LAFAYETTE, IN – It wasn’t uncommon for longtime state Rep. Sheila Klinker to face the occasional challenger during her 44 years of elections to represent Lafayette in the Indiana Statehouse. But this year she faces Tracy Brown, a Republican challenger with a long history of electoral victories.
Klinker, a Democrat who has been a state representative since 1982, says this is her last election. Absolutely her last, the 87-year-old Lafayette representative insisted on Friday.
“I thought I might be able to do it one more time without anyone chasing me,” Klinker joked.
State Rep. Sheila Klinker was first elected to the Indiana House of Representatives in 1982 to represent Indiana House District 27, which serves parts of both Lafayette and West Lafayette.
Brown is a candidate, but before facing Klinker, he will have to win the GOP primary in May, where he faces Oscar Alvarez, who ran against Klinker two years ago. Klinker defeated Alvarez by collecting more than 61% of the votes.
With eight years as Tippecanoe County sheriff and 12 years as Tippecanoe County commissioner, Brown has worked with legislators.
“What happens in Indianapolis impacts us here locally,” Brown said. “That makes the work done by our local delegation really, really important.”
Clinton County Commissioner Tracy Brown will run for Indiana State Rep against Sheila Klinker in November.
He plans to take his law enforcement and policymaking experiences as a commissioner to Indy.
“I want to use the perspective I’ve gained to serve this district,” Brown said.
Klinker and Brown have been friends for decades and worked together in their roles as public servants.
“If I had to have an opponent, I’d rather it be Tracy Brown than anybody else,” Klinker said. “Tracy and I have been friends for a long time. I feel like we’re still friends even though we’re adversaries.”
“This is something I’ve thought and thought about for years,” Brown said, noting he discussed it with Klinker.
Brown, 63, declined to comment on whether Klinker has the stamina to serve another two years.
“I’ve learned things from Sheila over the years. The way she shows up. The way she recognizes people,” Brown said. “Those are all things you expect from your elected officials.”
Asked if she had resistance to two more years of public service, Klinker said, “People will tell you that I am in places where others are not. I go for everything.”
“I love what I do, so I work hard at it,” she said. “I still have a lot of fun.
“This time I will run, and then that will be it,” she said, admitting that some have said she has vowed to run in 2024. “I mean it this time.
“I have the energy to do it,” she said. “I have been blessed with good health.”
If Klinker and Brown lead in the fall election, don’t expect snarky partisan sniping.
“I want to show that you can do it the right way,” Brown said, “and it doesn’t have to be bitter, and it doesn’t have to be hateful.”
That’s the way Tippecanoe County is governed between Democratic and Republican public officials.
“We get work done on a daily basis together,” Brown said.
“It’s been an interesting career,” Klinker said. “The nice thing about it is that it’s not like Washington, DC. We all talk very well.”
Reach Ron Wilkins at rwilkins@jconline.com. Follow on Twitter: @RonWilkins2.
This article originally appeared on the Lafayette Journal & Courier: Indiana Rep. Klinker faces friend Tracy Brown in her last election