INDIANAPOLIS (AP) 鈥� Republican Mike Braun won the Indiana governor鈥檚 race Tuesday, defeating Democrat Jennifer McCormick, a former Republican who split with the party after serving as the state鈥檚 schools superintendent.
The victory by Braun, a U.S. senator who鈥檚 the wealthy founder of a national auto parts distribution business, extends the GOP鈥檚 20-year-hold on the state鈥檚 top office in deep red Indiana.
Braun, 70, will succeed outgoing Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb, who could not seek a third term because of term limits. Braun opted not to seek reelection to a second term in the Senate so he could run for governor. He won the GOP鈥檚 six-way May to succeed Holcomb with about 40% of the vote.
Braun quickly became the frontrunner in the race, bolstered by several advantages: name recognition, money and former President Donald Trump鈥檚 endorsement.
Braun鈥檚 running mate, ultra-conservative Christian pastor Micah Beckwith, Braun had endorsed state for his running mate when he became the GOP nominee for governor.
While Indiana delegates usually back the nominee鈥檚 chosen running mate without a challenge, at the state Republican Party convention in June after he had lobbied delegates for a year to win the nomination.
Beckwith, who promotes uncompromising positions on abortion, gender and sexuality, cohosts a 鈥淛esus, Sex and Politics鈥� podcast,
Republicans have controlled Indiana鈥檚 governor鈥檚 office since Mitch Daniels defeated the late Democrat Joe Kernan in 2004. And Democrats haven鈥檛 won a statewide office in Indiana since 2012, when Glenda Ritz won election as the state鈥檚 schools superintendent and Democrat Joe Donnelly won a U.S. Senate seat.
McCormick, then a Republican, defeated Ritz for the schools chief post in 2016 after with Republican Statehouse leaders following numerous policy clashes between Ritz, then-Gov. Mike Pence and top GOP lawmakers.
But McCormick split from the GOP over education policy and changed her party affiliation to Democrat after her term ended in early 2021.
McCormick鈥檚 running mate was Terry Goodin, a Democrat who served in the Indiana House from 2000 to 2020. Those 20 years were marked by conservative votes against key Democratic issues, including abortion and same-sex marriage, but Goodin has apologized for those votes and promised that he鈥檚 changed his mind.
Braun and McCormick were joined in the governor鈥檚 race by Libertarian Donald Rainwater.
Hoosier voters were also deciding Tuesday the state鈥檚 attorney general鈥檚 race, choosing between Republican incumbent Todd Rokita and Democrat Destiny Wells. Rokita, a conservative former congressman, is seeking a second term. Wells, a lawyer and Army Reserve lieutenant colonel, ran unsuccessfully for Indiana secretary of state in 2022.
Rick Callahan, The Associated Press
