Adam Solga
Current Deputy Coroner under incumbent Zach Crouch, seeking to succeed Crouch in an open-seat race. A Blackford High School graduate with Indiana Law Enforcement Academy certification (2014) and nearly two decades of community-safety service across the Montpelier Police Department, Blackford and Wells County Sheriff's Offices, and the Coroner's Office. Also works as a production shift manager at Petoskey Plastics, one of Blackford County's largest employers.
The 60-second story
Adam Solga is one of two Republican candidates seeking the open Blackford County Coroner seat in the May 5, 2026 primary. Incumbent Coroner Zach Crouch is ineligible to run for another term. Solga's opponent is Tarick Townsend Strine, a registered nurse and director of nursing. No Democrat had filed by the February 6, 2026 deadline, making the Republican primary the de facto general election.
Solga currently serves as Deputy Coroner of Blackford County, working directly under Crouch in conducting death investigations. He is also employed as a production shift manager at Petoskey Plastics — the Michigan-based recycling and plastics manufacturer that operates a 300,000-square-foot facility at 1100 W. Grant Street in Hartford City, one of the county's largest industrial employers with approximately 115 employees.
He is a Blackford High School graduate who completed the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in 2014. His community-safety career dates to 2006, with service across the Montpelier Police Department, Blackford County Sheriff's Office, Wells County Sheriff's Office, and the Blackford County Coroner's Office. He frames his candidacy around training, professional certification, and field experience in death investigation — distinguishing himself from Strine's nursing-and-modernization pitch.
Quick facts
- Residence Rural Hartford City, Indiana (Blackford County)
- Education Blackford High School; Indiana Law Enforcement Academy (2014)
- Current role Deputy Coroner, Blackford County (under incumbent Zach Crouch)
- Day job Production Shift Manager, Petoskey Plastics (1100 W. Grant St., Hartford City)
- Prior law enforcement Montpelier Police Department; Blackford County Sheriff's Office; Wells County Sheriff's Office (since 2006)
- Opponent Tarick Townsend Strine (R) — RN, Director of Nursing at Hearts with Integrity
- Seat status Open seat — incumbent Zach Crouch ineligible to run again
Three things voters should know
He's the incumbent's deputy — the continuity candidate
Solga currently serves as Deputy Coroner under Zach Crouch, the incumbent who is ineligible to run for another term. This gives him direct field experience conducting death investigations in Blackford County and an established working relationship with law enforcement, hospitals, and funeral homes. His opponent Strine, by contrast, has no prior coroner's office experience and frames himself as a fresh-start candidate with a modernization agenda.
He frames the contest as certification and field experience vs. medical knowledge
In the News-Times Q&A, Solga explicitly distinguished training and certification from minimum legal qualifications: 'While the legal qualifications for coroner match those of the auditor, treasurer or even sheriff, I believe training, knowledge and field experience are among the attributes that truly set a candidate apart.' Strine counters with nursing credentials and a calm-in-crisis disposition. In Indiana, where the coroner is an elected position without a medical-degree requirement, this contrast captures the central tension of the race.
His day job is at one of Blackford County's largest employers
Petoskey Plastics operates a 300,000-square-foot recycling and manufacturing facility in Hartford City, processing over 30 million pounds of recycled plastic annually and employing approximately 115 people. The coroner position in a county this size is part-time; essentially all Indiana county coroners outside the largest counties hold concurrent employment.
Biography
Adam Solga grew up in Blackford County, Indiana, and graduated from Blackford High School. He is a rural Hartford City resident with ties to Montpelier, the county's second-largest town. He graduated from the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy in 2014 — the state's mandatory training program for sworn law-enforcement officers, administered through the Indiana Law Enforcement Training Board.
His community-safety career began in 2006 with the Montpelier Police Department. He subsequently served with the Blackford County Sheriff's Office and the Wells County Sheriff's Office (Wells County borders Blackford to the west). His law-enforcement career across these three agencies provided the investigative and scene-management training he now applies as Deputy Coroner.
He currently holds two concurrent positions: Deputy Coroner of Blackford County (under incumbent Zach Crouch) and production shift manager at Petoskey Plastics. Petoskey Plastics is a Michigan-headquartered environmentally-focused plastics recycler and film manufacturer that purchased the Hartford City facility in 2007 and has expanded it significantly — including a $9.7 million expansion in 2013 that created 80 jobs, and a $5.4 million expansion in 2021 backed by a 10-year tax abatement from the Hartford City Council. The plant processes over 30 million pounds of recycled plastic annually.
In the Hartford City News-Times candidate Q&A (April 2026), Solga emphasized the historic and constitutional significance of the coroner's role, noting its origins in Medieval England and the continuing importance of impartial death investigation. He framed his qualifications around 'training, knowledge and field experience' and his commitment to 'cooperation and communication between all departments and offices.' He emphasized that the coroner 'must remain impartial regardless of a person's employment, social reputation, or economic status, while at the same time effectively conducting thorough investigations alongside and with all relevant authorities present.'
Career
Memberships & affiliations
Indiana Law Enforcement Academy alumni (2014 graduate), Blackford County Coroner's Office (Deputy Coroner, current)
Prior government service
Positions, in their own words
"While the legal qualifications for coroner match those of the auditor, treasurer or even sheriff, I believe training, knowledge and field experience are among the attributes that truly set a candidate apart in any setting. Having served this community since 2006 through the Montpelier Police Department, Blackford County Sheriff's Office and the Blackford County Coroner's Office, I offer the dedicated commitment and professional certification the community deserves."— Hartford City News-Times candidate Q&A, April 2026
"I believe the coroner must remain impartial regardless of a person's employment, social reputation, or economic status, while at the same time effectively conducting thorough investigations alongside and with all relevant authorities present. It is crucial to balance this objectivity with genuine care and compassion for the families involved."— Hartford City News-Times candidate Q&A, April 2026
"If elected, I will continue to move forward by strengthening cooperation and communication between all departments and offices, ensuring we move in a positive direction to better serve everyone in the community."— Hartford City News-Times candidate Q&A, April 2026
Where the money came from
$0 raised this cycle · 0 contributions
- Local CFA-4 not in state online system$0