A down-ballot candidate from the right throws a wrench into the Indiana governor's race

INDIANAPOLIS — Republican U.S. Sen. Mike Braun's bid to become governor of Indiana seemed fairly straightforward until he got the running mate he didn't want: a pastor and self-proclaimed Christian nationalist who finessed his way onto next month's ballot.

Micah Beckwith, a podcaster from the Indianapolis suburb of Noblesville, where he leads Life Church, secured enough delegate support to upend the lieutenant governor nomination process at this year's state GOP convention and become Braun's running mate. His brand of conservatism has complicated the race by forcing Braun to discuss Beckwith's views.

Friction between the running mates and a series of negative ads have given an unexpected boost to Democratic nominees Jennifer McCormick and Terry Goodin, the overwhelming underdogs in a state that hasn't elected a Democrat to statewide office since 2012. The dynamics on the Republican ticket plus strong campaigns from the Democrats have caused forecasters to hedge on their certainty that both seats will stay Republican.

“The race is more competitive relative to expectations,” said Greg Shufeldt, a University of Indianapolis political science professor.

Who is Micah Beckwith?

Usually, gubernatorial candidates select who they want as running mates and count on party delegates to usher their choices in during party conventions. But Beckwith started courting delegates over a year in advance and pulled a major upset at the GOP convention in June. Delegates blessed his nomination and rejected Julie McGuire, a freshman state representative chosen by Braun, even after Braun helped her secure Donald Trump's endorsement.

Beckwith, who did not respond to multiple requests for comment, has used his social media platform to air views that have stirred up trouble. In addition to declaring that God sent the people who rioted at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, he was criticized last month for saying his Democratic opponents have a “ Jezebel spirit.”

Braun has spent recent weeks fielding the fallout.

At a debate earlier this month between McCormick and Braun, she pressed Braun to apologize for the “Jezebel spirit” comment from his running mate.

“I don’t like that," Braun replied. “You don’t see that out of me, and he’s been pretty good at avoiding that.”

Earlier this month, Beckwith was seen on video at a local Republican Party meeting saying he would fire any employee in his office or the agencies he oversees who lists their pronouns in emails. The story was first reported by the Advocate, an LGBTQ+ publication, and the video was uploaded by The Bloomingtonian.

“If you think that men can be women and women can be men and there’s pronouns needed when we’re talking to one another, you don’t understand the basics of even reality,” Beckwith said.

Braun denounced the statement, saying he would hire and fire employees based “solely on their merit and commitment to delivering efficient, effective state government to make life better and more affordable for Hoosiers, period.”

The lieutenant governor is first in the line of succession under Indiana law. Lieutenant governors oversee four state agencies but have no real legislative power. Those limits haven't stopped Beckwith from wading into topics he likely wouldn't encounter on the job.

Mike Murphy, a former Republican state lawmaker and political commentator, said Beckwith represents the socially conservative side of the party.

“I’d say that Micah Beckwith is a product and a symbol of a lot of unrest in the Indiana Republican Party,” Murphy said.

Braun, who led an auto parts distribution company and has run campaigns aligned with Trump, may be able to unite business-oriented Republicans and the social conservatives, Murphy said.

In an interview, Braun said all campaigns have their ups and downs. He believes voter turnout for Trump will have a positive impact down the ballot.

“When I ran for Senate six years ago — we’re in better shape now than we were then,” he said.

Who are Braun and Beckwith running against?

Braun, a one-term senator, has represented Indiana in Congress since 2018. His campaign has focused on high healthcare costs and property taxes, as well as criticizing the federal government on southern border policy.

Braun handily won a five-way gubernatorial primary in May with nearly 40% of the votes.

But that means 60% of the state’s primary voters didn't back him. McCormick and Libertarian Donald Rainwater are looking to peel away some of those Republican voters.

McCormick has cited Beckwith's views in labeling the GOP ticket as extremist. She's built her appeal to moderate voters around the restoration of abortion rights in a state that enacted a near total ban in 2022.

The candidates themselves reflect some recent shifts in Indiana politics. Braun voted as a Democrat until 2012; McCormick switched parties in 2021 after breaking with Republicans over education policy when she was state school superintendent. A new ad released Monday depicts a Republican man vowing to support her.

“We’ve got great momentum, and that momentum is really Republicans and Democrats and independents,” McCormick said in an interview.

Indiana does not allow for citizen-led ballot initiatives like those in other red-leaning states that have abortion on the ballot this year. Even if McCormick defies the odds, Republicans hold a supermajority in both chambers of the legislature, and reversing the state's ban would be difficult if not impossible.

But the response from the Braun campaign shows he isn't assuming he'll win. Earlier this month, Braun aired an ad attacking McCormick as a liberal, tying her to Hillary Clinton and President Joe Biden. The ad drew attention both for its negativity in a race that was supposed to be easy for Braun and for its use of a doctored image.

The ad claims McCormick supported banning gas stoves, an idea that became a culture war flashpoint in 2023. It featured an image that had been manipulated to depict people standing behind McCormick holding signs that said “no gas stoves." It was a digitally altered version of a photograph taken by a South Bend Tribune journalist in May 2023.

Indiana lawmakers passed a law this year banning the use of artificial intelligence in election materials without a disclaimer. Braun's campaign said the ad was mistakenly given to TV stations.

Rainwater, the Libertarian candidate who is running again, has concerned the state Republican Party enough that they sent a mailer out criticizing him, according to the Indiana Capitol Chronicle. He won 11.4% of votes when he ran for governor in 2020 after pandemic lockdowns riled up Indiana voters. A similar turnout for him could siphon votes away from Braun.

“I think people are very dissatisfied with the status quo from both federal and state and really local government as well,” Rainwater said in an interview.

Braun has trumped McCormick in advertising overall, spending more than $13 million this year on ads, which includes the time period of the GOP primary, according to data from AdImpact, which tracks campaign spending. He's spent more than three times what McCormick has on advertising.

According to campaign finance reports, Braun raised almost $4.87 million from July through September. McCormick lagged but has made gains since earlier in the year, raising over $2 million in the same period.

McCormick received $1.65 million from the Democratic Governor's Association in October, according to campaign finance reports. That's the first significant investment in an Indiana governor's race since 2016, when Mike Pence stepped down to run for vice president.

The Republican Governor’s Association responded quickly, giving Braun $1.5 million this month — a clear sign the race has gotten their attention.

Shufeldt, the University of Indianapolis professor, said the DGA money could help Democrats rebuild in Indiana even if McCormick falls short, and “might pay dividends down the road.”

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Volmert reported from Lansing, Mich.