Voters go one-on-one with State Rep.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - State Representative Randy Truitt (R) held a public forum Tuesday night to meet with voters in District 26 looking for a good idea and listening to the important issues.  More than a dozen people showed, including his opponent, Rick Cornstuble (D).

It was an up-close and personal forum for Truitt.  He is running for a third term in November's election.

More than a dozen people came to a listening session at the West Lafayette library.  

Roberta Schonemann came out "to let him know that I'm watching him."

For Geraldine Friedman, "I wanted to express my opinions."

Everyone that showed did have an opinion, some for, some against.

"Coming in here, quite frankly, I don't look at is as for and against," Truitt said.  "I look at it as hearing what's on people's minds, that's why we're here."

On the minds of many was one thing, education.
    
"I'm concerned about some of the legislation that went through and we're looking to be able to have more input this time around," Schonemann said.

Truitt said similar listening sessions two years earlier provided some new ideas and validated others on topics like school flexibility and teacher professional development.  He thinks Tuesday's provided more of the same.

"I have some good ideas tonight as well as education-based that I've already been working on, that I will continue to tweak and add some of the things I added tonight," Truitt said.

But Truitt wasn't the only person running in the District 26 race in the room.  Democratic challenger Cornstuble also sat in.  For the most part, he chatted with friends, but he was also invited to sit and listen to some voters along with Truitt.

Cornstuble said door-to-door campaigning during the primary has given him a good idea of the issues in the district: education,jobs and Purdue.

"I wanted to hear what people were saying, seeing if I would hear anything different, see if there was some issues that I'm not picking up on," Cornstuble said.  "I didn't hear anything different."

Some voters hope Tuesday's session gives them a chance to tell something different to their current representative and hope that if he's re-elected, it will make a difference with Truitt's priorities for years to come.

"If he's re-elected, we'll be watching very carefully to see if it made a difference," Schonemann said.

Truitt is holding two more listening sessions.  The first is Wednesday, July 18, at the Tippecanoe Library Klondike Branch on Lindberg Road.  The second is Tuesday, August 7, at the Tippecanoe School Corporation Administration Building on Elston Road.  Each is from 6:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m.

Cornstuble said he plans to be at both sessions and also plans to invite Truitt to his public forums slated for the fall.