2016 Indiana gubernatorial election

The 2016 Indiana gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 2016, to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of Indiana, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election as well as elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. The primaries were held on May 3, 2016. Republican Lieutenant Governor Eric Holcomb won the race with 51.4% of the vote.

2016 Indiana gubernatorial election

November 8, 2016

Nominee Eric Holcomb John R. Gregg Party Republican Democratic Running mate Suzanne Crouch Christina Hale Popular vote 1,397,396 1,235,503 Percentage 51.4% 45.4%

County results Holcomb:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80% Gregg:      40-50%      50–60%      60–70%

Governor before election Mike Pence Republican Elected Governor Eric Holcomb Republican

Incumbent Republican Governor Mike Pence was running for reelection to a second term in office until July 15, 2016, when Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump selected Pence as his vice presidential running mate.[1] As Pence was barred by Indiana law from simultaneously running for both offices, he subsequently withdrew from the gubernatorial election.[2] Pence went on to become Vice President of the United States. He was replaced on the ballot for Governor by his former running mate, incumbent Lieutenant Governor Eric Holcomb, who was selected by the Indiana Republican State Committee as the nominee on July 26, 2016.[3] Holcomb later selected State Auditor Suzanne Crouch on August 1, 2016, to be his running mate as the nomination for Lieutenant Governor was made vacant by the decision of Holcomb to seek the gubernatorial nomination; she was confirmed at a subsequent meeting of the Indiana Republican State Committee later that day.[3][4]

John Gregg, the former Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives, was the Democratic nominee. Gregg previously ran for Governor in 2012, but was defeated by Pence.

Republican primary

Declared

• Mike Pence, incumbent Governor (withdrew after primary to run for Vice President of the United States as the running mate of Donald Trump)[1]

Declined

• Greg Ballard, former Mayor of Indianapolis
• Susan Brooks, U.S. Representative and former United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana (ran for re-election)[5]
• Luke Messer, U.S. Representative (ran for re-election)[6][7]
• Todd Young, U.S. Representative (ran for the U.S. Senate)[6][7][8]

Results

Republican primary results[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Mike Pence (incumbent)	815,699	100.00%
Total votes			815,699	100.00%

Republican State Committee selection

On July 15, 2016, Donald Trump announced that Pence would be his running mate as vice president in the 2016 presidential election. Under Indiana law, Pence was unable to run for both governor and vice president simultaneously; he therefore withdrew from the gubernatorial election, creating a vacancy on the Republican ticket. On July 26, the chairman of the Indiana Republican Party, Jeff Cardwell, announced that Eric Holcomb had been nominated by the Indiana Republican State Committee to replace Pence on the ballot for Governor. The vote totals were not released. Holcomb later selected Suzanne Crouch on August 1, 2016, to be his running mate as the nomination for Lieutenant Governor was made vacant by the decision of Holcomb to seek the gubernatorial nomination; she was then confirmed by the Committee at a meeting later that day.[3][4]

Declared

• Susan Brooks, U.S. Representative and former United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana[10]
• Eric Holcomb, Lieutenant Governor of Indiana[10]
  • Running mate: Suzanne Crouch, Indiana State Auditor[4]
• Todd Rokita, U.S. Representative and former Indiana Secretary of State[10]
• Jim Tomes, state senator[11]

Declined

• Brian Bosma, Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives[10]
• Mitch Daniels, former governor of Indiana[10]
• Lloyd Winnecke, Mayor of Evansville[10]

Democratic primary

Declared

• John R. Gregg, former Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives and nominee for Governor in 2012[12]
  • Running mate: Christina Hale, state representative[13]

Withdrawn

• Glenda Ritz, Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction (subsequently ran for re-election)[14]
• Karen Tallian, state senator[15]

Declined

• Evan Bayh, former U.S. Senator and former Governor of Indiana (ran for the U.S. Senate) [16]
• Pete Buttigieg, Mayor of South Bend[17]
• Greg Goodnight, Mayor of Kokomo[18]
• Baron Hill, former U.S. Representative and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 1990[16][19][20][21]
• Scott Pelath, Minority Leader of the Indiana House of Representatives[22]
• Tony Roswarski, Mayor of Lafayette[18]
• Tom Sugar, vice president of Complete College America and former aide to Evan Bayh[23][24]

