Local parties watching tight 9th District race

Republicans and Democrats have their eyes on the prize in today's election: a win in the 9th Congressional District race, a battle that has heated up over the last several weeks. The race is one of many that local groups expect to be close today. \nIncumbent Republican Mike Sodrel is hoping to defend his seat, facing off against Democratic candidate and former Rep. Baron Hill, whom Sodrel defeated in 2004 by less than 1,500 votes.\nMonroe County Democratic Party Chairwoman Lee Jones said although she expects it to be close again, she has no doubt Hill will win.\n"We're seeing indications of extremely high voter turnout for a midterm election, and there's at least the explanation that that's being driven by a whole lot of people that want to see a change," Jones said. "And because of that, I believe that Baron is in a better position to win it."\nBut Monroe County Republican Party Chairman Franklin Andrew defended Sodrel's campaign and strength as the incumbent.\n"We're confident Congressman Sodrel is going to win that race," Andrew said. "I can't see where Baron Hill has gathered any traction."\nIU College Republicans President Shane Kennedy said the group's main focus is on the 9th District race, although he said that by supporting Sodrel, he thinks they are supporting all local \nRepublican candidates.\nThe College Republicans have put in three times more work this year than they put in the Hill-Sodrel face off in 2004, he said, so the group expects nothing but positive results.\n"What's important is the only thing we can affect is the 9th District because we live here," he said. "The 9th District is just a small portion of what's important to Indiana and the nation."\nEmma Cullen, president of IU College Democrats, said Hill is a strong student supporter.\n"I think listening to the voice of the students, especially in the 9th District, is extremely important, and he does that for us," Cullen said.\nBut Jones wants students to care about the local races, too, which also have a big impact on their lives, she said. Local races showcase politicians who are getting their start and could be major future leaders, she said.\n"This is where they're living and where local elected officials are having a very strong effect on the community as a whole and how welcoming it is to students," she said.\nAndrew said every office in a local election is important and life-impacting, even for students.\n"Local elections are so important because they make the decisions that we have to live with every single day," he said.\nAndrew said he expects the race for county prosecutor to be close and was worried about organizations that have attacked Republican incumbent Carl Salzmann.\n"When you've got enough lies being told about you, that can create a difficult environment for them to overcome," Andrew said. "People eventually start believing a lie if it's told often enough. So, obviously, we're watching that race very closely." \nJones said she is confident the Democratic candidates will win both the sheriff and prosecutor races in Monroe County.\n"It's my belief that we're going to easily win both of those," Jones said, "because we have extremely good candidates in each case. It's really experience in both cases."\nKennedy refused to comment on IU student Adrianne Dunlap, who is running for state representative in District 61 as a Republican. \nCullen said she has not seen much of Dunlap's campaigning efforts on campus and does not expect her to win because she has not reached out to Bloomington like Democratic incumbent Matt Pierce.\n"I take any person who runs seriously, and I would never say that's it's just kind of pointless," Cullen said. "I think it's great that there's a student that's interested in running, but we never heard (about campaign efforts) on campus."\nAbout 7,450 people have already voted early this year, up from 2,300 in 2002 -- the last nonpresidential election, Jenn Marcum, a member of the Monroe County Election Board said Monday night.