elkhart County, the voter turnout was 56% ¹, below the state average, meaning 44% of the voters (approximately 56,000, roughly the size of the City of Elkhart) did not exercise their right to vote.  We can do better, Elkhart County!

Indivisible, a nationwide grassroots organization, and leadership from the Goshen City Democrats held a protest on June 14th from 2:00 to 4:00 p.m. under the C.R. 17 overpass on U.S. 33. Their purpose was to give voters a way to express their opposition to authoritarianism and support of Democracy.  

We’re celebrating an amazing year, and you’re invited! All are welcome!

Dear Max, At the Elkhart County 4-H Fair Parade on July 26, you went out of your way to talk to me. You were walking the parade route with the Republican Party, and you came through the crowd to reach me. I was wearing a blue shirt that read “Be the Good in Goshen,” the slogan of Democrats in Goshen. I saw you coming, and I turned away. I didn’t know who you were or that you were a candidate for office. All I knew was that you were walking with members of the Republican Party, and I just wanted to enjoy the parade. Still, you persisted in trying to talk with me, and I’m glad that you did.  

What an amazing fair parade on Sunday! One hundred and ten people walked, drove, or rode for the Democrats in the Elkhart County 4H Fair Parade! Thirteen candidates were part of that group:

On Monday, July 27, the Goshen City Council met and, after much deliberation, unanimously passed Ordinance 5267 establishing an environmental fee on first reading, albeit with a significant amendment. Because it was passed unanimously on first reading, the Council could have chosen to go to a second and final reading and pass the ordinance into law on the same night, but they elected not to do so to allow for more time to analyze the budget impact of additional amendments. Ultimately, what this means is that this ordinance is advancing to second reading at the next City Council Meeting on Monday, August 24, at 6:00PM, at which time it may be amended again and undergo significant changes before a final vote to pass it into law the same evening. 

On July 10, the Mayor, City Council, and department heads met for an information session with a representative from accounting firm Baker Tilly to discuss the possibility of enacting a new environmental service fee for Goshen residents. This fee, which as proposed would be a monthly charge of $22.40 per household once fully phased in, would be a charge for the collection of residential trash and recycling, brush and yard waste, and for the environmental services center, which is currently a service that the City provides to residents for free, at a cost of approximately $2.8 million a year. Mayor Gina Leichty (D) opened this meeting by saying “This is a conversation that nobody wants to have, but is absolutely necessary.” To understand why this new fee might be absolutely necessary now when it wasn’t before, we have to look at changes that the state made to property taxes and municipal finance in 2025.