Hardin Local Election Series: 10 Interviews Down, 13 More Wednesday

Key Takeaways

• 10 primary candidate interviews aired in 5 days — Friday April 24 launch, Monday April 27 marathon.
• 13 more interviews Wednesday April 29 in a 1 PM to 7 PM live marathon.
• Booking continues through May 12 — any candidate in a contested primary can register at HardinLocal.com.
• Ground rules: same questions for the same office, same time, questions sent in advance, no follow-ups, no gotcha journalism.
• Sponsored by The Plumbing Doctor and Omni Design Group — both stepped up to underwrite the full series.

Summary

Hardin Local Weekly devoted Episode 18's Hardin Local Election Spotlight to a behind-the-scenes look at the Primary Election Interview Series that launched the previous Friday. Rachel Brantingham interviewed Phil Taul about the design of the series, the rules he's working under, and what he's learned from ten interviews in five days.

The series is built around a single goal: give every candidate in a contested primary a free, fair, non-partisan seat on the show before May 19. The ground rules are strict by design — same questions for everyone running for the same office, same amount of time, questions sent in advance, no follow-ups. The Plumbing Doctor and Omni Design Group stepped up to sponsor the full series.

If you're a Hardin County voter trying to make informed decisions before the primary, this is the segment that points you to the interviews. If you're a candidate in a contested primary and haven't booked yet — you can still register through May 12.

Sponsors of the Primary Election Interview Series

Before the spotlight conversation, Rachel gave the sponsor reads that made the series possible.

The Plumbing Doctor

24/7 Hardin County plumbing service. When you've got a plumbing emergency — day or night — call 765-PLUM (765-7586).

Omni Design Group

Hardin County's local team for new construction and remodeling. Building from scratch or remodeling what you've got? Call or text Cory at 270-769-8339.

Rachel on both: "Both stepped up to help us make sure every candidate in a contested primary gets a free, fair seat on this show before May 19. We appreciate both of you guys. I've had the opportunity to work with both of these incredible companies — you can't get better service or more professionalism or more quality."

The Conversation

Why we're doing this

Phil opened with the design philosophy. "Everything's so politically charged that I wanted to provide an interview that wasn't that way." No hot-button left/right questions. No Democrat-vs-Republican framing. The interviews are deliberately short — about 20 minutes each — and the question list is built around what the candidate would actually be responsible for if they win.

"Everybody is, they're running for magistrate — they all get asked the same questions. They have the same amount of time."

The motivation is straightforward. Phil's goal is to give Hardin County voters enough exposure to every candidate to make informed decisions on May 19 — without dragging the show into partisan territory.

The pace

By the end of Monday April 27, 10 interviews had aired in 5 days. Friday April 24 launched the series with four candidates: Joseph Redmon (State Rep District 27), Pam Ogden (Mayor of Vine Grove), Aundra Lett-Jackson (Radcliff City Council), and Vincent Thompson (US Senate). Monday's lineup ran seven more interviews back-to-back.

Wednesday April 29 brings the marathon — a 1 PM to 7 PM block live on Hardin Local with 13 more candidates, most of the remaining registered field. Phil also has a handful of reschedules and late registrations being booked into the following week — the registration window stays open through May 12.

"Basically we have tomorrow afternoon from 1 PM to 7 PM I'll be live on Hardin Local with 13 of the rest of the people that have registered to do one. And then the following week, I'll have a couple others to reschedule and then a couple other people that are coming on that I just hadn't been able to schedule yet."

What surprised Phil after 10 interviews

Rachel asked the question without playing favorites — what's stood out about the process so far?

Phil's answer was about character, not policy. "I think just seeing them all give their what they want to be remembered as. A lot of them are saying they want to be remembered as a hard worker, or as a servant leader." With the non-partisan question list, the answers across party lines came out more alike than different. "I didn't pick those few topics on the left or right that get people all mad. I picked just the substance of what they actually do in their jobs if they get elected. So I think there's not — I mean, there's definitely differences, but these are all humans that care about our community."

The rules

Phil laid out the ground rules clearly for any candidates listening:

• Same questions for everyone running for the same office
• Same amount of time to answer each question
• Questions sent in advance of the interview — every candidate gets to prepare
• No follow-ups — "It's not gotcha journalism. I don't do follow-up questions. I'm not trying to get anybody that I may or may not agree with stuck. That's not the purpose of these."
• By-office variation — a magistrate candidate gets different questions than a mayor candidate, but all magistrate candidates get the exact same questions

The purpose, in Phil's words: "To provide an interview that allows the voter to actually get to know who they're going to vote for so they could pick somebody."

Where to watch

The interviews live in three places:

1. HardinLocal.com → Election Interview tab — per-race pages so voters can compare candidates running for the same office head-to-head
2. Facebook: facebook.com/HardinLocal — every interview is uploaded
3. YouTube: youtube.com/@Hardinlocal — every interview is uploaded

The ask for voters

Rachel closed the spotlight with the audience CTA. Phil's answer: "Watch the interviews. Share them. Encourage your neighbors to do the same. Talk about it at the kitchen table. Show up informed on May 19."