Democrats are gearing up for an important election determining the direction the state and local community could be heading for in the next half decade. 

Dana Black, deputy chair for engagement for the Indiana Democratic party, spoke to local and student Democrats Tuesday night to rally their engagement in the political process.

“We see policies that are coming out of the state legislature that are not beneficial to Hoosier families,” Black said at the event sponsored by the College Democrats.

Black ran for a seat in the Indiana House of Representatives for District 88 in 2016, falling to incumbent Rep. and Speaker of the House Brian Bosma (R-Dist. 88).

Black said she wanted to help change the image of the party in which Democrats only show up when it’s time to vote.

“I spoke with the party chair and I was like ‘I think we can do this’ and he was like ‘go for it,’” she said. “The goal is to say, here’s a representative of our state party, we’re coming into your communities. We’re going to talk about the issues that matter to you.”

Johnathon Hamilton, communications director for the College Democrats, said he enjoyed listening to a local politically active person foster engagement in the southern Indiana community.

“I think it’s a good idea to talk about the issues especially because it’s easy now,” he said. “There’s an election going on, so it’s kind of in the public eye already.”

Hamilton hopes the state party will focus more on policy and less on identity politics if they hope to close the gap Republican elected officials this election.

He said core issues like improving the environment, wages and making housing affordable will appeal to a wide demographic of voters.

“Evansville is one of the most polluted areas in the entire state,” he said. “It affects people’s health and affects cancer rates, so if we just bring awareness to that, I think that would definitely be a step forward.”

Republicans outnumber Democrats by a wide margin in both the House, 67-33, and the Senate, 40-10 according to the Indiana General Assembly website.

Locally, Democrats hold a 7-2 advantage on the Evansville City Council and a 2-1 advantage on the Vanderburgh County Commission. They are outnumbered by Republicans on the Vanderburgh County Council, 5-2, and have not held the mayorship since 2011.

“In order to change the policies, we have to change the makeup of the policymakers,” Black said. “We need to add more diversity, more women and more balance to the legislative body.”

Women make up just 24% of the Indiana General Assembly. They consist of 28.9% of state legislatures nationwide according to the Women’s Legislative Network of the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Only 8.7% of state legislators are black, although 9.8% of the population in Indiana is black according to U.S. Census statistics.

Black said she is working with groups that are not necessarily politically affiliated to gauge volunteers for candidates across the state. 

The top issue on her mind for the upcoming elections are public education and healthcare.

“Those are the biggest because those impact every family, in every county in every community,” she said. “We all want the same things. Don’t be afraid to be Democrats.”

The Indiana Primary is an open primary and will be May 5. The general election is Nov. 3.