District 29 encompasses Noblesville and a small portion of Fishers. You can see the full district maps and look up your district at iga.in.gov/information/house-district-map.
According to the Indiana General Assembly, the House of Representatives works alongside the Senate and Governor to draft and pass laws as well as establish the state budget and taxes.
Democrat Devon Wellington talks about her priorities
By AIDA KARIM
news@readthereporter.com
A new candidate is in town and looking to reform the state’s educational priorities.
The Reporter spoke with Devon Wellington, the Democratic candidate running against incumbent Republican Alaina Shonkwiler in the Nov. 3 election for Indiana House of Representatives District 29.
Wellington told The Reporter she has worked in education policy on the district, state, and federal levels.
Wellington said she works daily to ensure states around the country guarantee good outcomes for kids, in spite of the “bad policy that they are often handed or unfunded mandates that state legislature gives them.” She works alongside an array of different governmental bodies, which she said emulates the job of a state legislator in many ways.
“I have a personal rule for myself that sort of keeps me in check, and that rule is that I’m not allowed to complain about something unless I’m willing to do something about it,” Wellington said.
Wellington and her family had previously lived in northern Virginia. Years before their move, the family had been visiting the city and attending Saturday Night Crusin’ On the Square regularly.
She said from these experiences she knew Noblesville was the place to raise her kids.
In 2022, Wellington and her family relocated to Noblesville under the Make My Move program.
Editor’s note: In June 2023, The Reporter published a story detailing the Make My Move program and how it’s brought people to Noblesville. You can read that story at tinyurl.com/HCRmakemymove.
Education
Wellington said when her son began to attend Noblesville schools, she was naturally curious about how the district approached different issues.
“I got involved in several of the district-level committees and have had a wonderful experience with our schools in that regard,” Wellington said.
Wellington told The Reporter this experience directly led to general community involvement, observing complications surrounding the state legislature and education.
“I don’t feel like we’re headed in a great direction and in a direction that will benefit my children or the community long term,” Wellington said. “And thinking about my background, experience, and knowledge, it became really clear, very quickly, the Statehouse was where I could do the most good.”
Wellington said the state continues to maintain an effort that ignores the needs of the majority of students’ interests in favor of what a few parents and legislators want.
Many school districts have referendums on the ballot for November. Wellington said she believes many people are experiencing strong emotional ties to many of the issues at stake because they impact their communities and utilize their tax dollars.
“I’m never going to begrudge a parent who is trying to get the best education for their child,” Wellington said, “but when we systematically take money away from our public schools and then expect them [the schools] to be able to do more with less, piled on top of unfunded mandates and expectations that we are throwing at teachers and schools without the support to actually make them effective, and then blaming them when we’re not getting the educational outcomes we want, it’s just – quite frankly – insanity to me.”
Wellington told The Reporter she believes that before the state decides to allocate tax dollars to a private or charter school, the people should get to vote on that decision on a ballot.
Community members are feeling immense pressure because the state is, in her words, “tragically underfunding our schools. I think we are viewing education as an expense as opposed to an investment.”
Wellington said beyond her vote on different bills, something she can do is bring more stakeholders to the table and get them on the same page so that we are moving together towards a shared goal.
Affordability
Aside from educational priorities, Wellington said affordability is another major aspect of her campaign.
“Hamilton County should continue to be a place to invest in, but still be affordable,” Wellington said.
She said every day, as a parent, she is asked to pay more for something today than she paid yesterday. She said she believes the state should pass certain policies to effectively help families and set them and their children up for long-term success.
Supermajority
“My job is not to go to the Statehouse and try to push through every initiative that I think is important to push through,” Wellington said. “My job as a representative is to be the voice for my district and do what, collectively, we believe is important.”
She said even with a Republican supermajority she believes she can go into the Statehouse thoroughly understanding what her constituents want.
Wellington said her job would be far more than making a big show of politics.
“Good politics is more about being focused on being the workhorse than being the show horse, and I do not mind being the workhorse,” Wellington said.
She said many representatives focus on working down the aisle, but she believes the reality of good policy-making starts with good intentions for her district.
If she were to be elected, Wellington said, “I’m never going to complain about something that I won’t be involved in or willing to put work toward. I will continue to show up for my community.”
