Indiana secretary of state race is taking shape
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Illustration: Eniola Odetunde/Axios
A crowded, compelling and wide-open secretary of state race is taking shape.
The big picture: A field of four relatively unknown candidates could make the election of Indiana's top election official more unpredictable than statewide races usually are.
- Democrats are pinning their hopes on Beau Bayh, the 30-year-old successor to a political dynasty started by his grandfather, former U.S. Sen. Birch Bayh, and father, former Gov. and U.S. Sen. Evan Bayh.
- Republicans ousted embattled incumbent Diego Morales last weekend in favor of Senate staffer Max Engling.
- Two third-party candidates up the uncertainty factor — Lauri Shillings is running as a Libertarian and former Indianapolis mayor Greg Ballard, a Republican turned independent, is expected to be on the ballot under the Lincoln Party.
Between the lines: Ballard is expected to qualify for the ballot. He needs approximately 37,000 signatures to appear.
- His campaign says he's collected and submitted more than 64,000 to county clerks so far.
- Once verified by the clerks, the signatures will be returned to Ballard's campaign for official filing with the state next month.
Catch up quick: The GOP lost confidence in Morales after he became mired in controversies around spending, hiring and other behaviors.
- Engling emerged as the most viable contender against Bayh, according to party leaders and convention delegates.
The intrigue: Bayh's family name is easily recognized in the state, but the 30-year-old himself is relatively unknown.
- Both Bayh and Engling have spent considerable time in Washington — Bayh growing up there while his dad was in Congress before attending Harvard for undergraduate and law school, and Engling as a Capitol Hill staffer.
The bottom line: All four candidates will have work to do introducing themselves to voters over the next four and a half months.