Winners & losers in Indiana politics
A look at which Hoosier pols are up—and which ones are down.
Indiana—and Hoosier politicos—climbed to the top of the national news cycle again last week. Whether it was the ramifications of my POLITICO scoop—reported out with my colleagues—that Pete Buttigieg was changing his voter registration to Michigan or Hoosier attorney Jim Bopp's viral comments that a 10-year-old rape victim should've carried her child to term, Indiana remained IMPORTANTVILLE.
Here, in a new feature that will be available only for subscribers starting next Sunday, is a look at last week's winners and losers in Indiana politics.
WINNERS
SEN. TODD YOUNG—The Republican incumbent raised $1.5 million last quarter and has $6.8 million cash on hand. His opponent, Democratic Hammond Mayor Thomas M. McDermott, Jr., raised only $238,000 and has $165,000 in cash on hand.
JENNIFER RUTH-GREEN—The 1st Congressional District Republican challenger outraised Democratic incumbent Rep. Frank J. Mrvan by nearly $300,000, posting a haul of $626,340 to Mrvan's $356,590.
ERIC DODEN AND LT. GOV SUZANNE CROUCH—Fort Wayne businessman Eric Doden raised $1.4 million in the first half of the year as his bid to become a frontrunner in the 2024 gubernatorial primary by throwing his hat into the ring last year is paying off—literally. He has $2.4 million cash on hand. When I talked with her a few weeks back, Suzanne Crouch sounded to me very much like a 2024 candidate and raised $888,000 during the same period. She has $2.5 million in the bank. Both are in a good position to be serious candidates, particularly if retiring Rep. Trey Hollingsworth and Sen. Mike Braun decide against runs of their own—runs, of course, that they could easily bankroll from their vast personal fortunes.
CHRISTINA HALE—The Biden-Harris appointee and former 5th Congressional District Democratic candidate is out with a new book about running for office, titled Why Not You: A Leadership Guide for the Change-Makers of Tomorrow. Indiana Democratic Party Chairman Mike Schmuhl writes the foreword.
LOSERS
SEN. TODD YOUNG—It was a week of good news and bad news for the senator, whose signature China competitiveness bill that he's worked on for months is on the rocks.
TOM MCDERMOTT—With less than four months before the election, Young’s otherwise pugilistic opponent shows few signs of putting up a competitive fundraising campaign. “People tell me all the time how badly I’m going to lose and how badly Todd Young is going to mop the floor with me,” McDermott said on his podcast recently. “I literally never read anything positive whatsoever, but obviously, we keep plugging away.”
REP. VICTORIA SPARTZ—The congresswoman has blown a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to be perceived as a thoughtful and credible messenger on foreign policy as the only Ukrainian-born member of Congress, according to reporting from my colleagues at POLITICO. They write: "Inside the House GOP Conference, there's a widespread fear that her posture is damaging U.S.-Ukraine relations at the worst possible time — and that she's being played by forces that aim to weaken the Western alliance."
INDIANA DEMOCRATS—Pete Buttigieg has left the Hoosier state for the Wolverine state, perhaps once and for all. His presidential campaign could have given a jolt to Indiana Democrats if he had pursued a run for governor in 2024 (no, he isn't interested in serving in Congress). But there are still ways for him to have a down-ballot impact on Indiana's elections in November. In his personal capacity, Buttigieg already has spoken to Minnesota Democrats earlier this year. Might his former campaign manager Mike Schmuhl get him to Indiana sometime this fall? And his ex-PAC, Win the Era, plans to endorse a slate of secretary of state candidates later this year. Destiny Wells, the Indiana Democratic candidate, has applied for the endorsement, which could win her access to Buttigieg’s sprawling email list and national donor and volunteer network.
STATEHOUSE REPUBLICANS—In the vacuum of any messaging on what to expect on further abortion restrictions ahead of next week's special session, Statehouse Republicans are ceding the narrative to figures like Jim Bopp, whose controversial comments went viral last week.
TODD ROKITA—True to frame, the attorney general continued a pattern of shooting first and aiming later last week when he endangered an Indiana doctor who performed a legal abortion for a 10-year-old Ohio girl. He could've easily found the necessary paperwork filed, as other reporters did, but instead rushed to Fox News to capitalize on the situation. Many of his Republican colleagues are growing tired of his antics.