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Request a DemoGubernatorial candidates have started releasing campaign ads that are critical of their opponents ahead of the competitive May 2024 primary election.
This primary is unique: Rarely have there been as many credible candidates running for office in a Republican gubernatorial primary, raising large sums of money.
U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch, former Commerce Secretary Brad Chambers, former IEDC President Eric Doden and former Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill are all likely to make the ballot.
State Affairs will be breaking down some of the claims from attack ads throughout this election cycle.
Is there an ad you want us to look into? State Affairs will update this story.
Qualified immunity criticism of Braun
The Doden campaign released an ad in November, criticizing Braun for pushing a bill to reform qualified immunity, which shields law enforcement officers from liability while performing official duties.
Claim: “Instead of standing up to the radical liberals in Washington who wanted to make [police officers’] jobs harder, Braun took up their cause sponsoring a plan to make it easier to sue law enforcement for simply doing [their] jobs.”
Our rating: True.
The facts: Braun filed a bill in 2020 while serving in the U.S. Senate limiting qualified immunity for police officers. Braun later walked back the proposal after pushback from police.
At the time Braun said the current standards were "overly broad" and "allows law enforcement in many of the high-profile excessive force and abuse of power cases to avoid civil suits,” IndyStar reported in 2020.
During a Dentons Legislative Conference panel last week Braun said he proposed the bill as a response to those who wanted to completely eliminate qualified immunity.
“I wanted to codify it, put it in place where it protected law enforcement, got rid of frivolous lawsuits. And when [police] told us they would prefer that you do nothing at the national level … we listened and learned,” he said.
‘Desperate Doden’ attacks from Sen. Braun
The Braun campaign released a “Desperate Doden” webpage after Doden’s campaign went after his record.
Claim: "Doden’s campaign is now being funded by over $1 million dollars in donations tied to businesses that profited from his time at the IEDC and Greater Fort Wayne Inc."
Our rating: This one is murky.
The facts: The Braun campaign pointed State Affairs to $350,000 worth of campaign donations from companies that received money from the IEDC while Doden was president of the agency. The owners of Ash Brokerage, Premier Truck Rental and Sweetwater Sound each contributed money to Doden’s campaign, State Affairs confirmed. (Chambers has faced similar concerns about his time leading the IEDC, Indiana Capital Chronicle reported.)
The Braun campaign didn’t provide any other examples of companies that directly received money from either the IEDC or Greater Fort Wayne Inc., a nonprofit economic development organization.
However, the Braun campaign also counted donations from Doden’s parents and his father’s company Ambassador Enterprises totalling $950,000 as part of that $1 million number. Ambassador Enterprises was a lender for a project Greater Fort Wayne Inc. advocated for when Doden served as its CEO.
Claim: “Doden awarded $6 million in taxpayer funded incentives to companies that he had a financial interest in.”
Our rating: Mostly false
The facts: The “Desperate Doden” website links to a $6 million contract between the IEDC and Ash Brokerage Corp. Doden has never had a financial interest in Ash Brokerage, according to his campaign. The only connection: Ash Brokerage’s CEO was involved in another project, known as Cityscape Flats, during the same time period that Doden’s company Domo Venture was working on it. Both development projects were located in Fort Wayne.
But, while Doden initially asked the state’s ethics commission whether there would be a conflict of interest if his company received a state tax credit for the Cityscape Flats project, Domo never actually received a contract.
Claim: Doden supported a Democrat for mayor in Fort Wayne and was opposed to Trump tax cuts.
Our rating: Half true
The facts: In an editorial in the Fort Wayne Gazette in 2019, Doden wrote that he supported Democratic Mayor Tom Henry in 2015 because he “believed him to be the best candidate.” In that same editorial, Doden explained why he was not supporting him again in 2019.
In the October 2017 article the Braun campaign cites to back up the statement that Doden was opposed to Trump’s tax cuts, there’s no indication that Doden was resistant to the cuts themselves. But he did voice concerns that Republicans would eliminate the federal Historic Tax Credit as part of the tax reforms, which they did consider. The tax credit, though, was retained in the final version of the bill, which was signed by President Donald Trump two months later.
Contact Kaitlin Lange on X @kaitlin_lange or email her at [email protected].
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How McCormick, Braun view abortion, taxes and other key issues
A Democrat-turned-Republican and Republican-turned-Democrat will soon face off in the race to become Indiana’s next governor.
Sen. Mike Braun, who voted as a Democrat prior to 2012, captured the Republican nomination in Tuesday’s primary. Jennifer McCormick, formerly a Republican Superintendent of Public Instruction, will represent the Democrats.
