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| INDIANA |
Nov. 6,
2012 U.S. Senate |
|
Registered
voters: 4,555,257. Voters voting: 2,663,368.
Plurality: 147,560 votes (5.76 percentage points). IN
Sec. of State Election Division
DEMOCRATIC PICK-UP Notes: Sen. Richard Lugar (R), seeking a seventh term, lost the May 8 Republican primary to Tea Party supported State Treasurer Richard Mourdock (R), but on Nov. 6 Mourdock lost to U.S. Rep. Joe Donnelly (D) resulting in a Democratic pick-up. Also on the ballot, Andrew Horning (L) achieved a strong showing in the race. The defeat of Lugar, a respected voice on foreign policy who was first elected to the Senate in 1976, sent a shock through the political establishment and was one of the most newsworthy stories to come out of the 2012 Senate races. Mourdock, who started his career as a geologist, had made several unsuccessful attempts for higher office, including three runs for Congress and a bid for secretary of state, before being elected treasurer in 2006. He announced his candidacy for Senate on Feb. 22, 2011, claiming support of a majority of Republican county chairs. On April 11, 2012 Lugar and Mourdock participated in a debate at IUPUI (>). The primary result was not close—Mourdock won by 400,321 votes (60.5%) to 261,285 (39.5%). Analysis suggests Lugar had lost touch with grassroots Republicans, but that in itself was not all. As reported in an excellent article in Roll Call, support from the Club for Growth, headed by a fellow Hoosier, was critical to Mourdock's success in the May 8 primary. Age may have also been a factor; Lugar celebrated his 80th birthday in Apr. 2012. On the Democratic side, Donnelly was unopposed in the primary. Before being elected to Congress in 2006 representing the 2nd CD (North Central Indiana, including South Bend), he served on the Mishawaka Marian School Board, ran a printing company, and worked as an attorney. Horning, the Libertarian nominee, brought considerable political experience to the race; he was the party's nominee for governor in 2000 and 2008 (>). His career has focused on cardiovascular diagnostics, medical imaging science and technology. Mourdock, Donnelly and Horning participated in two debates sponsored by the Indiana Debate Commission (>). The first meeting was at WFYI studios in Indianapolis (>). The second meeting took place at Indiana University Southeast in New Albany (>). While it is often said that candidate debates don't have much impact on election outcomes, remarks by Mourdock in the second debate likely cost him and Republicans the election. Explaining his pro-life position, Mourdock stated, "The only exception I have for, to have an abortion, is in that case of the life of the mother. I just, I struggled with it myself for a long time, but I came to realize life is that gift from God, and I think even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen...(>)." While Donnelly won by 147,560 votes (5.76 percentage points), Mitt Romney defeated President Obama in Indiana by 54.13% to 43.93% (267,656 votes or 10.20 percentage points) and in the governor's race Mike Pence (R) defeated John Gregg (D) by 75,408 votes (2.93 percentage points). As the Indianapolis Star noted, Donnelly's win marked a rare statewide triumph for Democrats in the Hoosier State, their last victories being Obama's win in the 2008 presidential race and Sen. Evan Bayh's 2004 re-election. According to Open Secrets (>), the Mourdock campaign spent $8.8 million compared to $5.6 million for the Donnelly campaign. Spending by outside groups was significant; eight groups invested more than $1 million in the race. On the Republican side, the NRSC spent $4.8 million followed by Club for Growth Action ($3.6m), Crossroads GPS ($3.3m), Freedomworks for America ($2.7m), American Crossroads ($1.4m) and Ending Spending ($1.0m); on the Democratic side, the biggest spending groups were Majority PAC ($4.4m) and DSCC ($4.2m). Campaign Managers: Joe Donnelly: Paul Tencher (July 2011) Coordinated campaign manager for the Vermont Democratic Party, Sept.-Nov. 2010. Campaign manager on Deb Markowitz for Governor (VT), Oct. 2009-Aug. 2010. Communications director to U.S. Rep. Mary Jo Kilroy (OH), Jan.-Oct. 2009. Director of communications and research on Judy Baker for Congress (MO), Aug.-Nov. 2008. Director of strategic communications for the RI Free Clinic, June-Aug. 2008. Chief of staff to Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts, Jan. 2007-May 2008. Rhode Island political outreach on Hillary Clinton for President, 2008. Campaign manager on Roberts for Lt. Governor, Jan.-Dec. 2006. Press secretary to Secretary of State Matt Brown, 2004-06. Account executive at Vision Strategies, Jan.-Sept. 2004. Campaign manager for Camden County Democrats, 2003. Deputy press secretary on Anne Sumers for Congress, 2002. Bachelor's degree in communication, general from Seton Hall University, 2002. Richard Mourdock: Jim Holden Chief deputy and general counsel in the Indiana Treasurer's Office from 2007. Chief of investigations at the Indiana Department of Insurance, 2005-06. Deputy Attorney General in Indiana, 2002-05. Board of Commissioners of the Indianapolis Housing Agency, 2002-04. Administrative law judge for Marion County Poor Relief Appeals, 2001-03. Assistant director of the Indiana Lobby Registration Commission, 1999-2002. Aide to U.S. Rep. John Hostettler (IN-8), 1996-98. J.D. from Indiana University; B.A. in political science from Indiana University Bloomington. Has served in the U.S. Army Reserve since 2004. See also: Chris Sikich. "Donnelly wins Indiana Senate race for Democrats. USA Today [The Indianapolis Star], Nov. 6, 2012. Elspeth Reeve. "Mourdock Is Sorry You Misunderstood His Rape Pregnancy Comments." The Atlantic, Oct. 24, 2012. Shira Toeplitz. "Indiana: How Richard Mourdock Won the Club for Growth." Roll Call, May 9, 2012. Chris Cillizza and Aaron Blake. "Why Dick Lugar lost." The Washington Post, May 9, 2012. Dave Catanese. "How Mourdock took down Lugar." Politico, May 8, 2012. Mark Meissner. "Why Lugar Lost." HuffPost, May 8, 2012. Ken Rudin. "Once Nixon's Favorite Mayor, Dick Lugar Is Now Obama's 'Favorite Republican.'" NPR, Feb. 25, 2011. Jonathan Chait. "The Predictable Demise of Dick Lugar." The New Republic, Feb. 21, 2011. |
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