'I love a challenge,' Democrat Jamee Decio to challenge Republican incumbent Rudy Yakym for Congress seat
ABC57 --- Elkhart Democrat Jamee Decio will challenge incumbent Republican Rudy Yakym in the November general election. She sat down with ABC57's Annie Kate for her first television interview after her decisive victory in the Tuesday primary elections.
Decio is the daughter of the late Elkhart philanthropist, Art Decio. She garnered more than 18,000 votes in the Democratic primary and defeated Shaun Michael Maeyens with 72 percent of the vote to his 28 percent.
She said she is up for the challenge ahead as she goes up against incumbent Yakym, who has the support of President Donald Trump.
"For me, Trump and Rudy are the same because he just endorses the president. That's not his job. His job is to represent the people and be the people's voice, and they are struggling, and they deserve better," Decio said. “First of all, nobody likes a challenge more than me. I love a challenge.”
To unseat Yakym would be a rebuke to the president, which Indiana lawmakers did on the redistricting vote late last year. However, the Tuesday primaries resulted in the ousting of many of the Republicans who voted against redrawing Indiana's congressional maps.
Still, Decio said she believes the Republicans in Congress are giving their power to the president, rather than listening to the needs of the people. She said she is frustrated by Yakym's lack of town halls with his constituents. Lately, she said she is especially frustrated with the country's ongoing conflict in Iran and wants lawmakers to get back to the kitchen table issues.
"They're struggling with everything. Affordability, with cost of living, food, fuel, health care, childcare, housing," Decio said. "We can solve these problems instead of going to war. They spent a lot of money going to a war that we didn't need. It's a war of choice."
Decio said she would like to redirect taxpayer dollars toward affordability issues like healthcare, childcare, and housing.
“I know right and wrong. I was raised here, and that's one of those Hoosier values that I would bring to Washington. Right now. They're all enabling the president. That's wrong. And when he says, we're winning this war, we're not winning this war because we all know he lies. He doesn't know the truth from a hole in the wall, and that's sad.”
When asked at the end of Wednesday's interview, Decio said she would like to participate in a debate with Rudy Yakym.
Yakym has not responded to ABC57's recent interview requests about the war in Iran, gas prices, or primary elections. ABC57 has asked his office for an interview opportunity every business day since April 20th.