A long-shot southern Indiana Democrat hopes a Republican state representative’s controversies will provide an opening for a major political upset. 

Seymour Democrat Trish Whitcomb, daughter of Republican former Gov. Edgar Whitcomb and a past adviser to former state Superintendent of Public Instruction Glenda Ritz, is challenging Lucas in her first political campaign. She hopes to shift the focus of the district’s representation to housing, health care and a host of other local issues. 

State Rep. Jim Lucas, R-Seymour, is seeking his seventh term as House District 69’s representative. Lucas has come under fire over the years for his controversial social media posts but has handily won elections with his commitment to conservative politics. 

“Any Democrat would be swimming upstream trying to upset a Republican in Jackson County,” said Bill Bailey, Democratic former Seymour mayor and 10-year state House of Representatives member. “But Trish would probably be the strongest swimmer.” 

Whitcomb brings name recognition, local ties and the potential to rally women voters, Bailey said, and seems to be running an organized campaign. 

But voters have clearly supported Lucas to this point. 

“Since Jim has been reelected several times, the majority of the district must think he’s doing an adequate job,” Bailey said. “I’m interested in seeing if that support has diminished any as a result of his arrest.” 

Lucas’ drunken driving case

In May 2023, Lucas was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving after police found his badly damaged truck had crashed through an interstate guardrail a few miles north of Seymour. 

He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of driving while intoxicated and leaving the scene of an accident. He received probation as part of a plea agreement. 

“I took responsibility for it,” Lucas told State Affairs. “The courts found me guilty, and I did everything the courts required of me. I paid my debt. I thank God every day that nobody got hurt.”

Lucas said the lessons he learned from his arrest have made him a better person. 

Social media controversies

Lucas’ online activities have come under scrutiny over the years. 

In 2019, he was accused of racism after posting a photo of a gallows with two nooses on Facebook in response to a Black man being accused of rape. Lucas denied any racial motivations, saying he believed in capital punishment in cases of rape. 

In 2020, he was accused of racism a second time after posting a photo of Black children in diapers dancing alongside the caption: “We gon’ get free money!” House Speaker Todd Huston publicly admonished Lucas, eventually removing him from two interim study committees and demoting him in a third. Lucas again denied any racial motivations behind the post. 

He was also criticized earlier this year for flashing his holstered handgun to a group of high school students lobbying for gun control laws in the Statehouse. The interaction was captured on video. 

Lucas told State Affairs the full video shows a “reasonable, adult conversation” on the topic of gun rights. 

“They weren’t able to handle somebody showing them a simple exercise of their constitutional right, and they were scared about people carrying firearms,” Lucas said. “The reason I did that was to simply show that there are so many people around them every day who they don’t know carry.” 

More gun rights, school voucher use

If reelected, Lucas said he plans to push several policy positions in the next legislative session. 

He would seek to end gun-free zones on public property, which he said “takes away a person’s constitutional right to carry a firearm” as well as “a moral right to defend himself or herself.” 

Lucas also joined a chorus of Republicans seeking to completely open the use of private school vouchers in education. 

Finally, Lucas said he would endeavor to combat immigration’s “tremendous strain on our social structures.” Specifically, he hopes to tighten regulations on multiple families living in single-family homes and strengthen penalties for driving without a license or insurance. 

“There’s no question about where Jim stands on the issues,” Jackson County Republican Party Chair Amanda Lowery said. “And Republican voters in District 69 are well aware of that, and they appreciate the work that Jim does for them.”

Whitcomb: ‘Someone who puts them first’

Whitcomb brings a varied background to the race. She’s worked as a special education teacher, a retail banker, head of the Indiana Retired Teachers Association and an adviser to Ritz, one of the last Democrats to win statewide election in Indiana. 

Like Lucas, Whitcomb grew up in the area and graduated from Seymour High School. After living in Indianapolis, she returned to Seymour in February 2023.

Lucas and others have called Whitcomb’s residency into question. While she owns a home in Indianapolis, Whitcomb said she resides and is registered to vote in Seymour. 

Whitcomb and others have also questioned whether Lucas still lives in the district, which is required to serve as its representative. He said he still lives and runs a business, The Awning Guy Inc., in Seymour. 

Whitcomb said she decided to run for office in part because of Lucas’ arrest. 

“I think the people of the district deserve someone who puts them first,” she said. “And maybe I have an antiquated expectation that whoever serves in public life should hold himself to a higher standard.” 

Disagreement over immigration, abortion

If elected, Whitcomb would focus on building more housing, lowering the cost of child care and improving health care, including restoring abortion rights in Indiana, she said. 

Whitcomb does not support expanding the voucher program, saying “public dollars should go to public schools.” She noted that private schools often lack critical oversight and adherence to statewide standards. 

She also disagrees with Lucas on immigration. 

“I think that is something that is not a real problem,” Whitcomb said. “It’s a real opportunity.” 

Public schools need adequate funding to be able to teach young immigrant students English so they can be “productive and self-supporting,” Whitcomb believes. 

She maintains that the influx of immigrants into the district has had a positive effect on the area’s economy and population growth at a time when other rural areas across Indiana are losing residents. 

Whitcomb said she would also bring her father’s conservative fiscal outlook with her into public office. Edgar Whitcomb was governor from 1969 until 1973 and was known for regularly vetoing bills, including an attempt to lower property taxes by raising the state sales tax. 

Lucas holds major advantages

House District 69 leans Republican, and Lucas has yet to be seriously challenged in a general election. His 15-percentage-point victory over Jim McCormick in his first campaign in 2012 remains the closest contest he has faced to date. 

However, Lucas showed some vulnerability in the Republican primary earlier this year when he lost his home county, Jackson, to challenger Brian Savilla. Lucas ultimately won the race by 15 percentage points. 

The incumbent also holds a fundraising advantage over Whitcomb, owing largely to $85,000 in contributions from the Indiana House Republican Campaign Committee. Lucas ended the preelection fundraising period with about $4,300 left in his account. As of Oct. 11, he had spent nearly $130,000 on his reelection bid. 

Whitcomb spent about $35,000 during the same period and had more than $46,000 left for the final push. 

Some residents split after Seymour debate

During a Sept. 25 debate at their shared alma mater, Seymour High School, Lucas and Whitcomb laid out their policy plans and personal beliefs before a crowd of around 100 area residents. 

Gina Klein, of Seymour, left the high school auditorium supporting Whitcomb, saying she liked the Democrat’s views on women’s reproductive rights and immigration. 

“I think she took a very compassionate route,” Klein said. 

Klein’s husband, John, called Lucas “a good politician” but said he, too, supports Whitcomb. 

Gary Cunningham, also of Seymour, praised Lucas’ debate performance. 

“I like his gun point of view and his financial point of view,” Cunningham said. “I can’t follow progressives.”

Contact Rory Appleton on X at @roryehappleton or email him at [email protected].

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