Indiana GOP panel nominates Eric Holcomb for governor

The Indiana Republican central committee has nominated Lt. Gov. Eric Holcomb for governor, snubbing two members of Congress in favor of Gov. Mike Pence’s former running mate.

The decision caps off a wild month in Indiana politics that saw Pence abruptly drop his re-election bid to run for vice president, upending the state’s governor’s race and leaving Indiana Republicans without a clear standard-bearer less than four months before the election.

With Tuesday’s vote, the sitting lieutenant governor and former party chairman becomes the new face of the Indiana Republican Party, and will face Democrat John Gregg in November.

"We've got work to do and a short time to get there," Holcomb said at a news conference announcing his nomination. "I'm ready to answer this next call and lead us to victory."

Gregg, though, questioned Holcomb's commitment to being governor during a year in which he ran for U.S. Senate, became lieutenant governor and is now seeking the state's top job.

"I've spent the last six years running for governor because I'm passionate about this job," Gregg said after Holcomb's selection. "I didn't start running for anything else. This isn't a consolation prize."

The 22-member state committee, comprised of party insiders and elected officials, had four gubernatorial contenders to choose from: Holcomb, U.S. Reps. Susan Brooks and Todd Rokita and state Sen. Jim Tomes.

Pushing a party unity message, Indiana Republican Party Chairman Jeff Cardwell declined to release the voting results from the closed-door meeting.

"As you know, this has been a very tough campaign," Cardwell said. "We have a very deep bench. We are blessed with a lot of great talent."

But sources with direct knowledge of the outcome told IndyStar it took two rounds of secret-ballot voting before any of the candidates reached the required majority. On the first ballot, Holcomb received 11 votes, Brooks 9 and Rokita 2. On the second ballot, Holcomb received 14 votes and Brooks received 8, sources said.

A longtime Republican political operative, Holcomb is a former top aide to U.S. Sen. Dan Coats and former Gov. Mitch Daniels. He was in the midst of an uphill primary battle to replace the retiring Coats when Pence tapped him to become lieutenant governor.

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As Pence's sitting lieutenant, Holcomb had entered the race as the heir apparent though he has never won an election. But over a frenzied week-and-a-half lobbying effort, some committee members said Brooks had closed the gap by making the case that she was the more electable candidate.

Pence’s endorsement on Friday, followed by an email in which Holcomb suggested that he alone could reliably command Pence’s financial support, may have helped put Holcomb back in the driver’s seat.

That financial support was called into jeopardy almost immediately after Tuesday’s vote. The bulk of Pence’s roughly $7.4 million in campaign cash may not be available to Holcomb in his run for governor because of restrictions on how those seeking federal office can use their state accounts, according to campaign finance experts.

Pence cheered the committee's decision, saying in a statement that it gives Indiana voters a clear choice in November between his candidate and Gregg, a former Indiana House speaker and lobbyist.

"Hoosiers will choose between a veteran who has always answered the call to serve or a career politician turned lobbyist," Pence said.

Because Holcomb has aligned himself with Pence, his selection will likely be seen as a victory for social conservatives, who for years have been jockeying with moderates over the party’s direction, culminating most prominently in the bitter debate over religious freedom and gay rights.

Gregg in an interview wasted no time linking the lieutenant governor to Pence, saying Holcomb has "already endorsed the discriminatory policies of the last administration."

Gregg discussed Holcomb's selection Tuesday after touring Poynter Sheet Metal, a factory in Greenwood. Gregg, who supports a statewide anti-discrimination law, said LGBT rights represents "just one of the many" major disagreements between the candidates.

"Our focus is going to be on jobs that are high-paying," Gregg said. "That's what it's about. It's focusing on those issues, not on divisive social issues."

Holcomb declined Tuesday to distance himself from Pence’s opposition to a proposed statewide ban on discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Hoosiers.

“When you speculate about future legislation, we’ll play it as it comes to my desk should I be honored with being the next governor of this state,” he said. “But we have a balance right now of protecting our religious liberties while making sure we’re not discriminating.”

Despite his conservative roots, Holcomb has proven adept at winning friends on both sides of the culture war. As such, his selection as Pence’s lieutenant governor earlier this year — and as the party’s nominee for governor on Tuesday — widely was seen as an attempt to reconcile the two wings of the party.

“There is a little bit of a divide on those social issues,” said Rick Martin, a member of the committee who declined to share information about how the committee voted. “Eric, having worked for both Daniels and Pence, can serve as a bridge to bring back people who may have been put off by the whole RFRA thing.”

Eric Holcomb gets GOP nod for governor: Here's some reaction

Holcomb now will have 105 days to persuade Indiana voters which Republican Party he represents — the party of Daniels, Pence or something in between.

For Democrats, Holcomb may represent the best chance to paint the November election as a referendum on Pence, an embattled governor whose approval rating had dropped to below 50 percent over the past year.

"While there may be a new name on the ballot, the issues remain the same," Gregg said following Holcomb's selection.

The Indiana Democratic Party, meanwhile, issued a news release titled, “With Eric Holcomb, Hoosiers are Getting Just Another Out-of-Touch Ideologue.

The next task for Holcomb and the state committee will be to decide who will be his running mate. A caucus meeting is scheduled for Aug. 1 to fill the ballot vacancy for lieutenant governor.

IndyStar reporter Chelsea Schneider contributed to this story.

Call IndyStar reporter Brian Eason at (317) 444-6129. Follow him on Twitter: @brianeason.

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