https://progressiveindiana.net
SUMMARY:
With Indiana’s voter registration deadline and early voting landing within days, Rev. Tony Alexander and Pastor David W. Greene Sr. devote the full show to a get-out-the-vote push. They walk listeners through the Indiana voter portal (checking registration, finding a polling place, previewing a sample ballot), flag several Marion County-area races to watch — the open Secretary of State seat, the Senate District 29 race between John Ruckelshaus and Christina Moorhead, and J.D. Ford’s run against Victoria Spartz for Congress — and argue the Secretary of State’s office matters more than voters realize because of its role certifying elections. Both hosts raise concerns about voter intimidation (ICE presence at polling places), a rumored move toward martial law around the election, and the outsized influence of money in politics (citing Elon Musk’s nine-figure spending on Republican primaries). Two callers phone in: Imhotep connects Musk and Newt Gingrich’s political histories to a broader point, via George Carlin, about working- and middle-class voters repeatedly backing candidates who don’t serve their interests; Joyce offers practical turnout tactics — carpooling, free and discounted IndyGo bus fares for veterans and seniors, and organized “Souls to the Polls” drives. The show closes with Greene and Alexander debating whether Indiana, unlike other states seeing Democratic gains this cycle, has the party organization needed to produce a “blue wave” of its own.
WHAT’S INSIDE
00:00:00 — Show open: disclaimer, prayer, and the voting calendar
- Greene opens in prayer, asking for peace amid “a lot of confusion” and for the nation’s leaders
- Alexander: Monday is the last day to register to vote in Indiana; early voting begins Tuesday
- Both hosts stress the need for a concrete, “intentional” plan to vote rather than waiting for Election Day
00:04:40 — Voter rights under attack
- Alexander: the Supreme Court has weakened civil-rights protections against gerrymandering and voter suppression under the current administration
- Greene cites a rumor he heard last week that martial law could be declared around the election in mid-October — framed explicitly as something he heard, not confirmed
- Alexander notes an executive order directing the U.S. Postal Service to screen mail-in ballots
- A Facebook commenter’s remark (”modern day slavery”) is read into the record as reflecting how some viewers feel about the moment
00:07:26 — Checking your voter status; previewing the ballot
- Alexander walks through the indiana.gov voter portal live on the stream: checking registration status, registering, finding polling locations, and viewing a sample ballot
- Notes Indiana has just under 4.76 million registered voters
- Flags the Secretary of State race as the top of the ticket to understand, naming Greg Ballard, Max Engling, and Beau Bayh among the field
00:09:00 — Why the Secretary of State race matters
- Greene: campaign ads increasingly omit party affiliation, making it harder for voters to know who they’re backing without independent research
- Greene stresses candidates should be vetted on what their office actually controls — the Secretary of State doesn’t set gas prices or taxes, for instance
- Both agree straight-ticket voting and surface-level impressions (yard signs, a friendly face) are a poor substitute for research
00:15:28 — Why the Secretary of State certifies — and why that’s dangerous
- Greene argues the role is nationally significant because a president seeking re-election in 2028 would want sympathetic Secretaries of State in place, drawing a parallel to the 2020 call in which Trump asked Georgia’s Secretary of State to “find” votes
- Alexander adds concerns about certifying elections and the use of fake electors in the past
- Greene: turnout — specifically in Marion County, which he says needs roughly 60–65% turnout for a Democrat to win statewide — is the deciding factor
00:17:21 — ICE at the polls and the turnout fight
- Alexander cites reports that Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said ICE agents would be present at polling locations, and argues their purpose is both intimidation and a potential pretext to interfere with voting machines or ballot counting
- Greene: even without an ICE-specific label, the presence of visible law enforcement is likely to depress turnout in minority communities
- Greene cites Hendricks County as reliably Republican and warns Marion County turnout can’t make up for a weak showing in surrounding counties
- References Tiffany Stoner’s narrow (few-hundred-vote) state house loss in a prior cycle as proof that turnout alone can decide close races
00:21:39 — Money in politics: Musk’s $100 million
- Back from break: a Facebook comment about Pete Hegseth’s remarks on using Elon Musk in the midterms prompts discussion
- Greene: Musk has committed roughly $100 million to help Republican candidates win races in states like Florida, Texas, and Georgia, underscoring how outside money can swing down-ballot races, including Indiana’s Secretary of State contest
