Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb was elected for a second term by a hefty margin as the Republican party swept the state to retain supermajority control of the state Senate and House of Representatives. Indiana, home to Vice President Mike Pence, was also one of the first states to go to President Donald Trump on election night, gaining him 11 electoral college votes.
Holcomb won his reelection campaign defeating Democratic nominee Woodrow Myers and Libertarian Donald Rainwater. Holcomb first became the Republican nominee for governor in 2016 when former governor Mike Pence ran as Donald Trump’s vice president. The Associated Press called the gubernatorial race around 7 p.m. Tuesday night with 12 percent of the vote reported.
Holcomb ran his reelection campaign on the promise to usher in a new era of record job commitments, record infrastructure investments and new career training opportunities. Holcomb succeeded to hold onto his supporters as the leader of the state’s coronavirus response despite some pushback on ongoing mask mandates.
“Around here in Indiana… we don't just dream big things. We do big things and we aspire to be a positive influence all along the way,” Holcomb said at a watch party with Republican supporters Tuesday night.
Myers conceded to Holcomb and called him to congratulate the governor about an hour after the election was called. Myers thanked Hoosiers who supported him in a tweet shortly after.
Sophomore Claire Kloska, a native of South Bend, said she was not “too surprised” Holcomb came out ahead.
“Just because Indiana has had a Republican governor for the past 15 years and the general population tends to vote red, making it probably the most likely outcome,” Kloska said.
Shelby Riehle, a sophomore from LaPorte, said she also was not surprised. Despite the disputes and concerns over the pandemic, Riehle said she thought conversations over the health crisis were productive.
“I feel like both candidates addressed the virus considerably in their platforms,” Riehle said. “I am pleased and think [Holcomb] will continue to be a strong leader for our state.”
In the general assembly, the GOP appeared as of late Tuesday night, to keep its lock on legislative control to hold onto its two-thirds majority in the House and the Senate.
Though the Democratic party heavily focused its efforts on the contested attorney general seat, Republican candidate former Indiana Congressman Todd Rokita won with 60 percent of the vote against Democratic candidate former Evansville Mayor Jonathan Weinzapfel.
