Candidate Q&A: Ryan Ogden

Charles (Ryan) Ogden is running for Wayne County Council District 2 as a Democratic candidate in the 2026 general election.

Bio highlights: I am a graduate of Union High School in Modoc, IN. I graduated from Ivy Tech in Richmond and have been a Registered Nurse for 14 years. I began my career at Reid Health, where I worked for 5 years. I have worked as a Resource Nurse at Methodist and University Hospitals for IU Health in Indianapolis for the past 9 years. Prior to nursing, I was an employee of Silgan (Alcoa) for 10 years. I take pride in my work and making sure my patients—regardless of their background—are treated with dignity and respect.

Reasons to run: The initial reason I ran for this office was to give more voters in this area an option to vote for someone they may align with. Representation is important, and to have a strong government, I believe there must be input and resistance from multiple perspectives and both parties.

I personally ran to put my energy towards improving lives and policy because I felt overlooked and frustrated as a Democrat in this political environment. Additionally, I hope to give an option to independents and Republicans who share my vitriol towards mass surveillance and the billionaires attempting to steal our privacy.

Top priorities: My first priority is to work with other members of council to protect our citizens from the budgetary shortfalls guaranteed to come as repercussions of the Republican super-majority passing SB1. Second, I have pledged to never vote for any budget that allows for tracking and surveillance of Wayne County citizens. Flock Safety, and all other variations of ALPR devices are an invasion of our privacy and violation of our Constitutional freedom from illegal search and should be removed from all Wayne County roads. Third, I am opposed to any data center development in Wayne County. The land lost will not be recovered, the industrial pressure they represent would put relentless stress on our water systems and electrical grids while bringing very few permanent jobs to Wayne County. Our environment deserves our protection and we can not sell out to billionaires.

Specific skills: I am a relentless worker and will do whatever necessary for results. As a nurse, I am able to process and work through situations logically and follow protocols, and also use critical thinking and creativity to get a more positive outcome. Council has challenges ahead of it that will require both critical thinking and creativity to properly fund county departments. I also possess empathy and that is necessary for thoughtful decision making, as opposed to being strictly numbers driven.

Should continue: I am seeking to join Wayne County Council to help lead from the local level. I believe Wayne County has a strong fairground and partner programs and will work to maintain the Wayne County Fairgrounds as a site. The fair is well run, is well attended, and is an overall highlight of the year for the people of the county.

Need to change: I will lead in a way that brings new voices to the table and keeps in mind the average citizen struggling with new tax burdens. I will honor the privacy of our residents, working to eliminate Flock cameras from Wayne County and prevent their reintroduction. I would like more input from the citizenry, and would like to make Council meetings more convenient for the public to attend by adjusting the meeting time.

Accept election results: Yes, I have complete faith in the individuals who run our county elections. The talks done by the poll workers are vital to our democracy.

Funding strategies: County Council will be affected, maybe not as a body itself, but directly in the immediate budgetary decisions they will make. Strategically, the goal is to limit the amount of departments that may begin to be underfunded. I would look into cost cutting measures, possibly through continued and increased sharing of equipment and delaying purchases if feasible. Additionally, verifying the continued benefit of current tax breaks given to companies could aid in closing the funding gaps.

Engaging the public: During my contact with voters, it became evident that many citizens are not familiar with the form and function of local government, which chokes involvement. I would like to inform the public through education on how local government works by creating media to share with them to increase overall voter literacy. I would like to start a program in local schools to educate our children in political processes so they are prepared future voters. I would create routes for those lines of communication, such as Facebook and texting, and encourage their use.

Other comments: I hope to motivate more people to have an increased involvement in local politics, to get more engaged citizens to run for office or simply get more voters to the polls. Wayne County has very passionate people that have a lot to offer and I’d like to see them get the chance to show their leadership potential. Through my conversations during this campaign, I found many citizens feel disconnected and ignored by political processes, and I would like to see them gain a sense of understanding of how government is organized and how the different agencies and departments are funded and operate. To bring positive change, our overall knowledge base and participation must increase. Government is owned by the people, not the few that are elected to lead it.