GOSHEN — It may be a new election, but several of the issues were the same.

Traffic on the south side of town and getting over (or under) trains ranked among the top issues facing Goshen, according to Republican candidates in the upcoming primary and general municipal elections. A total of 16 candidates shared those and other concerns with approximately 60 attendees during Thursday evening’s GOP candidates’ night, held at Boscos Place.

The comments on traffic and trains came as the candidates answered one of four prepared questions, that of which issues each believed to be the most important to the community. Among other answers were spending, illegal immigration, communication between the Goshen City Council and the mayor, making Goshen more business-friendly, having public officials more willing to listen to constituents’ concerns and, of course, jobs, more jobs, and a more diverse array of jobs.

“We just don’t have the jobs in this area to motivate kids to come back here,” Doug Nisley, a candidate for one of two at-large council seats, said.

The sentiment of making Goshen a place where residents’ children want to return after school or to raise their own children was one echoed by many of the candidates. Even Zack Bontrager, a 17-year-old (soon to be 18) candidate for the city’s second district council seat, said he was running because he wanted to make Goshen a place he could raise his children.

Along with the question of major city issues and why they were running for office, candidates fielded questions on the city’s role in addressing illegal immigration issues and the city’s role in quality of life issues.

“I think the city’s role is to provide the best quality of life they can provide with whatever funds they have left over after taking care of the absolute needs of the city,” current council president and candidate for re-election as an at-large member Tom Stump said.

The candidates generally agreed that emergency services — police, fire and emergency medical services — and the street department should remain untouched by budget cuts. Where they saw the ability for paring back of expenditures was largely in what they saw as unnecessary or luxury projects, such as bicycle paths, roundabouts, and, Stump joked, the salaries of Democratic council members.

Among the only candidates to suggest specific cuts when directly asked was Nisley, who pointed out the city’s Community Relations Commission, city employee cell phones and the park department. Most of the remaining candidates said projects should be put on hold, department heads should cut their own budgets further and the mayor should begin the process by bringing a balanced budget.

During answers to the question on immigration, no candidate suggested a solution, but several proposed ways to begin to address local issues caused by what they said was a failure of the federal and state government to address the larger problem. Dixie Robinson, running for re-election to continue serving the city’s third district, said anyone who is found by police to not have insurance should have their vehicle impounded. Stump went further, adding that anyone found to be without a driver’s license should also have their vehicle impounded. Nisley went further still, saying the individual shouldn’t be able to retrieve their vehicle until they had paid all their fines, completed all court obligations, obtained a license and insurance and were able to prove the vehicle belonged to them.

Kelly Huffman, running for the council seat representing district four, pointed out what she saw as a key to the whole situation, referencing something told to her son at a military base by his superior. She said current laws needed to be better enforced.

“The second you don’t enforce a rule, you’ve written a new one,” Huffman said.

The evening ended with candidates answering the question of why Goshen’s residents should vote for them. Answers ranged from accessibility to constituents to experience, from timing to age and just for the opportunity to serve the residents.

Also making an appearance during the evening was Jackie Walorski, Republican candidate for Indiana’s second congressional district. She told attendees she, they and every conservative in the country are fighting for the nation, to bring it back to its former glory.

“That’s not going to happen under a president and Congress who want to destroy the Constitution,” Walorski said.

She said that battle starts here in Goshen.