Voters will decide the next mayor of Indianapolis on Nov. 5. Ahead of that decision, WFYI City Reporter Darian Benson spoke with the candidates.

The council passed the $1.2 billion budget 22-2. It includes increased funding for the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department and Indianapolis Fire Department and $500,000 for food insecurity initiatives.

The Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention, CHIP, gave the candidates five questions -- including how they would address racial disparity in the barriers to housing.

Three Indianapolis mayoral candidates participated in a public forum on the city's neighborhoods. When asked how they would improve commuter traffic on the city's northeast side, each candidate had a different solution.

The group presented the mayoral candidates with desired changes in education, public safety and economic policy.

Democratic incumbent Joe Hogsett and Republican challenger Jim Merritt's first face to face mayoral debate focused on fighting poverty and raising the minimum wage.

The largest allocations from the city go to three categories: 22% for public safety initiatives, 25% for the broadly defined "public services," and 38% for criminal justice services.

Mayor Joe Hogsett introduced the policy recommendations by noting that while the city has seen significant growth in the last ten years, poverty has gone up by 80%.

Five community organizations received $60,000 from the Community-Based Violence Prevention Partnership.

Merritt says as mayor he would work to provide tax incentives or subsidies to local food markets in areas with food insecurity.