Voters will decide the state’s next chief executive in November.
A State Affairs analysis of the candidates’ campaign platforms and public statements found key differences — and a few similarities — in their planned approaches to a variety of issues impacting Hoosier voters.
Here is how they match up.
Abortion
Braun: As a senator, Braun has long supported abortion restrictions.
In 2020, he called for the Supreme Court to re-examine Roe v. Wade.
In 2023, he proposed federal legislation that would have required parental notification before any unemancipated minor could seek an abortion. He said at the time: “Hoosiers put their trust in me to stand up for the unborn, and that’s what I’ve been proud to do every day in the Senate.”
He has since signaled support for the state’s abortion ban. His platform reads: “State lawmakers must work to ensure the gains we have made to protect life are secured and strengthened.”
McCormick: In a Tuesday interview with State Affairs, McCormick said her candidacy represented a referendum on reproductive rights.
“I’m going to fight to restore those rights under any authority I can, working in a bipartisan fashion, using our committees, board and our agencies. I also know, too, what everybody’s fear is: that they’re [Republicans] not going to restore those rights and will take [restrictions] further.”
From her platform: “Indiana’s Republican-led extreme abortion ban has taken away the right of women to make deeply personal decisions regarding their own health care.”
Marijuana
Braun: At a March 26 Republican primary debate, Braun suggested an openness to legalizing medicinal marijuana.
“It’s gonna hit all of us. I’m gonna listen to law enforcement — they have to put up with the brunt of it,” he said. “Medical marijuana is where I think the case is best made that maybe something needs to change. But I’ll take my cue from law enforcement there as well. … I hear a lot of input where [medical marijuana is] helpful, and I think that you need to listen and see what makes sense.”
McCormick: The Democrat’s platform also addresses medical marijuana legalization, while speculating on possible recreational use.
“We will fight for the legalization of medical marijuana as a source of state revenue established on a well-regulated marketplace and monitored by a Cannabis Task Force in order to study the issues, opportunities and potential obstructions associated with recreational marijuana legalization.”
McCormick said she would also support expunging low-level marijuana-related convictions.
Taxes
Braun: At a March 19 National Federation of Independent Business forum, Braun said the state’s property tax system “went out of whack because it couldn’t respond to inflation like we’ve never seen before.”
“The way you finance any lower taxes would be to bank on the government being run more efficiently,” he said.
His platform also calls for government spending cuts to finance lower taxes: “Reducing the size of government is the key to cutting taxes, and Mike Braun will work through every state agency to find ways to save money while delivering high-quality services to taxpayers.”
McCormick: McCormick also spoke about taxes at the March 19 forum.
“I agree with a revamp of our taxing system,” she said. “But also it’s about not just how we’re getting our revenue, it’s about our expenditures. Yes, we need to fix our gas tax. Yes, we need to look at the income tax. But here’s the thing: There are hidden taxes we’re not having a conversation about.”
Her platform also references the possibility of combining state agencies as a way to save money.
Education
Braun: In his platform, Braun supports broadening school choice and parental rights.
“As a former school board member, Mike Braun knows parents are the primary stakeholders in their children’s education and every family, regardless of income or zip code, should be able to enroll in a school of their choice and pursue a curriculum that prepares them for a career, college or the military,” the platform reads.
Braun also pledged to ensure critical race theory and discussions about gender are banned in public schools.
McCormick: Education is one of McCormick’s primary issues, according to her platform.
She calls for the elimination of statewide testing, increased early childhood reading and child care options and a minimum base salary of $60,000 for all K-12 teachers.
McCormick also addresses the state’s school choice movement.
“We will call for a pause in the expansion of school privatization efforts while requiring fiscal and academic accountability and transparency for all of Indiana schools that receive public tax dollars,” her platform reads.
U.S.-Mexico border
Braun: Braun’s television ads have touched on border security, and his platform calls for increased focus on the area.
“Joe Biden and the left have created a humanitarian and national security crisis on our southern border,” the platform reads. “As governor, Mike will continue to support and enact the America First policies that were working. Otherwise, every town will become a border town.”
McCormick: McCormick’s border-related plans are more focused on facilitating legal immigration.
“We will work with local, state and federal officials in supporting an immigrant system that creates a safe, timely, orderly and humane pathway for those seeking legal immigration while keeping our communities and those responsible for border security safe,” her platform reads.
Contact Rory Appleton on X at @roryehappleton or email him at [email protected].
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