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Indy mayor election: Candidates fire shots over potholes

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Less than seven months before the general election for Indianapolis mayor, Republican candidate Jim Merritt came out swinging Monday.

The state senator had a news conference to talk about what he thinks is a major problem in the city: potholes. Merritt said tens of millions of dollars have been spent on fixing the roads but there is nothing to show for it. 

Merritt pointed the finger directly at Mayor Joe Hogsett. 

“Mayor Hogsett doesn’t seem to understand that the city needs to be managed proactively not ‘reactively.’ The time to prep the roads to minimize pothole issues is in late summer and fall before winter arrives, not after the damage has been done.” 

Merritt also said the city has about 7,000 potholes currently. 

The mayor’s office responded and said in part “over the last three years, Mayor Joe Hogsett has tackled chronically underfunded city services and worked with the council to produce the first back-to-back balanced budgets that our city has seen in more than a decade.

“At the same time, mayor Joe dramatically increased road and infrastructure funding, including more than $400 million that will be spent over the next four years — all without a local tax increase.”

The mayor’s office also says Merritt has not filed any bills during the mayor’s tenure addressing infrastructure funding for Indianapolis roads. 

The general election is Nov. 6.