Chuck Hockema
Chuck Hockema was a 2014 Republican candidate for District 27 of the Indiana House of Representatives. He ran unsuccessfully for the same seat in 2012.
Biography
Hockema earned his B.S. from Purdue University in 1998 and his J.D. from Brigham Young University in 2006.[1]
Elections
2014
Elections for the Indiana House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on May 6, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was February 7, 2014. Incumbent Sheila Klinker was unopposed in the Democratic primary, while Chuck Hockema was unopposed in the Republican primary. Klinker defeated Hockema in the general election.[2][3]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Sheila Klinker Incumbent |
51.8% | 5,551 | |
| Republican | Chuck Hockema | 48.2% | 5,169 | |
| Total Votes | 10,720 | |||
2012
Hockema ran in the 2012 election for Indiana House of Representatives District 27. Hockema defeated Jan Payne in the May 8 Republican primary[4] and was defeated by incumbent Sheila Ann Klinker (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[5][6]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sheila Ann Klinker Incumbent |
54.5% | 10,742 | |
| Republican | Chuck Hockema | 45.5% | 8,970 | |
| Total Votes | 19,712 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Chuck Hockema |
64.2% | 2,694 |
| Jan Payne | 35.8% | 1,501 |
| Total Votes | 4,195 | |
Campaign themes
2014
Hockema's website emphasized the following campaign themes:
| “ | Trusting Hoosiers
Economic Choice I have faith in “the people” of greater Lafayette, their judgment, and their participation in a free market. They are hardworking and competent. We should trust taxpayers’ decisions about how they spend their hard-earned money. Political attempts to steer or manipulate our economy will never be as accurate or responsive as allowing individuals in our community to choose for themselves. Respect for Parents Parents should be trusted with decisions affecting the welfare of their children. No one has a greater interest in a child’s well-being and success than parents. These decisions include how and where children are taught. Fair Treatment Job Creation Small businesses are the undisputed engine of job growth in Indiana. As a local business owner, I am familiar with the challenges that can stunt growth and keep employers from hiring. Most businesses just want to be treated fairly. I believe in unbiased tax and fiscal policy that does not pick winners and losers. Economic development should not mean corporate handouts and preferential treatment. Special tax breaks or credits designed to favor certain business activities put some of our best employers at a competitive disadvantage. These handouts also encourage competitive lobbying to make sure everyone gets “their share” of public funding. Small businesses would much rather serve their customers than spend time and money applying for grants, tax credits, and lobbying for preferential regulation. Taking more taxes than are needed and then offering subsidies have a negative economic impact. A fair tax system lowers the burden of everyone and makes Indiana attractive to all businesses. We need to make sure that government is not impeding growth by picking favorites. Keep More of Your Hard Earned Tax Dollars Eliminating waste in government will allow everyone to keep more of their hard earned money, rather than unfairly shifting tax burdens from one group to another. The tax reform I advocated in 2012 would have reduced all personal property taxes equally, eliminated filing requirements for most businesses and still improved the bottom line for local and state government. The proposal eliminated taxes that cost government agencies more to collect than they produce in revenue. It treated everyone the same and did not require businesses to waste time filling out paperwork or applying for special tax credits. I was asked to testify before the Senate Tax and Fiscal Policy Committee and meet with House and Senate leaders to discuss this idea. Even though I felt I was able to help with this effort, I know I could have been a more effective advocate as District 27′s representative. Real Transparency Overly Complex Regulation Hoosiers should have access to and be able to understand our laws. Just having access to our constitution, state statutes, and administrative code is not true transparency. Our laws are too numerous and complicated for the average citizen (or legislator) to understand. We should consolidate and simplify our code so that government is really accountable to the people. Ending Conflicts of Interest No legislator should receive any compensation from any organization whose budget is determined in whole or in part by the state. No state regulator should be able to seek employment with a business they regulate. Voters should also be made aware of lobbyists who decide to run for the general assembly. Taxes Simplifying the tax system will allow Hoosiers to understand how much they are really paying in taxes. At the same time, it will reduce the administrative costs of government so that tax dollars go further. Providing the Best Education for Children Parents and Teachers As a graduate of our local public schools with children currently in elementary through high school, I want to ensure that education stays strong and receives proper funding. We need to rely more on the relationship between teachers and parents and less on regulation from Washington DC and Indianapolis. Let Professionals do Their Job After meeting with our local administrators, it seems clear to me that the State should require fewer evaluations if a school or teacher is consistently getting high marks. We have very capable superintendents who should be allowed to manage their districts and answer directly to those they serve locally. The Right Kind of Reform Recent reforms are not perfect, but I believe these efforts are aimed at the underlying challenges in education. Properly funding schools will be my priority, but funding should be only part of our strategy. Throwing money at a problem without asking tough, smart questions about what we can do better is not fair to our students or taxpayers. Even worse, it often allows the underlying cause to go unaddressed. Unless our policies foster more parental involvement, additional government programs, evaluations and student testing will fall flat. College Affordability The cost of higher education will continue to be an important issue in upcoming legislative sessions. When costs are not controlled, the price will inevitably go up. That is why I am excited to see the work that Purdue is doing to keep tuition costs down. Some of the most important lessons I learned at Purdue were a result of supporting myself while attending classes. My commitment is to help the legislature do its part to keep college costs low enough for that to be an option for future generations.[7] |
” |
2012
Hockema outlined the following three themes of his campaign:[1]
- Job Creation: "Build an operating environment that supports Indiana businesses. Focus on solutions to keep the Greater Lafayette Area attractive to new businesses."
- Education - "Focus dollars on the frontlines of education… the classroom. Reward our best teachers with better pay. Give schools the flexibility to attract the best teachers."
- Economy - "Simplify and reduce the tax burden. Eliminate burdensome regulations on Hoosier families and businesses."
In a biographical submission to Ballotpedia, Hockema stated, "I believe that holding office should be a sacrifice, not an entitlement of career politicians. It is clear to me that most career politicians create more problems than they solve. When House Representatives walked out of the last legislative session to prevent a vote on bills they opposed, several people who know my background asked me to run."[1]
Campaign finance summary
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Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Chuck + Hockema + Indiana + House"
See also
- Indiana House of Representatives
- Indiana House of Representatives District 27
- Indiana House of Representatives elections, 2014
- Indiana General Assembly
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Submitted to Ballotpedia via the Biographical submission form. April 18, 2012
- ↑ Indiana Secretary of State, "Official primary election candidate list," accessed February 10, 2014
- ↑ Indiana Secretary of State, "Official primary election results," accessed June 12, 2014
- ↑ Associated Press, "Election Results 2012," accessed May 8, 2012
- ↑ Indiana Secretary of State, "List of May 8, 2012, primary candidates," accessed March 6, 2014
- ↑ Indiana Secretary of State, “Election Results – Indiana General Election, November 6, 2012,” accessed January 24, 2013
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
