Less than a month from the May 7 primary, the Republican contests for Indiana’s open governorship and Senate seat are charting sharply different courses. The fight to replace term-limited Gov. Eric Holcomb is emerging as a melee between three challengers desperate to chip away at Sen. Mike Braun’s lead, with attacks flying in all directions and gobs of money flooding the state’s airwaves. Meanwhile, the Senate primary has been silent for months, with Rep. Jim Banks uncontested for the GOP nomination and on cruise control to the upper chamber.
GovernorWhen Sen. Mike Braun, 70, announced in 2022 that he would forgo a reelection bid and turn his attention toward a campaign for the governor’s mansion, it was clear he was in the driver’s seat for the Republican nomination. Now, with hundreds of thousands of dollars in attack ads flying in Braun’s direction, his frontrunner status is being put to the test.
Insiders agree that three well-funded Republican rivals — former state Commerce Secretary Brad Chambers, Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch and former Indiana Economic Development Corporation President Eric Doden — have
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