One candidate came with no speech. The other one didn’t come. Two neighbors split the difference.
By Neil Kessler and Margo HaleOctober 16, 2026Weekend Edition, Issue No. 3
“Speak from the heart. Just let the heart see the notes first.”
JUST THE FACTS. Jaime West (D), running for Fayette County Council District 4 (Connersville, Ind.), spoke at a TV3/News-Examiner candidate forum last week. Her Republican opponent, Gary Keener Jr., didn’t attend. She opened: “Okay, I didn’t write one, so, I’m just gonna not read it, just say it out loud, like, from my heart, okay?” She said: “So if you trust me, you know, delivering your groceries, you should trust me with your vote.” Asked about an unpopular decision she’d make, she said “Firing all Republicans,” then said there are “good Republicans” and pointed at MAGA. She closed with “We have guns, too.” Sources: LocalTV3; WLOS/TNND; Tommy Christopher transcript.
NEIL SAYS. Okay, let me finish. She opened by saying she had no opening statement. That was the opening statement.
Then came the pitch. Trust her with your groceries, trust her with your vote. I trust my barber with my hair. I don’t hand him the county budget.
Bringing groceries is honest work. It’s a job. It’s not a platform.
And yes, the guy on my side skipped the whole thing. Gary Keener Jr. can’t lose a forum he never went to. He can’t win one either.
THE SHARE LINE. “I’ll take the groceries. I’ll keep the vote.”
MARGO SAYS. I read the transcript twice. The second time I used a pen. My pen took more notes than she did.
She’s on my side. That’s why I’m saying it. Her opponent didn’t come. He sent a statement instead. I logged it. It’s in the ledger.
“Firing all Republicans” is a big promise from a seat that mostly votes on budgets. The guns line at the end isn’t funny. I won’t try.
THE SHARE LINE. “Speak from the heart. Just let the heart see the notes first.”
THE ONE THING THEY AGREE ON. One of them needed a speech. The other one needed to be there.