Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh has at least 11,443,338 reasons not to sweat his bid for a third term. And that is not just a random number, but the cash-on-hand total he reported having in the bank as of March 31 and one that is certain to become larger by the end of the second quarter on June 30.
Bayh, the son of a former Senator, launched his political career at the age of 30 when he won a race for Secretary of State in 1986. In 1988, he ran for Governor, beating then-Republican Lt. Gov. John Mutz, 53 percent to 47 percent. He easily won re-election in 1992 with 62 percent even as Democratic presidential nominee Bill Clinton took just 37 percent in the state. When Bayh left office in 1996, it was widely anticipated that he would challenge GOP Sen. Dan Coats in 1998, but Coats announced after the 1996 elections that he would not seek re-election, creating an open seat. Bayh had no primary opposition and faced then-Ft. Wayne Mayor Paul Helmke in the general election, winning the
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