PIN: https://progressiveindiana.net
Andis Campaign Site: https://www.chloeforhoosiers.com/
McGill Campaign Site: https://www.mcgillforindiana.com/
In this Democratic primary debate for Indiana State Senate District 15, candidates Chloe Andis (Air Force veteran, national security professional, MBA, and union worker) and Julie McGill (mom of three, business owner, lifelong Fort Wayne resident) compete for the chance to challenge incumbent Republican Liz Brown in the general election. District 15 represents Fort Wayne, Allen County, and Northeast Indiana. The debate, moderated by Derrick Holder and presented by Progressive Indiana Network, covers key issues facing Hoosiers including affordability and tax fairness, housing challenges, utility costs and energy policy, healthcare access and Medicaid gaps, bodily autonomy regarding reproductive rights and gender-affirming care, education funding and the controversial Turning Point USA partnership with public schools, gun violence prevention, and infrastructure needs. Both candidates emphasize the need to prioritize working families over corporate interests, fund public schools rather than subsidizing private vouchers, expand healthcare access, and restore rights that Republican leadership has systematically restricted.
WHAT’S INSIDE:
00:00:23 - Debate Opening and Format
• Derrick Holder welcomes viewers to SD15 Democratic primary debate
• Presented by Progressive Indiana Network (progressiveindiana.net)
• Format: opening statements, policy questions (90 seconds each), Hold’em or Fold’em rapid fire, closing statements
00:02:45 - Opening Statements
• Julie McGill goes first (by coin flip): mom of three, business owner, Fort Wayne resident, child born with profound disabilities led her to navigate Medicaid/disability systems, sees how state decisions affect real people, wants common sense solutions and practical results over political ideology
• Chloe Andis: Air Force veteran (Chinese translator, mission manager), national security professional, MBA from NYU, union worker, saw institutional failures through COVID-19/BLM/January 6th, came home to Indiana because Hoosier freedoms shouldn’t be political bargaining chips
00:07:01 - Question 1: Tax Fairness and Property Tax Reform (2025 SEA 1)
• Derrick: SEA 1 passed in 2025 for property tax relief - what does tax fairness mean, where should tax burden lie?
• Chloe goes first: Billionaires and mega corporations should pay fair share, stop tax abatements to attract corporations, make Indiana worthwhile for people to stay, explore legalizing marijuana for revenue, work with local governments on actual costs
• Julie: Tax burden on people who can afford it, working families struggling while rich write off business losses, need to close loopholes
00:12:12 - Question 2: Housing Affordability (HEA 1)
• Derrick: HEA 1 passed in 2026 to increase housing supply - did it go far enough, how to address affordability?
• Julie goes first: Missed the mark, focus on large landlords and out-of-state investors maintaining properties, regulate landlords buying up single family homes, developing more houses won’t solve problem
• Chloe: Average Indiana house cost $250K, minimum wage unchanged since 2009, need to improve supply AND address investment properties limiting supply for younger generations
00:15:46 - Question 3: Utility Costs and Data Centers (HEA 2)
• Derrick: HEA 2 passed in 2026 for rising utility costs/data centers - how to keep rates fair and affordable while growing economy?
• Chloe goes first: Data centers are a blight, electric bill up 50% in six months, 80% of new generation costs uploaded onto residents, IURC lackluster and favors large corporations
• Julie: Data centers shouldn’t be on prime farmland, should pay fair share not subsidized by our bills, need utility caps for seniors, more oversight and competition, laws should favor people who live and work here
00:19:59 - Question 4: Healthcare Costs and Healthy Indiana Plan
• Derrick: Healthcare costs major affordability driver - should Healthy Indiana Plan be expanded to cover more/all Hoosiers?
• Julie goes first: Main reason she’s running, son has disabilities, sees Medicaid cuts devastating families, rural communities losing providers/hospitals, expanding Healthy Indiana Plan should be explored, Indiana ranks near bottom for health outcomes
• Chloe: Working families skip care for groceries/rent, jobs don’t guarantee access, want expanded Medicaid eligibility, improved waiver process, revoke tax advantages from nonprofit hospitals not functioning as nonprofits
00:24:19 - Question 5: Bodily Autonomy (Abortion and Gender-Affirming Care)
• Derrick: SEA 1 near-total abortion ban, bills affecting trans youth - what role should government play in bodily autonomy decisions?