00:24:50 — Senate District 29: Ruckelshaus vs. Moorhead
- Alexander flags Senate District 29 (covering parts of Pike and Wayne Townships, Carmel, and Zionsville) as a race to watch, noting Republican John Ruckelshaus appears well-funded, citing large campaign signage already up
- Greene: Christina Moorhead is the Democratic candidate; the race will again come down to turnout, including whether Democratic-leaning voters in Republican-heavy Zionsville show up despite the area’s lean
00:26:49 — The “blue wave” test
- Greene: if Democrats are seeing gains (”a blue wave”) in other states but not in Indiana, that discrepancy deserves serious scrutiny the day after the election
- Notes concern over reports the Speaker of the House may delay swearing in newly elected members
- Frames the open question as whether Indiana will be part of any national Democratic wave or sit it out
00:28:28 — Why Trump is skipping Indiana
- Greene observes Trump has been campaigning in reliably Republican states like Alabama and Arkansas where Democrats are now showing unexpected strength — but not in Indiana
- Alexander and Greene read this as a sign the president isn’t worried about Indiana’s outcome, for better or worse
- Greene credits strong Democratic organizing in Texas, Florida, and Georgia (citing Stacey Abrams’ track record in Georgia) for making those races competitive
00:33:19 — Caller Imhotep: Musk, Gingrich, and the crime bill
- Imhotep connects the Hegseth/Musk midterm story to Newt Gingrich’s involvement, tracing it back to Gingrich’s role in the 1994 “Republican Revolution” and the 1994 crime bill, which he argues Bill Clinton still takes disproportionate blame for despite bipartisan support
- Cites a George Carlin bit as the frame for his larger argument: working- and middle-class voters (making roughly $250,000 or less) repeatedly vote for billionaires and millionaires who “don’t care” about them
- Invokes James Baldwin to argue some voters are motivated less by self-interest than by a desire to see harm done to others
- Notes white voters helped elect Obama but have since shifted, pointing to unfulfilled promises (a $5,000 payment pledge, tariff relief) despite Republicans controlling the House, Senate, and presidency
00:38:00 — Greene responds: voting against your own interest
- Greene agrees some voters back anti-ICE, anti-immigrant policies even while losing their own Medicaid/Medicare coverage or access to nearby hospitals, driven by a desire to see the policies hurt someone else
- Argues this pattern holds consistently in poorer, rural areas, and that not voting functions the same way — preserving the status quo that benefits wealthy donors like Musk
- Recalls Hamilton County flipping for Obama in a prior cycle when enough voters there were suffering economically, and wonders whether a similar shift could happen again given high gas and grocery prices
00:40:46 — Caller Joyce: practical turnout tactics
- Joyce suggests organizing early-voting trips to the City-County Building, recalling how churches used to organize group drives
- Flags that IndyGo (the bus system) offers free rides for veterans and half-price fares for seniors — a way to offset high gas prices while getting people to the polls
- Suggests carpools and community incentives (”car parties,” games) to keep turnout efforts social and motivating
00:43:14 — Souls to the Polls and March to the Polls
- Greene confirms two “Souls to the Polls” events, organized in part by the Democratic Party, on the two Sundays the City-County Building is open for early voting (Oct. 25 and Nov. 1)
- Also flags an Oct. 24 “March to the Polls” organized by the Hoosiers Voting Alliance, a roughly 10-organization coalition that includes the Concerned Clergy, Indivisible, and the League of Women Voters, with activity planned across townships citywide
00:45:08 — Closing message: barriers are intentional
- Alexander: voters should expect “barriers” to be intentionally placed in their path and plan around them rather than being discouraged by them
- Greene: strong turnout this cycle sends a message to candidates ahead of the 2027 and 2028 elections that voters are paying attention, regardless of this particular race’s outcome
00:47:12 — Can Indiana lead a blue wave?
- Alexander says he doesn’t expect Indiana to be part of any national Democratic wave, citing a lack of party cohesion and organizational strength compared to Texas, Florida, and Georgia
- Greene agrees other states appear better organized and credits that organization (again citing Stacey Abrams in Georgia) for their competitiveness, while Indiana’s efforts seem more scattered (”siloed”) without a unified strategy
- Alexander adds that the state party is “still reeling” from the May primaries
00:49:24 — Sign-off
- Hosts close urging listeners to have a plan to vote, noting early voting begins the following week
- Thanks to viewers and callers; sign-off for the week
