By Dan Spalding
InkFreeNews

WARSAW — State Rep. Curt Nisly is the first to announce intentions to fill the vacancy left after 2nd District U.S. Rep. Jackie Walorski died unexpectedly last week.

Republicans on Tuesday announced plans for two caucuses soon to fill her remaining term and to select a candidate to to run in the fall election for a new term in Congress.

The caucuses are set for 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 20, at Grissom Middle School in Mishawaka.

Curt Nisly

Nisly grew up in Elkhart County and now lives and owns a local business in Kosciusko County.

He is closing out an eight-year run as a state lawmaker after losing in the May primary to Craig Snow.

In a statement, he said he’s running to support limited government, find solutions for inflation and fix the immigration crisis.

“I’m excited for the future and look forward to continuing to bring Indiana values to help fix DC.”

Nisly championed Indiana’s newly established Constitutional Carry law and has been a fervent opponent of abortion. He was one of six Republican lawmakers who recently voted to support a total ban on abortion during a special session of the General Assembly.

In an announcement on Facebook, Nisly criticized President Joe Biden.

“I stand in firm opposition to Biden’s agenda, strongly opposing the farce climate change bill that was just passed, along with the entire so-called ‘Build Back Better’ plan which is wreaking havoc on our economy,” Nisly said.

“The out-of-control tax-and-spend agenda of Biden and the Democrats destroys job growth and pushes the hard-left agenda,” Nisly said. “We must stand up for the needs of American families, not special interests and multinational corporations.”

In his announcement, Nisly did not mention Walorski, whose funeral was Thursday. He did issue a statement about her on Thursday morning. The statement read in part: “Jackie’s passing leaves a big hole in our hearts and in our community. Even though she is no longer with us physically, her legacy will live with us forever.”