Indiana race for governor transformed by Pence withdrawal
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Democrat John Gregg ran for Indiana governor hoping to beat Republican incumbent Mike Pence in a rematch of their 2012 campaign. But after Pence quit the campaign to become Donald Trump's vice presidential running mate, Gregg shifted gears to GOP replacement Eric Holcomb and has tried to tie him to Pence's policies such as the state's much-criticized religious objections law.
Gregg appealed to Hoosier voters by saying he would steer clear of the nation's culture wars. A Gregg victory in Tuesday's election would end 12 years of Republican control of the governor's office.
Gregg started out better known than Holcomb, who has never been elected to office and only became Pence's lieutenant governor eight months ago.
Thrust into the campaign in late July, Holcomb had to sprint around the state introducing himself to voters. To deflect Gregg's criticism on social issues, Holcomb has stressed economic bright spots such as a $2.4 billion state budget surplus, an unemployment rate of only 4.5 percent, recent tax cuts and the state's AAA credit rating.
He also has largely avoided mentioning Pence, instead highlighting his time working for Pence's two-term popular predecessor, former Gov. Mitch Daniels.
Gregg, a former Indiana House speaker, has attacked Holcomb as a "rubber stamp" for Pence, citing Holcomb's support for the religious-objections law that critics said sanctioned discrimination against gays and lesbians. A centerpiece of Gregg's campaign is to extend state civil rights protections to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.
Holcomb said the state hasn't suffered lasting economic harm from the religious-objections law. He said the Republican-dominated General Assembly is unlikely to advance an LGBT rights bill after a compromise attempt failed during this year's legislative session.
Arthur Kelley Jr., a 53-year-old custodian for the South Bend Community School Corp., said Holcomb's support for Pence's policies prompted him to support Gregg on Tuesday.
"I voted for him because I wasn't going along with everything that Mr. Holcomb was trying to continue from Mr. Pence, so I think Mr. Gregg would be a better choice for our governor," Kelley said.
Lenny Paxton, a 56-year-old retired train engineer from LaPorte, said he voted for Holcomb because of Gregg's support for Hillary Clinton and Holcomb's priority of continuing Republican state budget policies.
"I mean, we're fiscally responsible. We owe that to the previous governors we had," Paxton said. "We need accountability across the board. County, state and national."
Pence's decision to drop his re-election bid means Indiana will have a one-term governor for the first time since the state constitution was changed in the 1970s to allow governors to seek a second consecutive term.
Holcomb, 48, has mostly been a behind-the-scenes political operative, including chairman of the state Republican Party. He spent 10 months running for this year's Republican U.S. Senate nomination, but had little fundraising success. He dropped out when Pence picked him to become lieutenant governor in March, after Pence's 2012 running mate, Sue Ellspermann, resigned to take a university job.
Gregg, 62, was first elected as a state representative from a rural southwestern Indiana district in 1986, after working as a coal company lobbyist and practicing law in Vincennes. He has been out of public office since stepping down as Indiana House speaker in 2002. He has since worked as interim president of Vincennes University and as a partner with an Indianapolis-based law firm.