Current:Home > InvestA far-right pastor challenges the Indiana GOP gubernatorial nominee’s choice for running mate -FundWay
A far-right pastor challenges the Indiana GOP gubernatorial nominee’s choice for running mate
View
Date:2025-04-15 08:45:52
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indiana Republican delegates are set to gather Saturday at the party convention to nominate a candidate for lieutenant governor, and in a decidedly unconventional situation they’ll have multiple choices this time.
Traditionally, delegates go along with the gubernatorial nominee’s choice, and Sen. Mike Braun has endorsed state Rep. Julie McGuire to be his running mate. But she is being challenged by an ultra-conservative Christian pastor, Micah Beckwith.
Braun, who is leaving the U.S. Senate, announced his choice in May, a day after winning the primary election with about 40% of the votes. Braun had been endorsed by former President Donald Trump and campaigned largely on national issues such as immigration.
Trump made a surprise endorsement Thursday night for McGuire ahead of the convention, indicating Beckwith’s campaign has some teeth. The endorsement is a major win for McGuire in a state where Trump won the 2020 election by 16 points.
McGuire, from Indianapolis, was a policy analyst for Senate Republicans until 2022, when she unseated a representative who had angered other Republicans in part by repeatedly pushing a complete ban on abortion. Indiana’s current law allows exceptions in rare and limited circumstances.
Braun said he selected McGuire for her strongly conservative legislative and policy record despite her short time in office. If ultimately elected by voters in November, she would be the latest in a series of women to reach the second highest office in a state that has never seen a female governor.
What to know about the 2024 Election
- Democracy: American democracy has overcome big stress tests since 2020. More challenges lie ahead in 2024.
- AP’s Role: The Associated Press is the most trusted source of information on election night, with a history of accuracy dating to 1848. Learn more.
- Read the latest: Follow AP’s complete coverage of this year’s election.
The lieutenant governor runs four state agencies, ceremoniously presides over the Senate and would break tie votes there, if that would ever happen in a chamber where the GOP enjoys a supermajority.
Beckwith, who unsuccessfully ran for Congress from central Indiana in 2020, actively campaigned for lieutenant governor for a year, courting delegates months ahead of the convention. He co-hosts a podcast called “Jesus, Sex and Politics,” and is known for his far-right stances on gender, sexuality and abortion. He cast himself as a political outsider who would keep the governor’s office in check, limit property taxes and oppose school efforts to support the LGBTQ+ community.
Delegates sometimes buck their leaders choices: in 2022, they defied Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb’s backing of the incumbent secretary of state for a second term and instead elected Diego Morales, who went on to win the general election.
Whoever wins this nomination will run with Braun against Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jennifer McCormick, a former state education chief, and Libertarian nominee Donald Rainwater. Democrats haven’t won a statewide office in Indiana since 2012.
veryGood! (8288)
Related
- Jamie Foxx reps say actor was hit in face by a glass at birthday dinner, needed stitches
- Read the Pentagon UFO report newly released by the Department of Defense
- How James Crumbley's DoorDash runs came back to haunt him in Michigan shooting trial
- As the Presidential Election Looms, John Kerry Reckons With the Country’s Climate Past and Future
- The Super Bowl could end in a 'three
- Zendaya's Bold Fashion Moment Almost Distracted Us From Her New Bob Haircut
- Lake Mead's water levels rose again in February, highest in 3 years. Will it last?
- Books on Main feels like you're reading inside a tree house in Wisconsin: See inside
- Could your smelly farts help science?
- The Challenge’s Nelson Thomas Gets Right Foot Amputated After Near-Fatal Car Crash
Ranking
- Which apps offer encrypted messaging? How to switch and what to know after feds’ warning
- Black applications soar at Colorado. Coach Prime Effect?
- Spending bill would ease access to guns for some veterans declared mentally incapable
- Worst NFL trade ever? Here's where Russell Wilson swap, other disastrous deals went wrong
- From family road trips to travel woes: Americans are navigating skyrocketing holiday costs
- Barack Obama turned down a '3 Body Problem' cameo in the best way to 'GOT' creators
- Some fans at frigid Chiefs playoff game underwent amputations, hospital confirms
- 3 prison escapees charged with murder after U.S. couple vanishes while sailing in Grenada
Recommendation
North Carolina trustees approve Bill Belichick’s deal ahead of introductory news conference
A surge of illegal homemade machine guns has helped fuel gun violence in the US
Music Review: Ariana Grande triumphs over heartbreak on seventh studio album, ‘eternal sunshine’
Julianne Hough Reveals the One Exercise She Squeezes in During a Jam-Packed Day
Meet the volunteers risking their lives to deliver Christmas gifts to children in Haiti
Pitch Perfect's Adam Devine and Wife Chloe Bridges Welcome First Baby
Man gets 142 years for 2017 stabbing deaths of Fort Wayne couple
Lilly Pulitzer 60% Off Deals: Your Guide To the Hidden $23 Finds No One Knows About