Endorsements

John Gregg

Politicians

• Dennis Buckley, Mayor of Beech Grove[18]
• Doug Campbell, Mayor of Austin[18]
• Harold "Soup" Campbell, Mayor of North Vernon[18]
• Dennis Carr, Mayor of Lawrenceburg[18]
• Anthony Copeland, Mayor of East Chicago[18]
• Collin Czilli, City Councilman, Portage
• Tom DeBaun, Mayor of Shelbyville[18]
• Ted Ellis, Mayor of Bluffton[18]
• Jon Flickinger, Mayor of Bicknell[18]
• Randy Geesaman, Mayor of Portland[18]
• Jack Gilfoy, Mayor of Clinton[18]
• Greg Goodnight, Mayor of Kokomo[18]
• Noel Harty, Mayor of Loogootee[18]
• Pam Hendrickson, Mayor of Boonville[18]
• Tom Henry, Mayor of Fort Wayne[18]
• Dick Hickman, Mayor of Angola[18]
• Robert Hurst, Mayor of Princeton[18]
• Sally Hutton, Mayor of Richmond[18]
• Dean Jessup, Mayor of Lawrence[18]
• Mark Kruzan, Mayor of Bloomington[18]
• Clint Lamb, Mayor of Sullivan[18]
• Sue Murray, Mayor of Greencastle[18]
• Gary Pruett, Mayor of Mitchell[18]
• Glenda Ritz, Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction[25]
• Tony Roswarski, Mayor of Lafayette[18]
• John Schultz, Mayor of Decatur[18]
• Brian Snedecor, Mayor of Hobart[18]
• Joe Stahura, Mayor of Whiting[18]
• Randy Strasser, Mayor of Delphi[18]
• Roy Terrell Jr., Mayor of Jasonville[18]
• John Tucker, Mayor of Mount Vernon[18]
• Dennis Tyler, Mayor of Muncie[18]
• David Uran, Mayor of Crown Point[18]
• John Wilkes, Mayor of Linton[18]
• Hugh Wirth, Mayor of Oakland City[18]
• Brian Wyndham, Mayor of Brazil[18]
• Joe Yochum, Mayor of Vincennes[18]
• Greg York, Mayor of New Castle[18]

Organizations

• Indiana State AFL–CIO[26]

Results

Democratic primary results[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	John R. Gregg	547,375	100.00
Total votes			547,375	100.00

Libertarian Party convention

Declared

• Rex Bell, businessman[27]
• Jim Wallace[27]

Nominated

• Rex Bell, businessman[27]
  • Running mate: Karl Tatgenhorst

General election

Candidates

• Democratic: John R. Gregg, former Speaker of the Indiana House of Representatives and nominee for Governor in 2012
  • Running mate: Christina Hale, state representative
• Libertarian: Rex Bell, businessman
  • Running mate: Karl Tatgenhorst
• Republican: Eric Holcomb, Lieutenant Governor of Indiana
  • Running mate: Suzanne Crouch, Indiana State Auditor

Debates

• Complete video of debate, September 27, 2016 - C-SPAN
• Complete video of debate, October 3, 2016 - C-SPAN
• Complete video of debate, October 25, 2016 - C-SPAN

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report[28]	Tossup	November 3, 2016
Sabato's Crystal Ball[29]	Lean D (flip)	November 7, 2016
Rothenberg Political Report[30]	Tilt R	November 3, 2016
Daily Kos[31]	Tossup	November 7, 2016
Real Clear Politics[32]	Tossup	November 1, 2016

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Eric Holcomb (R)	John Gregg (D)	Rex Bell (L)	Undecided
SurveyMonkey	November 1–7, 2016	1,700	± 4.6%	47%	49%	–	4%
SurveyMonkey	October 31 – November 6, 2016	1,383	± 4.6%	46%	49%	–	5%
WTHR/Howey	November 1–3, 2016	600	± 4.0%	42%	42%	5%	11%
SurveyMonkey	October 28 – November 3, 2016	923	± 4.6%	47%	47%	–	6%
SurveyMonkey	October 27 – November 2, 2016	790	± 4.6%	48%	47%	–	5%
Gravis Marketing	October 30 – November 1, 2016	399	± 4.9%	38%	42%	4%	16%
SurveyMonkey	October 26 – November 1, 2016	638	± 4.6%	49%	47%	–	4%
SurveyMonkey	October 25–31, 2016	674	± 4.6%	47%	48%	–	5%
Monmouth University	October 27–30, 2016	402	± 4.9%	42%	48%	4%	5%
Gravis Marketing	October 22–24, 2016	596	± 2.3%	38%	42%	4%	16%
Ball State University (PSRAI)	October 10–16, 2016	544	± 4.8%	43%	48%	–	–
Monmouth University	October 11–13, 2016	402	± 4.9%	38%	50%	4%	7%
BK Strategies (R-Holcomb)	October 11–13, 2016	800	± 3.5%	42%	42%	3%	13%
WTHR/Howey	October 3–5, 2016	600	± 4.0%	39%	41%	5%	15%
WTHR/Howey	September 6–8, 2016	600	± 4.0%	35%	40%	6%	19%
Monmouth University	August 13–16, 2016	403	± 4.9%	42%	41%	4%	13%
Expedition Strategies (D-Gregg)	August 1–3, 2016	600	± 4.0%	39%	46%	6%	9%
The Tarrance Group	July 20–21, 2016	503	± 4.4%	34%	42%	–	24%

