In north central Indiana, the challenges aren’t abstract.
They’re visible.
They’re in the empty homes you pass walking through town.
They’re in the factories that used to employ generations.
They’re in the hospitals struggling to stay open and the families trying to hold it all together.
In this episode, I sat down with Austin Meives, a Democratic candidate running for Indiana’s 23rd State House District, to talk about what’s actually happening on the ground in communities like Logansport, Peru, Mexico, and around Grissom.
And this wasn’t a polished, rehearsed conversation.
It was real.
Austin brings a perspective rooted in the district itself—someone who understands how interconnected these communities are, from the rivers that run through them to the economic forces shaping them.
One of the first things that stood out was his rejection of “one-size-fits-all” policy.
Because what works in Indianapolis doesn’t always work in Peru.
And what helps one town upstream can impact everyone downstream.
That idea carries through everything we talked about.
We dug into economic development—and why relying on tax cuts alone hasn’t delivered for small towns. Factories close, jobs disappear, and communities are left trying to rebuild without the tools they need.
We talked about healthcare—and how rural hospitals struggle to compete, leading to fewer providers, higher costs, and people falling through the cracks. His perspective wasn’t theoretical—it came from watching it happen firsthand.
We got into education and workforce development—why preparing students for today’s economy means starting earlier, thinking differently, and investing in skills that actually match where jobs are going.
And we didn’t avoid the harder conversations either:
The future of family farms and rising costs
Infrastructure that hasn’t kept pace in decades
Broadband gaps still holding communities back
Housing challenges and abandoned properties
The role of state government when markets fail
What stood out most was the throughline:
People feel like they’re not being heard.
And when people stop believing their voice matters, they stop showing up altogether.
Austin made it clear that, for him, representation isn’t about party first—it’s about people first. That means town halls, direct conversations, and being willing to push back—even against your own party—if it’s what the district needs.
And like always, we put that to the test in Hold ’em or Fold ’em—where positions get clear, fast.
What you’ll see here isn’t a candidate trying to fit into a mold.
It’s someone trying to respond to a district that doesn’t fit into one.
And in a place like District 23…
that might be exactly what voters are looking for.