• Chloe goes first: As trans woman, saw Liz Brown’s SB 182 (though it failed, she’ll push again), Republican leadership functions on restriction not freedom, SB 245 [note: it was actually SB 236] criminalizes abortion medications, tired of cutting off nose to spite face for pro-birth agenda
• Julie: Government should not be involved in healthcare decisions between patients and doctors, Hoosiers suffering because of abortion ban (maternal death rate up), attacking reproductive rights and trans rights shows disconnect, need to restore freedoms
00:29:21 - Question 6: Brain Drain and Retaining Healthcare Workers/Teachers
• Derrick: Hospitals, clinics, schools report difficulty recruiting/retaining professionals, some Hoosiers leaving state - what steps to prevent brain drain and make Indiana attractive for educators and healthcare workers?
• Julie goes first: Vouchers stretched education funds, should have place for those where public school not working but shouldn’t subsidize rich (Elon Musk’s 20 kids would all qualify), need income caps and prerequisites, state short-sighted on wages, need stronger wages to attract people
• Chloe: Private school vouchers shouldn’t be state-funded full stop, stealing from public schools, run education like business at expense of children, hurting retention of talent, legislation doesn’t empower working families but gives tax abatements to corporations, lopsided infrastructure hurts teacher/healthcare retention
00:32:35 - Question 7: Turning Point USA in Public Schools
• Derrick: Governor/Sec of State announced partnership with Turning Point USA in public schools - appropriate for state to endorse political organizations in schools?
• Chloe goes first: Also a religious organization, tossing away separation of church and state, partisan decision for Christian nationalist ideology, un-American, should not force religion on students, keep Turning Point out of public schools
• Julie: Coming from perspective of “good person” regardless of religion, should be band on clubs/affiliations tied to religion or ideology entering public schools
00:36:32 - Question 8: Childcare Infrastructure (HEA 1177)
• Derrick: HEA 1177 expands tax credits for childcare but cut Child Care Development Fund - is Indiana doing enough?
• Julie goes first: Doing opposite of enough by cutting voucher programs, don’t take federal match money, short-sighted not looking long-term, childcare costs a mortgage payment, put dollars in hands of people using services not businesses
• Chloe: Good people built from funded public schools and childcare systems, shouldn’t save money by not investing in children, connected to retention and Hoosier growth, childcare workers need livable wages to stay
00:40:51 - Question 9: Flock Safety Cameras and Surveillance
• Derrick: Communities adopting Flock Safety cameras, license plate readers - balance between public safety and privacy?
• Chloe goes first: AI companies surveilling American citizens, served at NSA Hawaii after Snowden, saw policies against surveillance being violated now with Flock cameras through police, need to repeal this
• Julie: Don’t want police state but want to be safe, get rid of cameras and have stronger police presence, cameras are cop-out for hiring people, need more officers on streets
00:44:12 - Question 10: Immigration Enforcement (SB 76)
• Derrick: Indiana mandated local institutions cooperate with ICE - how to protect immigrant families and maintain trust in Fort Wayne with large Burmese and Hispanic populations?
• Julie goes first: Immigration system broken, need humane path to citizenship, schools/churches/police should be sanctuaries off-limits, affects legally present people through racial profiling
• Chloe: SB 76 problematic, public safety means empowering organizations outside police, Latino woman’s son can’t work fearing ICE black-bagging, community organizations like Fuerza Unida building infrastructure because state legislature failing them, Burmese community also at risk
00:49:13 - Hold’em or Fold’em Rapid Fire Round
• Quick yes/no positions on bills and policies
• Both candidates respond “Hold’em” or “Fold’em” to series of legislative proposals
• Gives voters snapshot of where candidates stand on range of issues
00:53:41 - Closing Statements
• Julie goes first: People living with policy consequences rarely in room when decisions made, son’s disabilities taught her systems from inside, Indiana makes decisions cheaper on paper but cost more long-term (bad math not fiscal conservatism), permanent stake in District 15, fighting for home
• Chloe: Primary about voters feeling empowered, covered immigrants/teachers/healthcare providers/working families/trans community, all deserve representative who listens and advocates, came home to serve community, District 15 worth fighting for
