Ok... this begins my series on the various races leading up to the election on the 4th. The goal is to get through Indiana's nine congressional districts and the gubernatorial race. If I am able to get to anything more in the next ten days, then that will be gravy!
U.S. Congress - Indiana's 1st District
Incumbent: Pete Visclosky (D)
Challengers: Mark Leyva (R), Jeff Duensing (L)
Indiana's 1st district covers northwestern Indiana - affectionately referred to as "the region". It is the home of Gary, Merrillville, Valparaiso University, Chicago's east suburbs, and more. A Democrat has been the district's representative since 1930.
Pete Visclosky was elected to Congress in 1984. He's been there since then. (Strike one!) His platform is typically Democratic. His campaign emphasis is placed on his call to scale down in Iraq, the benefits (pork) he brings back to his district, and unfair trade practices (particularly with China) which place a burden on his constituents. He is Chairman of the Congressional Steel Caucus.
This will be Mark Leyva's fourth attempt to unseat Visclosky. Leyva is an advocate of the Fair Tax as his website devotes several paragraphs to this topic. He also addresses the steel industry and U.S. trade practices which clearly have impacted the district. While he applauds Visclosky for his stance against NAFTA, he criticizes him on his support of GATT and the WTO.
Duensing does not have a website, and after some quick research, I couldn't find much of anything about him. Pathetic.
Endorsement: Leyva
Prediction: Visclosky
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