Results

Holcomb won with 51.4% of the votes, Gregg taking 45.4%, and Libertarian Rex Bell finishing with 3.2%.[33]

2016 Indiana gubernatorial election[34]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Eric Holcomb	1,397,396	51.38%	+1.89%
	Democratic	John R. Gregg	1,235,503	45.42%	-1.14%
	Libertarian	Rex Bell	87,025	3.20%	-0.75%
	Write-in		44	0.00%	0.00%
Total votes			2,719,968	100.00%	N/A
	Republican hold

References

1. "Donald Trump selects Mike Pence as VP". Retrieved July 15, 2016.
2. "Mike Pence officially withdraws from Indiana governor's race". WDRB.com. July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
3. Eason, Brian; Tony, Cook; Briggs, James (July 26, 2016). "Indiana GOP panel nominates Eric Holcomb for governor". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
4. "Holcomb introduces Crouch as his running mate in governor's race". Fox 59. August 1, 2016. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
5. Weidenbener, Lesley (April 22, 2015). "Brooks to run for House reelection, not Senate". The Statehouse File. Retrieved April 22, 2015.
6. Joseph, Cameron (March 24, 2015). "Coats retirement in Indiana shakes up 2016 battle for Senate". The Hill. Retrieved March 24, 2015.
7. Brian Howey (January 30, 2015). "If Sen. Coates doesn't run, who does?". kokomoperspective.com. Retrieved February 3, 2015.
8. Howey, Brian (May 26, 2015). "A fascinating U.S. Senate race is setting up". News and Tribune. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
9. "Indiana Primary Election, May 3, 2016". Pennsylvania Secretary of State. Retrieved July 20, 2016.
10. "Holcomb, Rokita, Brooks in; Bosma out of race to be GOP gubernatorial nominee". Indiana Business Journal. July 15, 2016. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
11. Osowski, Zach (July 19, 2016). "Tomes says despite odds, "It's in my heart to run" for governor". Evansville Courier & Press. Retrieved July 19, 2016.
12. LoBianco, Tom (April 30, 2015). "Source: Democrat John Gregg set to announce governor bid". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved April 30, 2015.
13. http://indianapublicmedia.org/news/john-gregg-announce-running-mate-today-99364/
14. Cook, Tony; Schneider, Chelsea (August 7, 2015). "Glenda Ritz drops out of governor's race". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
15. Carden, Dan (August 17, 2015). "Tallian drops out of governor's race". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved August 17, 2015.
16. "Bayh not running for governor in 2016". nwi.com. September 13, 2014. Retrieved October 26, 2014.
17. Blasko, Erin (February 25, 2014). "Buttigieg: 'Zero interest' in governor's seat". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved February 23, 2015.
18. "36 Indiana Mayors Endorse John Gregg for Governor". Gregg for Governor. August 13, 2015. Archived from the original on August 16, 2015. Retrieved August 14, 2015.
19. Spehler, Dan (February 13, 2015). "Potential candidate for governor talks education, healthcare". WXIN. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
20. Hayden, Maureen (December 3, 2014). "Former Congressman Hill mulls run for governor". News and Tribune. Retrieved December 3, 2014.
21. Cahn, Emily (May 15, 2015). "Ousted Democrat Announces Indiana Senate Bid". Roll Call. Retrieved May 15, 2015.
22. Carden, Dan (May 27, 2015). "Pelath rules out run for governor". The Times of Northwest Indiana. Retrieved May 28, 2015.
23. Schneider, Chelsea (August 7, 2015). "Long-time Bayh aide mulling run for governor". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved August 7, 2015.
24. Schneider, Chelsea (September 21, 2015). "Tom Sugar will not run for governor". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved September 21, 2015.
25. "Former Indiana governor candidate Glenda Ritz lends support to John Gregg". The News-Sentinel. Associated Press. August 11, 2015. Retrieved August 17, 2015.
26. "Indiana State AFL-CIO Endorses John Gregg for Governor". Indiana State AFL-CIO. August 17, 2015. Retrieved August 17, 2015.
27. Staff (April 28, 2016). "Libertarian Party of Indiana nominates Rex Bell for Governor". Greensburg Daily News. Retrieved May 13, 2016.
28. "2016 Governor Race ratings". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
29. "Our Final 2016 picks". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
30. "Gubernatorial Ratings". The Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
31. "Elections 2015-16". Daily Kos. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
32. "2016 Election Maps - 2016 Governor Races". Real Clear Politics. Retrieved October 15, 2018.
33. Indiana Secretary of State Election Results
34. "Indiana Secretary of State Election Results". Indiana Secretary of State. Retrieved January 4, 2017.

External links

Official campaign websites (Archived)

• Eric Holcomb (R) for Governor
• John Gregg (D) for Governor
• Rex Bell (L) for Governor