Ehrhard fails to win state house seat by 30 percent
By KIFLIN TURNER
News Writer
After graduating from Notre Dame Law School in May, James Ehrhard made a run to represent South Bend in the Indiana House of Representatives.
Ehrhard, the Republican nominee, lost Tuesday, 65 percent to 35 percent, to Democratic incumbent Pat Bauer in the race for the District 6 seat. But before the results came in, he reflected on the past few months of planning and campaigning for office.
Ehrhard had been planning to run for office, with the help of a few fellow classmates, since his third year of law school.
"Me and my law school buddies decided to go for it — organized a primary campaign and mapped out everything up until election day and besides studying for the bar this summer, the campaign was my absolute priority," he said.
Ehrhard said Notre Dame was a source of encouragement in the beginnings of his campaign.
"When I won the primary, I was still a law student, and my support from the Notre Dame community has been overwhelming," he said.
Ehrhard became involved with local Republicans, and this network, as well as what he saw as an opportunity to knock off Bauer, influenced his decision.
"I became very close the Republican community in St. Joseph's County," he said. "They had all along wanted me to take on Pat Bauer, one because I'm very young and very energetic and I had built a lot of political ties."
The race against Bauer has been an unbelievable experience, according to the young candidate.
"I loved it," he said. "It's been one of the key experiences of my life, especially at the state [representative] level, you get to touch upon campaign fund raising to media advertising and an extensive door to door campaign."
Taking the initiative to go out into the neighborhoods and the communities is not only politically strategic, but they have been the most important and memorable aspects of Ehrhard's campaign.
"The best part is that I've been able to actually get involved in politics to a level that most people would never get a chance to, from all aspects of fund raising, to grassroots, to the speeches and the debates."
Ehrhard's campaign focused on taking on a more personal and fair approach involving the people of the county. Going door-to-door and pursuing a grassroots campaign is the key to victory, he said.
Ehrhard's stated that his outreach to the St. Joseph community as being rewarding and supportive.
"Being an opponent makes me a public figure by nature, and people have rallied around my race to take out Pat, and they actually want to hear what I have to say, and I have found that to be very enjoyable and encouraging."
All News Stories for Wednesday, November 8, 2000
