Ethan Sweetland-May

Ethan Sweetland-May earned a high school diploma and attained additional education from the Bethel School of Ministry in 2009. His career experience includes working as an account executive.[1]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Born and raised in Terre Haute from a homeschooling family of eleven kids, Ethan attended Bethel School of Ministry in Redding, California. He moved to New Albany in 2009 where he married his wife Aberlyn and they are raising their daughter Eve. After serving Southern Indiana for 11 years as a garbage truck operator, driver, and manager, followed by 5 years in technical manufacturing sales, his decision to run for office was driven by concerns about rising costs and the increasing difficulty many Hoosiers face in meeting basic needs such as housing, utilities, and healthcare.

Ethan is strongly motivated by personal values and a sense of civic responsibility to create accessible and accountable representation in Indiana, emphasizing that elected officials should take an active role in addressing economic challenges facing their constituents. His campaign is centered on ensuring that state government works for everyday people rather than large corporations or well-connected interests.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

Affordability. Our agenda will be laser focused on reducing the cost of housing, healthcare, utilities, and childcare. This includes expanding housing supply through zoning reform and targeted incentives, lowering prescription drug and insurance costs through increased transparency and competition, and repealing the sales tax on utilities while increasing accountability on investor-owned utility companies. I also support common sense property tax reform for fixed and low income households at or below the median household income. The goal is to ensure that working families can meet basic needs, build savings, and maintain long-term financial stability.Accountability and transparency. That’s why one of our priorities is creating DART - the Domestic Abuse and Recidivism Tracker. Decades of study have shown that up to 60% of domestic abusers will reoffend within 3 years of a conviction. Repeat abuse is one of the strongest predictors of serious injury or death. DART would create a public record of individuals convicted of domestic abuse, including elder abuse, to help courts and law enforcement identify patterns early and provide real transparency to the community. With an emphasis on due process, deterrence, and protection for victims, DART would focus on accountability for repeat offenders, as well as prevention of future harm.Healthcare. Medical costs are one of the biggest financial pressures families face, and too many people in Indiana are one illness away from serious financial trouble. We need to restore and protect Medicaid support so that working families, seniors, and people with disabilities can get the care they need without punishing red tape that targets them instead of the real perpetrators of fraud. We have to cap insulin at $35 a month in our state. We have to outlaw medical debt being counted against credit scores. We have to bring down healthcare costs and make sure hospitals, especially rural hospitals, can stay open and serve their communities.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Housing. Shelter isn’t optional and shouldn’t be a luxury in Indiana. We have to remove red tape and empower local solutions to scale housing.

Healthcare. We pay more per person for care and have worse outcomes than any comparable country. We have to put people first in Indiana.

Childcare. When kids thrive, families and communities thrive, too. Paid Parental Leave, Pre-K assistance, and fully-funded public schools are non-negotiable for a prosperous and free future.