Brooks' candidacy is kind of an odd one. She has a lot of money and a lot of establishment backing. But early polling by the presumed frontrunner, former Congressman David McIntosh, had her polling at 5%. I don't really have any reason to believe that she isn't in the lower tier of the major candidates (the others being McIntosh, Dr. John McGoff, and Marion Mayor Wayne Seybold).
But if Brooks is going to strike a chord, I think she might be banking on her name recognition in Marion and Hamilton Counties. And more specifically, maybe even the parts of Marion that are new to the 5th district. She has scheduled several events in those areas over the next few days.
Oh, and did I mention she's been hitting McIntosh pretty hard in direct mail pieces (Photo credit to @KozInIndy)?
And in the yard sign war reports, I'm seeing several of Brooks' signs on residential property within Pike Township. It is worth noting part of Pike Township falls within Mike Delph's Senate district. Delph has endorsed Seybold, but I don't think that has affected the minds of Pike Township voters all that much.
The following is a press release from the Brooks campaign.
GOP 5th Congressional District candidate Susan Brooks will meet voters in Hamilton, Marion and Boone Counties as follows from April 30 – May 4, 2012
Monday, April 30
7:30 a.m. Hamilton County Business Issues Candidate Connection
6:00 p.m. Meet and Greet with voters*
Tuesday, May 1
1:00 p.m. Media Event, Noblesville (Details TBA)
4:30 p.m. Meet and Greet with voters*
Jim Dandy Restaurant, 2301 Conner Street,Noblesville
6:00 p.m. Meet and Greet with Washington Township voters*
Wednesday, May 2
7:00 p.m. 31st Annual Hamilton County Law Enforcement Memorial Service
Thursday, May 3
7:00 p.m. Meet and Greet with voters*
Friday, May 4
8:00 a.m. Meet and Greet with voters*
*Brooks has held 50+ such sessions throughout the 5th Congressional District to introduce herself to voters and find out what is most important to them.
Brooks, a lifelong resident of Indiana and first-time candidate for office, is the former U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. For the past four years, she led statewide workforce development strategies at Ivy Tech Community College aimed at improving job training and placement for thousands of Indiana residents, working with Indiana's large and small businesses and the state's unemployed and under-employed. Prior to that, she was deputy mayor of Indianapolis managing police, fire, and emergency response activities, as well as child health and welfare.
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Paid for by Friends of Susan Brooks
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Dollyne Pettingill Sherman
Susan Brooks for Congress
You're criticizing Susan Brooks for scheduling events to meet voters prior to the election in the parts of the district where the majority of voters live? Lt. governor Becky Skillman has endorsed Brooks. As the highest state official to endorse someone in this race, by your logic every non-Brooks yard sign is located in an area represented by Becky Skillman and is therefore a problem for that candidate.
ReplyDeleteYou'll have to tell me what exactly you perceive as "criticism." It is political analysis. It isn't an exact art form, but it makes sense. Brooks has the most name recognition and most connections in MC and HC.
DeleteShe's playing to her base, which is what you do in primaries. Whoever wins the GOP nomination can spend the next several months building bridges to their non-base support.
I've said elsewhere that the conventional wisdom is that McGoff has the same strategy, but I think his support in MC and HC might be a bit overstated (and the opposite, his lack of support outside of MC and HC, might not be as bad as others think. McGoff was very warmly received in the February Kokomo forum). I'm frankly surprised and a bit impressed at the number of Brooks signs I've been seeing out in Pike and Washington Townships, which are (for the most part) new to the 5th district.