Wellington encourages any and all community members to reach out to her via email at devon@votedevon.com or info@votedevon.com, or call her directly at (317) 316-8378. You can read more about her campaign online at votedevon.com.
Republican Alaina Shonkwiler discusses hometown service
By AIDA KARIM
news@readthereporter.com
Noblesville born and bred, this candidate’s passion for her hometown is deeply ingrained.
The Reporter spoke with Alaina Shonkwiler, the Republican incumbent running against Democrat challenger Devon Wellington in the Nov. 3 election for Indiana House of Representatives District 29.
Shonkwiler said she chose to run the first time because she “wanted to be a voice for Noblesville.”
“As somebody who was raised here by two public servants, a teacher and a nurse, I knew how much the Statehouse really affected our local communities,” Shonkwiler said.
Before office
Prior to her election, Shonkwiler said she got her start with the city government and Statehouse through her participation in various committees and work for different officials.
Shonkwiler said she worked with past officials Luke Kenley and Kathy Richardson (Williams) to establish the cultural arts district in Noblesville.
Shownwiler also worked for prior District 29 Rep. Chuck Goodrich and for Noblesville Schools in a workforce development coordinator position. She helped launch high school students into the best careers possible.
“We focused significantly on workforce development,” she said. “Crafting bills that were specifically around graduation pathways and workforce development.”
Shonkwiler said as she worked with Congresswoman Victoria Spartz, staying by her side when the congresswoman attended Statehouse meetings. She said there she began understanding how some federal implications at the congressional level were impacting the Statehouse.
During office
When evaluating her priorities in office, Shonkwiler said she questions legislation, wondering, “Is it going to make life more affordable? Is it going to make the government work better? Is it going to make our communities safe?”
Shonkwiler said an example of legislation she worked on includes giving law enforcement the tools and clarity and resources that they need to protect our communities while supporting transparency and accountability with House Bill 1232 (iga.in.gov/legislative/2025/bills/house/1232/details).
“In this past session, I was proud to lead some meaningful local government reform conversations,” Shonkwiler said. “Having township modernization legislation that actually took a thoughtful approach, looking at improving efficiency, reducing duplication in local government entities, and ensuring that taxpayer dollars were used wisely.”
Shonkwiler told The Reporter she worked on Senate Bill 270 (iga.in.gov/legislative/2026/bills/senate/270/details) making the statehouse continually evaluate how it can deliver better services at lower cost to the taxpayer.
“It was the first time we had meaningful reform of township government in over 20 years,” Shonkwiler said.
According to Shonkwiler she also focuses on reforming and the regulation of investor-owned electric utilities.
She said, “Indiana is really growing, and in that growth comes energy demand, and that depends on reliability and affordability of electricity.”
Shonkwiler said within her role on the government and regulatory reform committee at the Statehouse, she has continued to push for housing affordability.
According to Shonkwiler, another issue was duplicate efforts, where multiple units of government were involved in the contracting process for different public services. She said she aims to minimize taxing people twice for the same service.
Shonkwiler told The Reporter she stands out as a candidate because of her unique connection to Noblesville.
Noblesville connection
In terms of the Make My Move program opposing candidate Wellington had utilized, Shonkwiler said, as somebody who has consulted in economic development for communities across the state, the program has recruited some incredible people to the community.
“I don’t want to disparage the people who came here through using that program because it was a tool that they were able to use,” Shonkwiler said. “Do I necessarily agree with using tax dollars to do that? No, not really.”
Editor’s note: In June 2023, The Reporter published a story detailing the Make My Move program and how it’s brought people to Noblesville. You can read that story at tinyurl.com/HCRmakemymove.
Shonkwiler said there are people who’ve lived here their whole lives and invested in the community who didn’t need the incentive to do so.
“I was raised here. My kids have been raised here,” Shonkwiler said. “I actually bought the house that I grew up in from my parents. And so I’ve been ingrained in the community basically my whole life.”
Shonkwiler goes to the American Legion and VFW and told The Reporter she knows the members by name. She has volunteered at Noblesville Main Street and with Noblesville Schools. She has been on the sidelines at school sporting events alongside her community.
Shonkwiler said she “knows the community backwards and forwards.”
If voters would like to reach out to Shonkwiler, she encourages inquiries at alainafornoblesville@gmail.com or by visiting alainafornoblesville.com.
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