Overview:
Six Republican candidates were on the ballot to replace outgoing Gov. Eric Holcomb. Indiana hasn't had such a competitive gubernatorial race in decades.
U.S. Sen. Mike Braun blew past the Republican field in the Indiana governor’s race, all but guaranteeing he will be the next elected leader of red-leaning Indiana.
With just 15% of ballots counted, the Associated Press called the race for Braun around 7 p.m., only an hour after polls closed across most of the state.
Braun, a Jasper businessman who is leaving the Senate after serving just one term, currently leads the pack of six candidates vying for the GOP nomination with 39% of the vote as of 9 p.m., with more than 70% of Hoosier votes tallied. Braun was trailed by Suzanne Crouch, the outgoing lieutenant governor, with 22%.
Surrounded by friends and family members, Braun said he felt “like a very lucky individual” after winning “the feistiest, most competitive primary” in state history.
Sen. Mike Braun speaks after winning the Republican primary for Indiana Governor. Credit: Doug McSchooler for Mirror Indy 
Brad Chambers, a Republican candidate for Indiana Governor, delivers his concession speech. Credit: Nate Pappas for Mirror Indy 
Brad Chambers, a Republican candidate for Indiana Governor, delivers his concession speech. Credit: Nate Pappas for Mirror Indy 
Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, a Republican candidate for Indiana governor, gives a concession speech. Credit: Jennifer Wilson Bibbs for Mirror Indy 
Sen. Mike Braun speaks after winning the Republican primary for Indiana Governor. Credit: Doug McSchooler for Mirror Indy 
Sen. Mike Braun speaks after winning the Republican primary for Indiana Governor. Credit: Doug McSchooler for Mirror Indy
“I’ve already had three folks I ran against aggressively call in, wish me well, want to get on board, so we beat the other side of the aisle when it comes to the election in November,” Braun told a crowd of supporters at his election watch party at Moontown Brewing Company in Whitestown.
In a post on X, Crouch called on her supporters to support Braun in November.
“While today’s vote did not give us the victory for which we worked so hard, I am respectful of the outcome and grateful for the opportunity God has given me to meet so many wonderful people,” Crouch said.
Brad Chambers, the former secretary of commerce and president of Buckingham Companies, who put $7 million of his own money into his campaign, had 17% of the vote.
“Tonight, I called U.S. Senator Mike Braun to congratulate him on his victory and offer my support in the months ahead,” Chambers said in a statement. “I entered this race because I believe Indiana is a great state, but that with the right leadership, it could be even better. I hope U.S. Sen. Braun will be the leader Indiana needs and act ambitiously to create more opportunities that will lift up every Hoosier.”
Fort Wayne businessman Eric Doden, another self-funded candidate, had 13% of the vote, while Jamie Reitenour, who made her Christian faith one of the focal points of her campaign, had 5% of the vote. Former Indiana attorney general Curtis Hill received 4% of the vote.
Braun will face Jennifer McCormick, the former Republican state superintendent of education who switched parties after her term ended in 2021, in the November election. McCormick, now a Democrat, has put abortion rights at the center of her campaign as she looks to capitalize on the Republican state legislature’s decision to pass a near total ban on abortion.
Braun’s victory, which was predicted by many Hoosier political observers, put an end to the most expensive primary election in Indiana history and one that saw the field of six fighting to appeal to the state’s hardline conservative base.
The candidates looked to distance themselves from Gov. Eric Holcomb, the popular two-term Republican governor who succeeded Mike Pence after Pence was tapped to be Donald Trump’s running mate in 2016. During debates, the candidates often focused their attention on fentanyl trafficking, Chinese influence, and migration at the southern border — policy issues that are typically decided at the national level.
Holcomb, who declined to endorse a successor, released a brief, two-sentence statement May 7 congratulating Braun on a “decisive victory.”
The tenor of those debates prompted ReCenter Indiana, a bipartisan political action committee, to call on Hoosier Democrats to vote Republican in the Tuesday primary. (The group later endorsed Chambers.)
There’s anecdotal evidence some voters did cross lines to have a say in the gubernatorial race. Jacob Korb, 30, is a longtime Democrat who lives in Garfield Park. But today, he voted in the Republican primary solely for the governor’s race.
“Indiana is not on track to elect a Democrat,” Korb said. “I feel like my voice would be heard a little better if I at least got to choose a Republican candidate.”
His vote for Crouch is meant more as a vote against Braun, who Korb sees as the most staunchly conservative candidate.
“I didn’t mind much of Holcomb’s tenure or policies,” Korb said. “He was never a reactionary or headliner. While I know (his relationship with Crouch) is strained, I feel like they align more with what I want for the state than Mike Braun.”
In the months leading up to the race, five of the candidates criticized Braun for his support for a qualified immunity reform bill in 2020 that would have increased scrutiny of police and for leaving the U.S. Senate after serving just one term. Braun was missing from a debate hosted by the Indiana Debate Commission to cast a vote on an aid bill for Ukraine, but his absence didn’t appear to impact his chances. If anything, his decision not to attend what was a disorganized event could have served to his advantage.
Braun, 70, was considered the frontrunner when he entered the race in December 2022 and was the heavy favorite in most polls leading up to Election Day. He gave up his Senate seat to run and endorsed Congressman Jim Banks, another Trump-backed Republican, as his successor. Banks was uncontested in the primary.
Braun posted a screenshot of a Truth Social post from Trump calling on Hoosiers to vote for Braun.
Prior to becoming a U.S. senator, Braun was an Indiana state representative from 2014 to 2017 and previously served on the Jasper school board for 10 years.
Mirror Indy reporter Mary Claire Molloy contributed to this story. Peter Blanchard covers local government. Reach him at 317-605-4836 or peter.blanchard@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @peterlblanchard.
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